Bilateral relations

The diplomatic relations between the Republic of Bulgaria and the United States of America were established in 1903. They were suspended from 1941 to 1947 and from 1950 to 1959. In 2003 the US Senate and the House of Representatives, as well as the Bulgarian National Assembly, adopted resolutions on the occasion of the 100 Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Today, Bulgaria and the USA are strategic partners that maintain an active dialogue and cooperate in many priority areas: defense and security; counter-terrorism; energy security; the rule of law; education and people to people ties. Despite the twists of fate and the decades of ideological confrontation during the Cold War, today the Republic of Bulgaria and the United States of America share the same democratic values which are at the very heart of the Euro-Atlantic community. In recent years, the number of Bulgarian companies that are successfully conducting business in America is growing. There is significant potential in the field of information and communication technologies where Bulgaria is a regional leader. This sector of our economy continues to grow sustainably by 10% annually. Global leaders like Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, SAP and VMware have opened branches and R&D centers in Bulgaria. In 2015 Sofia was declared the third most attractive start-up capital in Europe and our country – the best European outsourcing destination. We also created “Sofia Tech Park” – the first innovation ecosystem in Southeast Europe, where science and business work hand in hand to develop innovations and support start-up companies. The interest that American citizens are showing in Bulgaria and its rich history, culture, traditions and unique nature is growing every year. In that context, the efforts for strengthening the contacts between the peoples of both countries will continue. The inclusion of Bulgaria in the US Visa Waiver Program would create new opportunities for Bulgarian citizens and will continue to be a priority for us.

The Bulgarian Caucus in the United States House of Representatives was formed in June 2002. Representative Joe Wilson (R-SC 2nd) is the founder and Co-Chair of the Caucus. The following year a Group for friendship with the United States was formed in the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria.