Summary: In 1968, a committee was established to unite the research efforts of Bulgarian and Russian (at that time – Soviet) historians. The commission worked actively until the end of the 1980s. In 1995, it resumed its activities and organized conferences and round tables over three-year projects, often discussing previously forbidden topics. The materials have been published in collections, ten in all, in the series Russian-Bulgarian/Bulgarian-Russian Discussions. In the proposed study, the research of Bulgarian historians is presented by themes and issues, traced in its development, as a result of the appearance of new documents or of a new understanding of historical facts and of political and social processes. In the relations between Bulgaria and the Russian Empire/Soviet Union/Russian Federation studied by the Bulgarian authors, the main problem is politics, but attention is also paid to economy and culture. An overall picture of the relationship is presented, examined in clearly delineated periods: before World War I, and before, during and after World War II. In the years since its restoration, the Bulgarian-Russian Committee has offered a good opportunity for scholarly presentations and discussions. The good-natured tone and professional attitude to the issues under discussion have contributed to the historiographical reorientation after the collapse of the socialist system, and to overcoming the myths established during the Soviet era.
Keywords: Bulgarian-Russian/Soviet relations; political, military and cultural ties; ideology in politics and culture
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