Bulgaria will recall its ambassador to Russia for consultations in response to “undiplomatic, sharp and rude” comments from the Russian ambassador to Bulgaria, Prime Minister Kiril Petkov said on Thursday. (https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2022-03-24/bulgaria-to-recall-its-ambassador-to-russia-for-consultations) Russia’s ambassador to Bulgaria Eleonora Mitrofanova told a Russian TV channel this week that the Bulgarian people did not support the government’s rhetoric and position towards what Russia calls its special operation in Ukraine. “We will call back our ambassador from Russia for consultations … Usually when one country calls back its ambassador for consultations, the other should follow and do the same,” Petkov told reporters in Brussels. “I do not think there is a Bulgarian citizen who can be happy to see a foreign diplomat offending the Bulgarians and the Bulgarian government … We are a country that respects its institutions and such behaviour is unacceptable.” Bulgaria, Moscow’s closest ally during the Cold War but now a member of the European Union and NATO, has condemned Russia’s invasion of its neighbour a month ago.