A working visit to Bulgaria by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was marked by a protest. When the official motorcade carrying the Commission President arrived at the Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy in Varna, protesters gathered at the scene pelted the vehicles with eggs, tomatoes and other fruit and vegetables.
Von der Leyen had travelled to the Bulgarian port city to announce EU financial assistance to help protect commercial vessels in the region against deadly drone attacks.
The demonstration was organised by supporters of the NATO- and EU-sceptic Revival (Vazrazhdane) party. Protesters held banners reading “Varna wants peace, not war!” and “Go home!”, voicing their opposition to Bulgaria’s military involvement, EU support for Ukraine and the introduction of the euro.
Over the past month, at least nine commercial cargo ships have been targeted in maritime drone attacks off the coasts of NATO member states Romania and Bulgaria. Several sailors have lost their lives, while others remain missing.
At a press conference in Varna, von der Leyen stressed that the security of the Black Sea is essential to the security of Europe as a whole, and that the maritime escalation of the war between Russia and Ukraine poses a direct threat to global food and energy supplies.
To address the unfolding crisis, the European Commission President announced a total EU support package of €70 million for the region.
