Bulgaria is advancing in Southern Serbia with thousands of citizens who receive Bulgarian citizenship. This is stated in an "analysis" of the Serbian information portal "Niške Vesti".
"Between 5,000 and 8,000 citizens of Serbia have a Bulgarian passport. In the last two years alone, over 2,000 people from Serbia have also become Bulgarian citizens. This is still a small number - but it is growing. And most importantly - Bulgaria no longer counts them in the statistics as Serbs", the publication says.
At the same time, the material does not specify that the applicants for citizenship have proven their Bulgarian origin and have declared Bulgarian identity, BGNES reported.
The Serbian portal expresses concern that Bulgaria already perceives these people as part of its diaspora and may one day state in official documents and before international institutions that "tens of thousands of Bulgarians live in Southern Serbia and that this is a Bulgarian cultural space and historical responsibility".
"The same thing has already happened - in North Macedonia. There, over 120,000 citizens have received a Bulgarian passport. No media hype. No scandals. Just queues in front of the consulate. This is not a political conspiracy, but a political argument," the publication further emphasizes.
BGNES notes that Belgrade also uses the term "Southern Serbia" in relation to the territory of today's Republic of North Macedonia.
"At first glance - a legitimate right of every citizen to seek a better opportunity. At second glance - a concern," writes Niške Vesti" and emphasizes that every country should ask itself what it means for its citizens to continue to live, work and vote there, while massively receiving citizenship of another country.
The article states that the passport is not only a means of travel, but also the basis of international law, identity and potential territorial and cultural claims. "And most importantly - this is information that is entered into official registers. When a crisis occurs, when minorities are discussed in the Council of Europe, when a new budget for cross-border cooperation is being prepared - numbers become tools. Tools of politics. And we? We remain silent. Because "it's about work". Because "nothing will happen". Because "it's important to go somewhere". We forget that history often does not ask how something began - but what it found", writes "Niške Vesti".
The media calls for a public debate in Serbia on the question "what does a collective change of identity mean without any public discussion".
"If we ignore this, in 10, 20 or 30 years someone may really say: "50,000 Bulgarians live there. This is our territory. Our interest. Our historical responsibility. And it won't matter that they were Serbs. That they spoke Serbian, lived in Niš. What will matter is what is written in the passport. And how many of us were silent," the Serbian media emphasizes.