Change and continuity in the foreign policy of Bulgaria : a case study in Bulgaria's relations with Russia (1878-1915)

Abstract

This thesis will analyze the change and continuity in Bulgaria’s foreign policy regarding relations with Russia, from the establishment as a principality under the suzerainty of Ottoman Empire in 1878, to Bulgaria’s entry into the First World War in 1915. After the establishment of the Bulgarian principality in the Berlin Treaty of 1878, the focal point in Bulgaria’s foreign policy was relations with Russia. In contrast to expectations, Bulgaria did not turn into a vassal state of Russia but instead pursued a national policy to create a ‘Greater Bulgaria’, the borders of which had been drawn in the Yeşilköy Treaty of 1878. Russia’s insistence on interference in Bulgarian internal affairs and its inconsistent policies further deteriorated relations between the two states. After the catastrophic result of the Balkan Wars, Bulgaria even became the enemy of Russia by joining the Central Powers in the First World War. Bulgaria’s decision in 1915 denoted the failure of Russian diplomacy in Bulgaria.