Russians: Out of 200 Asylum Applications in Bulgaria only 8 were Approved

From February 24 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine, until April of this year, more than 200 applications were submitted to the Bulgarian State Agency for Refugees requesting the granting of political asylum to citizens of the Russian Federation. Of these, only 8 were approved, according to data from the emigrant organization "For Free Russia", founded in Bulgaria. The state agency silently refuses to confirm or deny this data. And according to Gennady Gudkov - a former opposition deputy in the Russian Duma who now lives in Varna, the commission's activity demonstrates "a disgraceful attitude towards the fate of people threatened with criminal prosecution in Russia because of their declared negative attitude towards Putin's war in Ukraine and his repressive mode."

The last case of refusal to grant humanitarian and refugee status in Bulgaria to a Russian citizen was on May 30 of this year. Then the Supreme Administrative Court finally rejected the application of the Russian citizen Alexander Stotsky.

He arrived in Bulgaria immediately after the start of the war in Ukraine. In his homeland, Stotsky openly stated his oppositional beliefs and condemned Putin's aggression and repression.

He was an observer of the Duma elections of the Russian Federation in the headquarters of the Moscow opposition politicians and a supporter of the "Smart Voting" platform founded by the opposition leader Alexei Navalny. In Bulgaria, Stotsky is among the most active participants in anti-Putin and anti-war protests and a member of "For Free Russia". Since his arrival in our country, he has worked as a volunteer in the centers for providing assistance to refugees from Ukraine. However, his request for asylum in Bulgaria was rejected.

According to the...