Russophiles from around the world will gather for the first international Russophile Forum near the Bulgarian town of Kalofer, despite Russia declaring Bulgaria an enemy state as it continues to wage war in Ukraine.
Organisers of the event include two movements: the International Movement of Russophiles, established in March in Moscow, and Russophiles, a national movement chaired by Nikolay Malinov, a former Bulgarian lawmaker accused of spying for Russia-sanctioned under the Magnitsky Act but praised by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russophiles from Austria, Albania, Switzerland, Serbia, Cyprus, Slovakia, Turkey, Romania and France are expected to attend, and the gathering will have “With Russia in the Heart” as its motto.
The assembly near Kalofer will build on “the tradition of the Bulgarian Russophiles, for whom the assembly, held for years by the Koprinka dam, will have its 18th edition”, the organisers said.
Sergey Baburin, President of the International Slavic Academy of Science, Education, Art and Culture, will be the event’s special guest.
The International Movement of Russophiles is an initiative set up by Malinov and backed by Russia’s Foreign Ministry and its lead minister, Sergey Lavrov.
US actor Steven Seagal, who has been living in Russia for years and is a special envoy of the Russian Foreign Ministry for humanitarian relations with the US and Japan, was also reported to attend.
This is also being said about Konstantin Malofeev, the chairman of the board of directors of the media group Tsargrad – a group dedicated to Russian Orthodox Christianity and supporting Putin.
(Krassen Nikolov | Euractiv.bg)
Read more with EURACTIV
Dutch to donate DNA kits to Ukraine in bid to identify kidnapped children
Source: euractiv.com
