“Euro” or Russia
paradoxes of Bulgarian euroscepticism
DOI :
https://doi.org/10.60054/PEU.2022.9.207-214Абстракт
Bulgaria and Russia have long-standing relations. The attitude towards Russia as been crucial in shaping the political system of Bulgaria. One of the earliest cleavages, dating back to the 1878 Liberation of Bulgaria and subsequent years, but detectable under various forms even today, is that of Russophiles vs. Russophobes. Neither can historical superimpositions exclude the state socialism period and the decades when Bulgaria was situated within the Soviet sphere of influence. It is no coincidence that Russia’s influence on Bulgarian current politics is allegedly hard to exaggerate and that it is being exerted via disparate avenues, mechanisms and dependencies of political, economic and cultural order. The war in Ukraine has given prominence to these issues and has made them the principal compass in the political debate of today. Topics in the political agenda are highlighted along the “pro-” vs. “anti-” Russia line.
This article offers an analysis of Bulgarian Euroscepticism with its paradoxes, as reflected by this particular line of opposition.
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