After being interrupted during a debate concerning the rule of law in Poland and Hungary, Angel Dzhambazki, a Bulgarian nationalist from the European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR) turned on his heels as he exited the hemicycle of the European Parliament and gave a Nazi salute for multiple seconds before exiting.

Parce qu'il a défendu l'état de droit en 🇪🇺, @sandrogozi s'est fait insulter par l'eurodéputé @djambazki, qui a quitté l'hémicycle en faisant un scandaleux salut nazi.

Tu as tout notre soutien Sandro.

Nous demandons à Mme Metsola, @EP_President, d'agir. pic.twitter.com/rIXrbB5wO1

— Renaissance (@Renaissance_UE) February 16, 2022

Earlier, the representative of the Bulgarian nationalist party VMRO told the parliament “We will never allow you to tell us what to say and do. Long live Bulgaria, Hungary, Orbán, Fidesz, and the Europe of nation-states."

On Twitter, he called the Court of Justice of the EU an "abomination" for validating a mechanism contested by Warsaw and Budapest, allowing for the withholding of funds in European nations with violations in the rule of law.

The Vice President of the European Parliament, Italian Pina Picierno, who led the debate until Dzhambazki's exit, said the institution would verify if Dzhambazki gave a Nazi salute, and warned that if he did, sanctions would be in order.

Clément Beaune, the incumbent Secretary of State for European affairs in the French government, who was present during the debate, tweeted that Dzhambazki's actions were categorized as "scandalous and unworthy," while the French delegation of the centrist Renew Europe group asked Roberta Metsola, president of the European Parliament, to take appropriate action.

The code of conduct of the European Parliament specifies that MEPs "shall refrain from any inappropriate behavior" and "any offensive remarks".  Failure to act accordingly may result in sanctions like loss of participation in parliamentary activities or loss of allowances.