Brussels, July 14, 2026
Photo: spzh.eu
The European Union has removed His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow from a draft sanctions package following Bulgaria’s veto of the proposal during closed-door negotiations, multiple diplomats confirmed to Euronews.
Along with Patriarch Kirill, Russian businessman Vagit Alekperov, founder of the oil company Lukoil, was also dropped from the package at Bulgaria’s insistence.
Bulgaria’s opposition had been publicly confirmed last month by Prime Minister Rumen Radev, who cited religious and cultural reasons for the veto. “What message are we sending when we extend sanctions and war into the sphere of religion? Do we realize where this leads?” Radev said.
Reports had subsequently emerged suggesting Bulgaria might drop its opposition to the Pat. Kirill listing, but the Patriarch’s name was ultimately removed from the draft.
The EU first attempted to sanction Pat. Kirill in 2022, when Hungary blocked the measure, calling it a matter of religious freedom. The effort was revived this spring after Hungary’s new government under Péter Magyar signaled a willingness to reverse that position, leading EU officials to add Pat. Kirill’s name to a new draft list. Bulgaria then emerged as the new obstacle to the proposal.
Radev noted the historical and canonical bonds between the Bulgarian and Russian Orthodox Churches. “I’m not interested in the Russian Patriarch as an individual. I’m interested in the fact that he’s the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, which is Eastern Orthodox, just like our Church,” he said.
The broader 21st sanctions package against Russia has not yet been finalized. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on July 13 that member states were hoping to agree on 250 new individual and entity listings—the largest such number to date—but that open questions remained on other elements of the package, including a proposed maritime services ban and tightened restrictions on Russian liquefied natural gas.
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