Sofia, Bulgaria - June 15, 2025 Members of patriotic organizations gathered in front of the North Macedonian embassy in Sofia to protest against Skopje's anti-Bulgarian policies. This week, Lyubcho Georgievski, chairman of a pro-Bulgarian cultural club in the Macedonian city of Bitola, was sentenced. Lyubcho Georgievski is a self-identified Bulgarian and received a one-year suspended sentence for xenophobia, racism, and spreading racial hatred because he quoted the Bulgarian revolutionary Ivan Mihaylov on the Internet. In Macedonia, Mihaylov is considered a terrorist. Because of the Republic of North Macedonia's policy towards Bulgarians, VMRO is demanding that Bulgaria impose a veto on Macedonia's EU membership negotiations, as well as impose sanctions on Macedonian politicians who have businesses in Bulgaria. The organization's leader, Krasimir Karakachanov, advised the Bulgarian government to deal with the fate of Bulgarians in Macedonia, instead of caring about what is happening in Ukraine or Israel. The event was organized by the VMRO (Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization), which fights for the inclusion of people with Bulgarian identity outside the country's borders, especially in the former Yugoslavia. Together with like-minded people from other organizations, they waved Bulgarian flags and shouted "Freedom" and Georgievski's name. SHOTLIST: 00:00 min – Protesters in front of the Macedonian embassy in Sofia 00:06 min – People chanting “Liberty!” 00:12 min – Kaloyan Hristov , leader of youth VMRO, saying (Bulgarian): "Over the past four years, we have seen how the Macedonian authorities openly mess with both the Bulgarian state and Bulgarians across the border." 00:24 min – People chanting “Lyubcho (Georgievski)!” 00:27 min – Bulgarian flags in front of the Macedonian embassy 00:32 min – Angel Djambazky, vide president of VMRO, saying (Bulgarian): "A country like North Macedonia cannot even be a candidate for EU membership. It CANNOT because it takes away basic, historical and fundamental human rights." 00:52 min – Protester with a photo of Georgievsky 00:57 min – Protester with a t-shirt “Cultural center Ivan Mihaylov - Bitola” 01:01 min – Krasimir Karakachanov, leader of VMRO, saying (Bulgarian): "Our politicians are concerned about what is happening in Ukraine or in Israel. However, as Bulgarians, they should be concerned above all about what is happening to the Bulgarian nation. And what is happening to Bulgarians outside Bulgaria, who are subjected to repression, pressure and humiliation." 01:19 min – People chanting “Liberty!” 01:24 min – Krasimir Karakachanov, leader of VMRO, saying (Bulgarian): "It is high time for the Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs to take off their rose-colored Brussels glasses, stop whining and waiting for (Emmanuel) Macron and (Ursula) von der Leyen or someone else to mediate in our relations with North Macedonia." 01:48 min – ******, representative of a pro-Bulgarian club in Bitola, saying (Macedonian): "The money coming from the EU to Macedonia must be stopped. There is evidence that Macedonia is using this money for anti-Bulgarian propaganda." 01:59 min – Photo of the Ivan Mihaylov club in Bitola that burned down last year 02:04 min – Portrait of Ivan Mihailov 02:08 min – Angel Djambazky, vide president of VMRO, saying (Bulgarian): "During communist Yugoslavia, Bulgarians in Macedonia were tried under the same laws. These are so-called verbal torts - this means breaking the law by speaking. It is considered a violation of the law when you say that you are Bulgarian, that you have a Bulgarian identity, when you exercise the right to self-determination." 02:38 min – People chanting “Lyubcho (Georgievski)!”