'Clear Out Or Go Home': Bulgaria Says It Cannot Offer Anymore 'Luxury' Stays For Ukrainian Refugees

Over 90,000 Ukrainian refugees who fled to Bulgaria since the onset of war now face a tough decision, pay for their stay in hotels, clear out, or return to their war-torn country. For, the Bulgarian authorities have issued orders asking them to move to communist-era state complexes and military bases.

"The Bulgarian state cannot continue to support such a luxurious stay in Bulgaria," Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, who took office in December 2021, said Monday. Steps are now on to move them from Bulgarian hotels on the Black Sea Coast, which became subsidized shelters, to "buffer centers" before the holiday season begins, reported Radio Free Europe.

"For three months, we have given unprecedented support to some of the best hotels in Bulgaria. Now we are entering a slightly more normal framework, despite the fact that they are refugees. The Bulgarian state cannot continue to endlessly support such luxury stays in Bulgaria -- [and] we are entering a reality that is closer to what is expected for refugees," he added.

This has resulted in chaos and miscommunications. Amid concerns regarding alternative facilities, Bulgarian officials said the refugees were not registering their details and avoiding buses and trains scheduled to take them to "buffer centers."

As per local reports, only 500 of about 90,000 refugees so far have made use of the possibility to move from hotels to state-run holiday homes in the interiors.

However, the refugees and volunteer organizers alleged the authorities did not fully communicate their plans to Ukrainians. "We have no official information," Tetyana, a nurse who fled eastern Ukraine with her 13-year-old daughter after the outbreak of the war, told RFE/RL's Bulgarian Service. She along with her daughter had been staying in a luxury hotel in the cape resort of Sozopol since escaping from Donbas.

"We were told that we would receive a preliminary notice 48 hours before the relocation -- either by e-mail, or by phone, or through our personal profile on the ukraine.gov.bg website," Tetyana said. "However, no one received anything," she told the news outlet.

This has prompted many to return home. "I'll go home because I don't know what will happen to us at the end of the month," Maryna, a refugee, was quoted by BNT.

Many volunteer organization has expressed their protest against Bulgaria's stance. Svetlozara Koleva, a volunteer from the port city of Varna, told Balkan Insight that the situation was complete chaos. "Many people have no idea what will happen to them. This made many people return to Ukraine or go to Romania where they seem to be finding jobs more easily," Koleva added.