Myths and facts about the protests in Bulgaria against European integration

On February 23, 2025, a video with a sensational headline was posted on the YouTube channel CTVBY: “Bulgarians burned effigies of EU officials! Large rally against the EU in Sofia! #bulgaria #europeanunion #crisis”. The video garnered about 600,000 views.
The content of this story:

Discontented Bulgarians flooded the streets of Sofia. Local residents took to the streets for a large-scale rally against the authorities’ decision to make the euro the national currency. They stormed the EU representative office building. Protesters set fire to the European Commission’s entrance door and threw paint at the parliament facade. The gathered crowd also burned effigies of EU officials. Police had to intervene in the events. Six people were detained. People are concerned that the introduction of the single currency will lead to a sharp rise in prices and destroy Bulgaria’s financial independence. I remind you that locals have repeatedly demonstrated their aversion to European integration, which is being imposed by the new government. It was approved in January following early elections and is working towards the country’s accession to the EU.

Our verdict based on the analyses conducted:

Verdict: Incorrect

Reasons:

• The thesis or statement is completely false: information from multiple sources or opinions of several experts in the specific field contradict it.
• The causal relationships and connections clearly do not exist as claimed.
• When quoting, substantial parts are omitted, rearranged, altered, or incorrectly translated from a foreign language, resulting in a fundamental change in the meaning of what was said.
• The event occurred differently in substantial aspects than stated.

Fact-checking rating scale

Full video:

Let’s examine how this corresponds to reality.

1. Were there mass protests?
Protests did take place on February 21, 2025. However, according to Associated Press, about 1,000 people took to the streets, not a “crowd of thousands.” The main organizers were representatives of the ultra-nationalist “Revival” party. Although protesters used pyrotechnics and paint, their numbers do not match the claims about the “massive” nature of the rally.
2. Was there a storming of the EU representative office and arson?
According to Reuters, protesters did throw fireworks and red paint at the EU representative office building in Sofia and attempted to set its entrance door on fire. As a result of the clashes, six people were detained, and ten police officers received minor injuries. However, there is no data on damage to the parliament facade.
3. Did protesters burn effigies of EU officials?
Reuters confirms that demonstrators burned effigies depicting European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and other European officials. This indicates the sharp anti-European rhetoric of some protesters.
4. Will the introduction of the euro lead to price increases and destruction of financial independence?
Experts disagree. Concerns about price increases exist, especially after Croatia’s experience, where inflation spiked after the introduction of the euro in 2023. However, economists note that in the long term, adopting the euro could lead to increased investment and lower interest rates, which would contribute to Bulgaria’s economic growth.
5. Is the Bulgarian government “imposing” the euro?
Bulgaria committed to adopting the euro as part of its EU accession. Since 2020, the country has participated in the ERM II mechanism, which is a mandatory stage before introducing the single currency. The transition is scheduled for January 1, 2026, subject to meeting all economic criteria. Thus, the process of introducing the euro is not a sudden or forced decision by the new government.
The video exaggerates the scale and radicalism of the protests and creates the impression that Bulgaria is forcibly introducing the euro. In reality, the protests were limited in nature, and the adoption of the euro is a planned process related to the country’s international obligations. Concerns about price increases exist, but the claim about “destroying financial independence” is manipulative.
Now we will analyze disinformation narratives and perform semantic analysis: