Balgarianovinite.com Speaking at an event marking the 205th anniversary of the founding of the Ukrainian city of Bolhrad on Tuesday, GERB-UDF MP and Chair of the parliamentary Tourism Committee Rositsa Kirova said that, for more than two centuries, Bolhrad has been more than just a geographical point on the map – it has been one of the living hearts of the Bessarabian Bulgarian community. Kirova thanked Bolhrad Mayor Sergey Dimitriev for the invitation and for the opportunity to visit the city once again.
“I say ‘again’ because, for me, Bolhrad has long been more than simply a place I visit. Every time I come here, I am genuinely moved. For four years now, I have been working with Bessarabian Bulgarians in Ukraine and Moldova. During these years, I have met many people, heard countless family stories and seen firsthand how strong the connection with Bulgaria can remain, even when generations have lived far beyond the country’s borders,” Kirova said.
“Bolhrad was built through the hard work, faith and determination of our ancestors. It preserves the Bulgarian language, culture, traditions and memory far from the old homeland. That is why I believe that when a Bulgarian arrives in Bolhrad, they are not simply coming to visit. They are coming to their own,” the MP said.
Kirova said she was convinced that Bolhrad is precisely the place where one can understand particularly clearly that Bulgarian patriotism is not measured in kilometres and does not depend on state borders. It is passed from parents to children and lives on in the language, songs, celebrations, family stories and memory of ancestors.
“The Bulgarian community in Ukraine is one of our largest historical communities abroad, with the largest part of it living in the Odesa region. Behind the statistics, however, are people – families, schools, community centres, cultural organizations, teachers and children who continue to speak, study and sing in Bulgarian,” Kirova said.
According to her, a nation exists not only through its territory, but also through its memory. And memory is preserved through language and education.
“For me, the G.S. Rakovski Bolhrad Gymnasium has a special significance. It is not simply a school. It is a historic institution connected with the Bulgarian National Revival, the development of modern Bulgarian education and generations of individuals who contributed to the building of modern Bulgaria,” Kirova said.
Over the years, she said, the school became the centre of a cultural and educational environment where books, textbooks and periodicals were published in Bulgarian and where part of the intellectual elite of Revival-era Bulgaria was formed. Following its restoration in its present-day form, the gymnasium once again became one of the most important centres for studying Bulgarian language, literature, history and traditions in Ukraine, she added.
Kirova welcomed the signing in Kyiv on March 30, 2026, of a new protocol between the Bulgarian and Ukrainian education ministries concerning the operation of the Bolhrad Gymnasium. She said that she and Bulgarian Consul General in Odesa Svetoslav Ivanov had made substantial and sustained efforts toward the agreement.
One particularly important issue is the provision of Bulgarian-language textbooks adapted to the Ukrainian education system, Kirova said, noting that opportunities to produce such materials locally are becoming increasingly limited.
“Bulgaria must seek a mechanism through which the Ministry of Education and Science can support this process,” she said.
“Equally serious is the shortage of qualified teachers, including primary school teachers who can teach children in Bulgarian. This issue is also addressed in the new bilateral protocol. Now we need to take the next step — to turn the text of the agreement into the actual presence of teachers in classrooms,” Kirova said.
She also thanked Bulgarian Consul General in Odesa Svetoslav Ivanov for his continued work and close cooperation with Bulgarian communities in Ukraine.
“I am counting on him and on the Embassy of Bulgaria in Ukraine to continue their active work and cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Education and Science,” Kirova stressed.
The support Bulgaria provides through its programmes for organizations representing Bulgarian communities and for Bulgarian Sunday schools is of enormous importance, the MP said.
“Today, this support carries even greater weight. Ukraine continues to endure the trials of war. I know how much anxiety there is within families, how many difficult decisions people are forced to make and how many lives have been changed. But it is precisely in times like these that the strength of a community becomes most clearly visible,” she said.
“Bolhrad continues to preserve its schools, its language, its traditions and its memory. It continues to be a bridge between Bulgaria and Ukraine – a bridge built not only through diplomatic relations and institutions, but above all through people,” Kirova said.
The connection between Bulgaria and the Bessarabian Bulgarians should not be limited to visits on special occasions, Kirova stressed. It should be permanent. It should mean education, culture, care and opportunities for young people to know Bulgaria and their roots, while Bulgaria gets to know them.
Kirova said Bolhrad is one of the places that demonstrate that Bulgaria is much larger than its geographical borders. “It lives wherever there are people who preserve its language, memory and spirit,” she said.
In her congratulatory address, the parliamentary group chair wished Bolhrad a happy 205th anniversary and peace to all its residents.
On behalf of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria, Rositsa Kirova presented Bolhrad Mayor Serhii Dmytriiev with an honorary plaque of Bulgarian Parliament.
Bolhrad Is One of Living Hearts of Bessarabian Bulgarian Community, MP Rositsa Kirova Says 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-08-25 18:36:06
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БЪЛГАРИЯ НОВИНИТЕ – ИНФОРМАЦИОННА АГЕНЦИЯ 2009-2026 2026-08-25 18:36:06