VARNA, Bulgaria -- Russia appears to be offering consular services in the Black Sea resort city of Varna, despite Sofia expelling diplomats in 2022 and closing the consulate down a year later, an investigation by RFE/RL's Bulgarian Service has found.
While the Bulgarian authorities say they are not aware of any diplomatic activities taking place, Russian-language Facebook and WhatsApp groups are advertising consular services at the local headquarters of the pro-Kremlin Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP).
Marina Nacheva, a woman listed in various chat groups as a contact for the consulate, confirmed to RFE/RL that consular services were available at the BSP's office at 33 Macedonia Street in Varna. The stately building is located 400 meters away from the former Russian Consulate at 53 Macedonia Street.
Much of the staff at the former Russian consulate in Varna, a city popular with Russian vacationers, was expelled from Bulgaria along with diplomats at the embassy in the capital, Sofia, in June 2022. In total, the government of then-Prime Minister Kiril Petkov ordered 70 Russian diplomatic staff out of the country, saying they had been working against Sofia's interests. In October 2023, Russia's consulate in Varna was finally shut after its lease for the facility expired.
The punitive measures by the pro-Western Petkov came amid a wave of similar moves by other EU capitals to punish Russia for launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
One of the WhatsApp groups where Russian consular services are advertised
An RFE/RL reporter recently visited the beige-colored villa at 33 Macedonia Street, situated in a leafy neighborhood of the city. A woman who answered the door and said she worked there told RFE/RL that "no consular services are offered here."
However, individuals posting on Facebook groups monitored by RFE/RL contradict that claim. Posts on those Facebook pages indicate that consular services are still available in Varna but only on certain days and at certain times. The next such date has been listed as November 26.
Consular Contact
It is in one of those Facebook groups, Russian Speakers In Varna, that the name Marina Nacheva appears as a person to contact regarding consular services.
Nacheva's name is also mentioned as a contact in a WhatsApp group, Consulate RF [Russian Federation] In Varna, which also lists the consular address as 33 Macedonia Street.
When RFE/RL's Bulgarian Service called the number listed on this WhatsApp group, a woman who identified herself as Nacheva tersely confirmed that consular services were offered at the BSP's address. When asked why consular services had been outsourced to the BSP headquarters, Nacheva promptly hung up.
The photograph on the left was published by Marina Nacheva in connection with her alleged ties to consular services in Varna. The photograph on the right was shared on the Facebook page of the Bulgarian Socialist Party in Varna.
The leftist BSP, a successor to the Bulgarian Communist Party, which ruled Bulgaria from 1946 to 1990, is staunchly pro-Kremlin. In the last election campaign, the party boasted that "Russia Is Our Friend" in a billboard campaign in the southern Bulgarian city of Plovdiv. The BSP currently has 20 deputies in the country's 240-seat unicameral parliament.
Further evidence appearing to link Nacheva to the alleged underground consulate can been found on her personal Facebook page, including images of her in group photos captioned "Consular Reception In Varna."
RFE/RL analysis of photos of BSP meetings held at its Varna office indicate that the setting is the same as photos of the "consular reception" posted by Nacheva.
Little else is known about Nacheva. References on the Internet indicate that she attended several events at the Russian Consulate in Varna before it was officially closed. She is also listed on several websites as the chairwoman of an association called Russians-21st Century; however, no such group is recorded in Bulgaria's commercial register.
Deteriorating Ties
Traditionally close allies, relations between Russia and Bulgaria have worsened in recent years. In September 2023, the Bulgarian government expelled the head of the Russian Orthodox Church in Sofia and two Belarusian priests, accusing them of serving Moscow's geopolitical interests.
In February, Sofia banned two Russian citizens from entering Bulgaria and the entire European Union for five years over their alleged role in a security services operation.
Russia's current ambassador to Bulgaria, Eleonora Mitrofanova, has been accused of using her post to defend and spread disinformation about Russia's invasion of Ukraine and tar those who oppose it. That has prompted many in Bulgaria to call for her expulsion.
For what Russia regarded as hostile moves, Bulgaria was added to the Kremlin's official list of "enemy countries" shortly after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Operating an underground consulate at the headquarters of a political party would be illegal under Bulgarian law, as the diplomatic service is built on the principle of nonpartisanship.
The Bulgarian Foreign Ministry told RFE/RL's Bulgarian Service that it was not aware of any Russian diplomatic activities taking place at the Varna address.
RFE/RL also sent questions to the Russian Embassy in Bulgaria and to the BSP, asking about the reported consular services. At the time of publication, no responses had been received.