| Bulgaria |
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Bulgaria has generally good foreign relations with its neighbours and has proved to be a constructive force in the region under socialist and democratic governments alike. Promoting regional stability, Bulgaria hosted a Southeast European Foreign Ministers meeting in July 1996, and an OSCE conference on Black Sea cooperation in November 1995. Bulgaria also participated in the 1996 South Balkan Defense Ministerial in Albania and is active in the Southeast European Cooperative Initiative. Bulgaria's main focus is the Euro-Atlantic integration since 1997 and the efforts of the governments since then led to admition to NATO in 2004 and the European Union in 2007.
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With their close historical, cultural, and economic ties, Bulgaria seeks a mutually beneficial relationship with Russia, on which it is largely dependent for energy supplies. Sporadic negotiations are underway among Greece, Bulgaria, and Russia for construction of the Burgas-Alexandroupoli pipeline to transport Caspian Sea oil from the Black Sea port of Burgas to Alexandroupoli on the northern Aegean coast.
Bulgaria's EU Association Agreement came into effect in 1994, and Bulgaria formally applied for full EU membership in December 1995. During the 1999 EU summit in Helsinki, the country was invited to start membership talks with the Union. On January 1, 2007 Bulgaria officially became a member of the European Union. In 1996, Bulgaria acceded to the Wassenaar Arrangement controlling exports of weapons and sensitive technology to countries of concern and also was admitted to the World Trade Organization. Bulgaria is a member of the Zangger Committee and the Nuclear Suppliers Group. After a period of equivocation under a socialist government, in March 1997 a UDF-led caretaker cabinet applied for full NATO membership, which became a reality in April 2004.
Bulgaria and the United States signed a Defense Cooperation Agreement in 2006 providing for military bases and training camps of the U.S. Army in Bulgaria, as part of the Pentagon's restructuring plan.
In November 2010, Bulgaria's Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov formally announced his team proposes to close seven embassies as part of a plan for restructuring and austerity measures. See Decision Number 272 dated from 19th November 2010 of the Council of Ministers.
Thus, in 2011, Bulgaria will most likely shut down its diplomatic missions in Sudan, Angola, Zimbabwe, Cambodia, Thailand, Mexico, and Tunisia. The choice is based on a scrutinizing financial analysis and on the necessity to optimize the diplomatic corps, the Ministry says. The staff of the Bulgarian diplomatic corps will be reduced by 15 people in total.
In June 2010, media reports claimed that Bulgaria considers closing a total of 30 of its diplomatic missions abroad. Currently, Bulgaria has 83 embassies, 6 permanent representations, 20 consular offices, and 2 diplomatic bureaus. The proposed closures have been backed by PM Borisov who described some of Bulgaria's embassies as useless.[1]
Bulgaria joined NATO's Partnership for Peace in 1994 and applied for NATO membership in 1997. During the November 2002 Prague Summit Bulgaria was one of seven former socialist countries invited to join the Alliance. Bulgaria became a member of NATO in April 2004. The country is also working toward NATO compatibility in communications and training, and has established a Peacekeeping Training Center.
In 2003, Bulgaria was elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, proving to be one of 3 closest U.S. allies during the Iraqi Crisis, together with the UK and Spain. Bulgaria also presided the OSCE in 2004.
Major European transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and, to a lesser degree, South American cocaine for the European market; limited producer of precursor chemicals.
| Country | Formal Relations Began | Notes |
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| Afghanistan | 1961-07-12 |
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| Algeria | 1964 |
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| Angola | 1975-11-20 | |
| Argentina | 1931 |
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| Armenia | 1992 |
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| Australia | 1972 | |
| Austria | 1878 |
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| Azerbaijan | 1992-06-05 |
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| Belarus | 1992-03-26 | |
| Belgium | 1879 |
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| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 1992-01-15 |
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| Czech Republic | 1920-09-27 |
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| People's Republic of China | 1949-10-04 |
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| Canada | ||
| Croatia | 1992-08-13 | |
| Cyprus |
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| Denmark | See Bulgaria–Denmark relations | |
| Ecuador |
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| Egypt |
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| Estonia | 1921-05-20 |
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| Finland | 1918-08-05 |
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| France | 1879-07-08 |
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| Georgia | 1992-06-05 |
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| Germany |
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| Greece | 1908 | see Greco-Bulgarian relations
Relations between Greece (the Hellenic Republic) and Bulgaria (the Republic of Bulgaria) have been very cordial since the 1950s, due to the strong cultural, political and religious ties between the two nations, preceded in the earlier 20th century by periods of intense mutual hostility. Since Bulgaria's independence in 1908, Greece and Bulgaria faced each other in three major wars: the Second Balkan War, the First World War and the Second World War, in which Bulgaria briefly occupied parts of northern Greece. |
| Hungary | 1920 |
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| India | 1954 | |
| Indonesia | 1956-09-21 | see Bulgaria–Indonesia relations
Bulgaria was among the States that recognized Indonesia's independence since its Proclamation of Independence on August 17, 1945. The two countries established diplomatic relations on September 21, 1956. Bulgaria has had an embassy in Jakarta since October 1958 and Indonesia has had an embassy in Sofia Since 1960.[38] |
| Iran | 1897 | |
| Iraq |
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| Ireland |
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| Israel | ||
| Italy | 1879 | |
| Japan | 1959 | |
| Kazakhstan | 1992-07-05 |
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| Kosovo | 2008-03-20 |
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| Latvia |
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| Lebanon | 1966-09-19 |
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| Libya |
Main article: HIV trial in Libya
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| Lithuania |
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| Republic of Macedonia |
The rules governing good neighbourly relations agreed between Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia were set in the Joint Declaration of February 22, 1999 reaffirmed by a joint memorandum signed on January 22, 2008 in Sofia.[62] |
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| Malta | ||
| Mexico | 1938 | |
| Moldova | 1992-02-05 |
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| Mongolia | 1950-04-22 | see Bulgaria–Mongolia relations
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| Montenegro | 2006-08-02 |
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| Morocco | 1961-09-01 |
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| Netherlands |
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| Norway | 1906-08-21 |
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| North Korea | 1948-11-29 |
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| Pakistan | 1970 | |
| Paraguay | 1992-12-02 |
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| Peru | 1969 | |
| Poland | 1920s | |
| Portugal | 1925 |
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| Romania | see Bulgaria–Romania relations
Bulgarian relations with Romania featured regular official visits by the two presidents. Romanian-Bulgarian relations are developing "very intensively" because of EU accession, since Romania and Bulgaria joined together the European Union in 2007. Romania and Bulgaria have never had any serious conflicts, other than a territorial dispute over the Dobruja region in 1913-1940, now largely forgotten. Vidin and Calafat have perhaps the closest relations of any towns along this lower section of the Danube. There is a regular ferry service, so locals here have regular interchange with their neighbors across the border. |
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| Russia | 1879-07-07 |
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| Serbia | 1879-01-18 | see Bulgaria–Serbia relations
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| Slovakia | 1993-01-01 |
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| Slovenia | ||
| South Africa | 1992-02-02 | |
| South Korea | 1990-03-23 |
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| Spain | 1910-05-08 |
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| Sudan | 1956-07-01 | see Bulgaria–Sudan relations
In 1967, Bulgaria sent the first Bulgarian ambassador to Khartoum. The activities of the Bulgarian embassy in Khartoum were terminated in April 1990, and later reestablished in March, 2005. In 2006 the General Consulate of the Sudan, in Sofia, Bulgaria has been upgraded to the rank of embassy.[94] |
| Sweden | 1914-07-06 |
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| Switzerland | 1905 |
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| Syria | 1954-07-24 | |
| Thailand | 1974-04-10 | |
| Tunisia | 1956 | |
| Turkey |
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| Ukraine | 1992 | |
| Uzbekistan | 1992-09-12 | See Bulgaria–Uzbekistan relations
Bulgaria has an embassy in Tashkent.[109] Uzbekistan is represented in Bulgaria through a non resident ambassador based in Tashkent (in the Foreign Ministry.)[110] Bulgaria provides a link in the trade corridor between Uzbekistan and the European Union, with important Black Sea ports. The two countries are interested in expanding trade by this route.[111] However, despite repeated discussions on the subject, Uzbekistan has so far declined to supply natural gas to the Nabucco pipeline, which, if built, would feed gas to Europe via Bulgaria.[112] |
| United Kingdom | 1879 |
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| United States | 1903 | See Bulgaria – United States relations
Bulgarian-American relations, first formally established in 1903, have moved from missionary activity and American support for Bulgarian independence in the late 19th century to the growth of trade and commerce in the early 20th century, to reluctant hostility during World War I and open war and bombardment in World War II, to ideological confrontation during the Cold War, to partnership with the United States in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and growing political, military and economic ties in the beginning of the 21st century. |
| Vietnam | 1950-02-08 |
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