from Europe Online Magazine (dpa)

Unknown protesters in Bulgaria have used pink paint to transform a monument to the Soviet Red Army in Sofia.

The activists painted it Tuesday night as a way of apologizing for the 1968 intervention in Czechoslovakia when Warsaw Pact troops put down the reformist Prague Spring movement against hardline Communist rule.

The monument depicting Soviet soldiers commemorates their role in World War II. It was painted to coincide with the 45th anniversary of the crackdown in Prague, which put an end to the liberal policies of Czechoslovakian leader Alexander Dubcek.

The activists wrote a message in big letters, reading in Bulgarian and Czech: "Bulgaria apologizes."

In 1990, the Bulgarian state officially expressed regret for its involvement in the invasion.

Tuesday was not the first time the Red Army monument in Sofia has been unofficially transformed.

In June 2011, activists painted the bronze figures of the Soviet soldiers to make them resemble characters like Superman and Ronald McDonald.

A year ago, colourful hoods were painted on the figures‘ heads in an act of solidarity with the Russian protest punk group Pussy Riot.

Many people in Bulgaria have demanded that the Red Army monument be demolished now that former Communist Bulgaria is a member of both NATO and the European Union.