Bulgaria will ask the European Commission and the European Central Bank for an assessment on whether the Balkan country meets all criteria to join the euro zone in January next year, its finance minister said on Monday.

Thousands of supporters of Bulgaria's ultra-nationalist pro-Russian Vazrazhdane (Revival) party fought with police on February 23 as they attempted to storm the European Union mission in Sofia during a protest against the country's planned adoption of the euro.

Bulgaria is set to request the European Union’s assessment on its readiness to join the euro area early next year, highlighting the government’s determination to move toward the single currency.

The anti-government protesters, chanting "Resignation" and "No to the Euro", threw red paint, firecrackers and Molotov cocktails at the EU building in the capital Sofia, setting the front door on fire before the police pushed them away.

Police in Bulgaria’s capital have clashed with nationalist protesters who demanded that the government scrap plans to bring the country into the eurozone

Several thousand people rallied outside Bulgaria's central bank and the European Commission building in Sofia to protest government plans to introduce the euro as official currency.Clashes broke out between police and nationalist protesters in Bulgaria's capital,