site.btaLocal Politicians in Rudozem Threaten to Break Fence Blocking Passage to Greece

The Rudozem-Xanthi border crossing between Bulgaria and Greece, which local people say should be open by now as Bulgaria became a full member of the Schengen free travel zone on January 1, remains closed to this day, preventing travel both ways. On Thursday, two local politicians in Rudozem threatened to break the fence which the Greek authorities have put up across the road.

The border crossing and the accompanying infrastructure at Rudozem-Xanthi were completed by the end of 2021, when Bulgaria was not yet a Schengen member, but the inauguration of the facility was postponed because of a delay in the construction of the road on the Greek side. At present, the construction of the road is complete, but it awaits official permission to go into use on the Greek side of the border. The Greek authorities have put up a fence to block traffic. Rudozem residents staged a protest this past Sunday.

On Thursday, Rudozem municipal councillor Radoslav Filizov and Todor Batkov Jr, who ran in the October 2024 parliamentary elections as a candidate of the GERB party from Smolyan, threatened to break the fence if it is not removed within two weeks. They had brought a metal grinder to the site with the intention of cutting the fence right away, but eventually decided to give the authorities time to act.

Batkov warned that tensions are mounting in the Rudozem area. He said that on Wednesday he alerted the European Commission to what he sees as a violation of the Schengen Agreement committed by Greece, which prevents people from crossing the border even on foot.

Meanwhile, Riza Brahimbashiev, mayor of the village of Chepintsi, sent a letter to Bulgaria's National Assembly and Council of Ministers, among other institutions, urging them to address the problem with the non-functioning pass between Rudozem and Xanthi.

Batkov explained that a large portion of the population in Greece's Xanthi area are Bulgarian Muslims who have relatives in Chepintsi. They want to come over to Bulgaria during the current month of Ramadan to go to a local mosque and visit family members.

Filizov blamed the Greek side for the tension. "They even blocked the road through the forest by dumping several truckloads of dirt on it," the Rudozem councillor added.