There is a principle in international relations called the "law of friend and foe", which is the most familiar: "There are no eternal friends between countries, no eternal enemies, only eternal interests."
Examples of countries sharing interests and then turning their backs on each other abound, during the Spring and Autumn Period, the Central Plains were chasing deer, the Qin state was lobbied by the candle zhiwu to turn its back on the Jin state and conspire with the Zheng state, and the Chu state also rebelled against The Qin alliance because of Zhang Yi's words. The sword and light on the history books are speckled with blood, which cannot but confirm the commonality of this matter.
In the final analysis, the friendship between countries is nothing more than an illusion of warmth, the world is bustling for profit, and the real and powerful connection between each other is the connection of various interests.
In order for a country to remain neutral in the international situation, not to be forced to participate in the international forces, organizations and alliances of any party, not to be forced to take sides, it needs its own national strength to be strong in its overall quality (but it does not bring a sense of threat to other countries), the surrounding peaceful and stable geopolitical environment and the relatively mainstream ideology at home. The conditions for formation are very harsh, so there are only a few countries in the world that can remain completely neutral.
This is true for developed countries, but even more difficult for small countries. There is a small country that was once the "loyal defender" of the Soviet Union; now it has become the "pawn" of NATO.
The "Guardian" of the Soviet Union
After the Second World War, the people's democracies of Eastern Europe sprung up, and Among these countries, Bulgaria was the closest to the Soviet Union.
On the one hand, the Bulgarians and the Three East Slavic peoples (Russia, Belarus and Ukraine) use similar scripts (all Cyrillic alphabets), Bulgarians and Soviets also believe in Orthodox Christianity, and the links between the Cpsu and the CPSU are also very close, and the exchange and understanding of each other are very harmonious.
On the other hand, at the end of the 19th century, Tsarist Russia rescued Bulgaria from Turkey's hostage-making, so the Bulgarian people were full of gratitude to Russia, and even in modern times, many Bulgarian citizens affectionately called the Russian "Ivan The Grandfather". Ivan is often used to denote a tough and ruthless Russian man.
Since joining the Soviet bloc, Bulgaria has developed tremendously with the help of the Soviet side. Before World War II, Bulgaria was a backward agricultural country, and data show that in 1939 80% of the people in Bulgaria were engaged in agricultural production.
After joining the Soviet bloc, bulgaria greatly changed the domestic economic situation according to several consecutive five-year plans, and in Europe in the 1980s, Bulgaria became the manufacturer of 40% of the computer systems in Eastern Europe.
During the Cold War, Bulgaria was a staunch supporter of the Soviet Union, and the Soviet side also entrusted Bulgaria with heavy responsibilities. According to the Warsaw Pact division of labor, Bulgaria was responsible for assisting the Soviet army and guarding the security of the Soviet Union and even the entire southern flank of the Warsaw Pact Alliance.
In the 1960s and 1980s, Bulgaria had a population of less than eight million, but it had a military strength of more than 200,000 people, which showed the degree of militarization.
NATO "pawn"
There is no doubt that Bulgaria and the Soviet Union have a deep friendship. However, in international relations where interests are linked, the warmth of countries is doomed to not last long without the support of strength.
By 1989, when the drastic changes in Eastern Europe began, the people's democratic regimes in Eastern Europe disintegrated, and Bulgaria was also affected to a certain extent, since the Central Committee of Bulgaria was convened in late 1989, Zhivkov stepped down, and a multi-party competition situation was formed; under the strong offensive of the "peaceful evolution" of Western countries from 1990 to 1991, the Cpussokov was gradually squeezed out of the core of power.
The upheavals in Eastern Europe (late 1980s) were the last countries to undergo regime evolution, and the West adopted the form: peaceful evolution; at the end of 1989, the multi-party competition situation 90-91 the Communist Party gradually squeezed out the regime and completely broke away from the Soviet system.
When the Soviet Union's power completely dissipated on the European continent, the NATO bloc began to recruit various countries that originally belonged to the Warsaw Pact organization to enhance its economic competitiveness and international influence.
At that time, the countries around Bulgaria were moving closer to the West, and the individual countries could not avoid the herd effect. When a country is affected by the international environment, it is of course inevitable to doubt its previous views, behavior, etc.
Probably because of this, although the Soviet Union's help to Bulgaria is still there, the Gratitude of the Bulgarian people to the Soviet Union is still there, and the identification with communist ideas has not yet been subverted, driven by practical interests, Bulgaria still obeyed the general environment and joined NATO in 2004. Since then, he has served the Western countries and become a pawn they use to restrain and balance Russia.
Sigh
Some people may think that Bulgaria's behavior is too unreasonable, but it is also helpless to put yourself in the shoes of you. The whole world is controlled by a cold and rational order, and the love that has lost the basis of interest is as fragile as the thin ice covered by the surface of a spring lake.
The weaker the national power, the more difficult it is to follow its true feelings. Bulgaria made too many enemies in the Second Balkan War and suffered a crushing defeat. Therefore, in order to retake its homeland in world war I, the weak Bulgaria could only throw itself into the hands of Germany, hoping to use Germany's strength to help it get home.
Unfortunately, After Germany's defeat, Bulgaria not only failed to get what it wanted, but also signed the Treaty of Na'í to pay reparations for the cession of land. This experience taught Bulgaria a profound lesson.
Thus, during World War II, Bulgaria learned to "observe the words": first follow Germany, and then move closer to the Soviet Union in time after the situation changed. This time the strategy was clearly very effective, and when the smoke cleared, Bulgaria not only did not suffer huge losses, but gained little.
After World War II, Bulgaria was still a small country, and survival was the most important thing between complicated affairs and endless choices. The sad thing about small nations is that, whether they like it or not, they must make decisions according to the laws of the world in order to survive.
brief summary:
The law of the world is often like this, the big fish fight each other, the small fish can only escape when the big fish bite, and if they can't escape, they can only choose the camp to be commanded to fight in front of the battle. Bulgaria was once a defender of the Soviet Union and is now a pawn of NATO.
At the end of the day, profit is driven. It is true that the ties between The Russians are close, but in the face of the general trend, Bulgaria still has to choose to submit to the West.
It's hard to see through people's hearts, but if you pay more attention, most people's choices in the same situation will not be too different. Man can be sensitive, rough, gentle or manic, but when making major decisions, he often follows the same set of "rational" standards, as is the case with man and so is the state.
When there is no power to resist, whether or not you want to be involved in the incident, small countries can only be forced to drive in front of large countries, and this is the law. How complete, calm, pure and rational, and how sad it is for small countries.