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34 I Southeast Europe bne April 2022
Bulgarian far-right MEP accused of giving Nazi salute in European Parliament
Denitsa Koseva in Sofia
Angel Dzhambazki, far-right Bulgarian MEP, angered his colleagues by giving what appeared to be a Nazi salute in the plenary chamber after speaking during a debate on the rule of law in Poland and Hungary.
The European Parliament will check its cameras to confirm whether or not Dzhambazki gave a Nazi salute, which the MEP has denied. If it is proven that Dzhambazki did indeed give a Nazi salute, he will be severely sanctioned.
A video showing the salute was posted on Twitter by Rennaisance, a group of French MEPs, late on February 16. As of the afternoon of Feburary 17 it had racked up a million views on the microblogging site.
“We will never allow you to tell us what to say and do. Long live Bulgaria, Hungary, [Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor] Orbán, [Hungarian ruling party] Fidesz and the Europe of nation states,” Dzhambazki, of the far-right Bulgarian VMRO party, said during the plenary session prior to the salute as quoted by Euractiv.
He added that the decision adopted by the European Parliament following a ruling of the European Court of Justice that funds can be blocked to countries where the rule of law has been violated was an “abomination”. The mechanism was fiercely opposed by Hungary and Poland, which were backed by Bulgarian far-right MEPs.
European Parliament president Roberta Metsola commented that a fascist salute is unacceptable.
“A fascist salute in the European Parliament is unacceptable to me — always and everywhere. It offends me and everyone else in Europe. We stand for the opposite. We are the house of democracy. That gesture is from the darkest chapter of our history and must be left there,” she wrote on Twitter.
The gesture was also condemned by the leader of the European People’s Party, Manfred Weber.
“During today’s debate on the rule of law, MEP Dzhambazki showed a “Hitler salute” in plenary. On behalf of the EPP group we condemn this in the harshest possible terms. It is the opposite of what the European Parliament stands for and we call for immediate sanctioning,” he wrote on Twitter.
Dzhambazki has denied giving a Nazi salute, saying it was an “innocent wave”.
“When you mistake a simple wave with a Nazi salute you have a real Godwin's law problem. The fact that one disagrees with you does not mean he is a Nazi. I apologise if my innocent wave (meant as an excuse) has insulted anyone but this is some serious case of Reductio ad absurdum,” he wrote as a comment on Twitter.
The controversial MEP, now one of VMRO’s three newly-elected leaders, is well known for his scandalous behaviour. In 2019, he had to apologise for xenophobic remarks during a parliamentary debate, when he called MEP Karima Delli “a Frenchwoman of Algerian origin”, and MEP Ismail Ertug “a German of Turkish origin”.
www.bne.eu
The Serb member of Bosnia’s tripartite presidency, Milorad Dodik – who has publicly spoken of the support he receives from Russia – has repeatedly called for a referendum on Republika Srpska’s secession from Bosnia over the years. He was revealed to have tried to prevent Bosnia’s ambassador to the UN from voting in favour of a resolution condemning the invasion.
The day Russia forces entered Ukraine, the European Union Force Bosnia and Herzegovina (EUFOR) announced it was boosting its presence in Bosnia
as a precautionary measure. “The deterioration of the security situation internationally has the potential
to spread instability to Bosnia & Herzegovina,” said EUFOR in a statement.
On March 16, Russia’s ambassador to Bosnia, Igor Kalabukhov, threatened to the country, making it clear that Moscow won’t tolerate Bosnia joining Nato. Speaking to FTV, Kalabukhov said the example of Ukraine “shows what
we expect”.
Kosovo
Along with Bosnia, northern Kosovo, which is mainly populated by Serbs, is seen as the other main flashpoint in the Western Balkans. Accordingly, the EU rule of law mission (EULEX) in Kosovo said on March 14 it will strengthen its presence in the country by temporarily deploying a reserve unit of 92 members of the European Gendarmerie Force (EUROGENDFOR). A spokesperson for EULEX said, as quoted by Reuters, that the Russian invasion of Ukraine "puts everything in a different light".
There were already periodic flare-ups
in tensions, as Serbia has refused to recognise Kosovo as independent, and its position is backed by Russia. Just six months ago, in September 2021, the situation between Serbia and Kosovo reached what politicians said was its most dangerous point in 10 years amid a dispute between the two sides over car licence plates.
Since the invasion, Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti has pressed