Bulgarian Government apologizes for deporting Jews

[Andy H]

Bulgaria has expressed regret that more than 11,000 Jews were deported to Nazi concentration camps from areas under Bulgarian control during World War II.

A Bulgarian parliament declaration did however praise Bulgarians for having blocked the deportation of more than 48,000 Jews during the war.

It said it could "not be disputed that 11,343 Jews were deported from northern Greece and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia".

Most Jews sent to the Nazi German death camps in Poland died.

Referring to the 11,343 deported, the MPs' declaration said "we denounce this criminal act, undertaken by Hitler's command, and express our regrets for the fact that the local Bulgarian administration had not been in a position to stop this act".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-21715518

The actual Bulgarian declaration can be seen in full here:-
http://www.parliament.bg/en/news/ID/2582

Regards

[Nickuru]

The Bulgarians joined the Axis forces because they regarded the USSR as their greatest threat. This is due to the historical desire of Russia to take Constantinople (Stanboul) since the conquest of Constantinople by Mehmed II the Conqueror in 1453.

Since the Russians had turned into the USSR dictatorship, Bulgaria sided with the Axis, thinking that anything is better than getting overrun by marauding Cossacks. How mistaken they were!

www.axishistory.com is a really nice website, with unbiased history, a lot of interesting stuff on the Axis side of WWII. It is NOT a neonazi site, just an interesting unbiased historical site.

[flash]

Good on Bulgaria for apologising,which is always the first step to resolving contentious issues.
Same can't be said for the Japs.

[Hetzer 15]

Originally Posted by Nickuru

The Bulgarians joined the Axis forces because they regarded the USSR as their greatest threat. This is due to the historical desire of Russia to take Constantinople (Stanboul) since the conquest of Constantinople by Mehmed II the Conqueror in 1453.

Since the Russians had turned into the USSR dictatorship, Bulgaria sided with the Axis, thinking that anything is better than getting overrun by marauding Cossacks. How mistaken they were!

www.axishistory.com is a really nice website, with unbiased history, a lot of interesting stuff on the Axis side of WWII. It is NOT a neonazi site, just an interesting unbiased historical site.

+1 there my friend. There was already border "disputes" happening, and joining the axis was seen as a security blanket of sorts. But, yeah the other side of the coin is a real kicker sometimes...

[broderickwells]

Originally Posted by Nickuru

The Bulgarians joined the Axis forces because they regarded the USSR as their greatest threat. This is due to the historical desire of Russia to take Constantinople (Stanboul) since the conquest of Constantinople by Mehmed II the Conqueror in 1453.

Since the Russians had turned into the USSR dictatorship, Bulgaria sided with the Axis, thinking that anything is better than getting overrun by marauding Cossacks. How mistaken they were!

www.axishistory.com is a really nice website, with unbiased history, a lot of interesting stuff on the Axis side of WWII. It is NOT a neonazi site, just an interesting unbiased historical site.

<Cough> There was considerable popular support for the USSR/Russia in Bulgaria as it liberated Bulgaria from the Ottoman empire in 1878. Bulgaria never declared war against the USSR in WW2, and there were waves of protests in Bulgaria when the Germans initiated Operation Barbarossa.

Bulgaria sided with the Axis because it harboured territorial ambitions in the Balkans that Germany could satisfy: Dobruja, Salonika, and Eastern Macedonia i.e., reclaiming what was lost in the 2nd Balkan War and after WWI. The Balkans was in a constant state of beggar thy neighbour due to irredentist factions having considerable political power in most of the states from Hungary south. Equally, Bulgaria was too far distant from the USSR to obtain anything but diplomatic support when the Germans applied the pressure - imagine a poorer version of Czechoslovakia. The period from 1937-1941 saw the states of SE Europe gradually beholden to German economic power (and shyte payment systems) while Britain and France could offer little, including military guarantees. It was a case of jumping rather than being pushed.

[Nickuru]

This does have merit, dragging my books across the living room would be tiresome. However I find that the Russians (USSR) were suspicious of the Bulgarians and thought that they wanted to invade Turkey and seize the Straits at Constantinople. My references are the Decline and Fall of the Ottoman Empire, by Alan Palmer, Gallipoli, and the Decline of Bismarck's European Order by George Kennan.

[joea]

Umm Nickuru, Bulgaria did not declare war on the USSR nor participate in Barbarossa. As others pointed out, they had territorial designs on their neighbours so it was largely a matter of opportunism.

[dutched]

Originally Posted by Andy H

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-21715518

The actual Bulgarian declaration can be seen in full here:-
http://www.parliament.bg/en/news/ID/2582

Regards

Sorry, but to me it looks more like pandering for full acceptance to some of the EU countries. There are still limits for Bulgarian economic migrants till 2014. The mea culpa might be well received, but it is a bit too long in the making for cynical me.

Ed.