Angel Orbetsov: There is a positive emotion between Bulgarians and Iranians

The cover of Angel Orbetsov’s book (source: screenshot)

A book reveals the richness of Bulgarian-Iranian relations from 1878 to the late 1950s

Vladimir Mitev

Angel Orbetsov is a Bulgarian diplomat and Iranologist who published his doctoral research, Bulgarian-Iranian Relations from the (Bulgarian) Liberation to the Late 1950s, as a book in late 2022. Orbetsov is a former ambassador to China and longtime director of the Asia, Australia and Oceania Directorate at the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry. He was also a diplomat in Iran in the late 1980s and early 1990s, also serving in consular functions. He is the author of a number of scholarly publications on Bulgarian-Iranian relations and contemporary Iranian politics.

The interview was realised for Radio Bulgaria.

What foreign policy line will Albania follow now that it has severed diplomatic relations with Iran?

The Iranian embassy in Tirana (source: YouTube)

We talk to a Bulgarian Albanologist – Anton Panchev, about the controversy between Albania and Iran and Bulgarian-Albanian relations

Vladimir Mitev

Anton Panchev is a professor of Albanian language, culture and society at Sofia University. He is also one of the editors of the website Obshtestvo.net, which is the de facto Bulgarian media link between the Albanian and Bulgarian-speaking world. 

Mr Panchev, Albania broke off diplomatic relations with Iran after it accused it of a hacking attack on its state institutions. How does this conflict fit into the foreign policy line of Tirana, which is a NATO member and is trying to open negotiations with the EU?

On 15 July 2022, Albania’s e-government systems collapsed (as of 1 May, the whole country went e-government). Prime Minister Edi Rama immediately announced that a “foreign power” was behind the cyber attack, and Iran was subsequently blamed. Iranian officials categorically denied any state involvement, but the authorities in Tirana felt they had evidence of a hostile act and closed the Iranian embassy.

Following the severing of diplomatic relations with Albania, a hacking attack on Albanian border crossings took place on 10 September 2022, with the Albanian border crossings having their systems taken offline for several hours, this time with Iranian hackers claiming responsibility and saying this was “just the beginning”. In the first week of September 2022, hacking attacks were reported on institutions in other Balkan countries, such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Montenegro. US officials said they fully support and assist Albania in the investigation and subsequent decision to sever diplomatic relations with Iran. The US has also announced sanctions against Iranian officials in connection with the allegation. Authorities in Tirana said the measures were taken “in coordination with partners” and were supported at NATO level.