Albania–Bulgaria relations

Albanian-Bulgarian relations

Albania	Bulgaria

The diplomatic relations between Albania and Bulgaria were established in April 1913 and on 10 October 1922, Konstadin Boshniak presented his Letters of Credence as Head of Albanian Legation in Sofia. In March 1954, Albania and Bulgaria raised their diplomatic representation to the level of Embassies. From the early 60s onward the Embassies of the two countries were headed by Charges d`affaires and on 25th of January 1988, an agreement was concluded for an exchange of Ambassadors.

As a European Union (EU) member, Bulgaria supports Albania's bid for membership of the EU.^[1]

History

The territory of modern Albania was part of the Bulgarian Empire during certain periods in the

The last Bulgarian Emperor to govern the whole territory was

During the Albanian National Awakening, many Bulgarian volunteers joined with Albanians Ceta led by Çerçiz Topulli and Mihal Grameno. Also, Bulgaria aided Albania by printing Albanian books and newspapers at a time when the Albanian language was banned by the Ottoman Empire and neighboring conquerors.

During the Second Balkan War, Albanians helped Bulgaria and sent troops led by Isa Boletini. Some of these battles were the uprising of Ohrid and Debar, the Krezna Razlog uprising and other revolts. Even during the Ilinden-Uprising, there were many Albanian volunteers fighting side by side with the Bulgarian troops. Since then, many Bulgarians consider Albanians as friends and historical allies.

Albanians in Bulgaria

In 2017, Albania officially recognized Bulgarians as an official ethnic minority in Albania. The Bulgarian ethnic minority has historically resided in the Eastern regions of Albania (mainly around the Korçë, Elbasan, and Dibër regions) although presently many identify as Macedonians. This has caused a diplomatic row between North Macedonia and Bulgaria over the identification of Albania’s Slavophones with North Macedonia accusing Bulgaria of attempting to “Bulgarianize” the minority group.

See also

• Foreign relations of Albania
• Foreign relations of Bulgaria
• Bulgarians in Albania
• Albanians in Bulgaria
• Accession of Albania to the European Union

References

External links