site.btaRenew Europe to Initiate Plenary Debate in EP on Ongoing Assault on Democratic Institutions, Rule of Law in Bulgaria, Varna Mayor's Arrest

European Parliament's Renew Europe Group said Wednesday that it will initiate a plenary debate on "the ongoing assault on democratic institutions and rule of law in Bulgaria, and the arrest and continuous detention of Varna’s Mayor". The proposal to put this item on the agenda is expected to be tabled in Strasbourg in September.

Renew Europe demands the strongest EU response to Bulgaria's rule of law crisis, it stressed on Facebook. "The arrest and prolonged detention of Mayor Kotsev is a signal of an ongoing assault on democratic institutions in Bulgaria, undermining the presumption of innocence and resembling political repression," the statement reads. 

The EP group underlined that this is not an isolated incident and confirms what the 2025 Rule of Law Report warned: that Bulgaria suffers from "persistent failure to ensure judicial independence", "lack of progress on tackling high-level corruption", "systemic breaches of suspects' rights and due process", as well as "political influence undermining media freedom".

Action and reform are urgent, the group added.

"We call on all pro-European political groups that support the rule of law and European standards to back this debate and speak out. We cannot wait for the situation to worsen- democracy and EU values must be defended now," Renew Europe wrote.

In September, the EP Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs is expected to discuss at the request of the MEPs from Renew Europe the sending of an observation mission to Bulgaria. The intention was announced on July 16, when a protest took place in Brussels in front of the EP in support of Kotsev.