Public Lecture on the Diplomatic Relations between Bulgaria and Spain Was Delivered by H. E. Alejandro Polanco Mata, Ambassador of Spain to Bulgaria
At the invitation by the Foreign Languages and Applied Linguistics Department and the International Economics and Politics Faculty, H. E. Alejandro Polanco Mata, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Spain to Bulgaria, gave a public lecture on the History of Diplomatic Relations between Bulgaria and Spain. Prospects under the Spanish EU Presidency During the Second Half of 2023.
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| At the opening of the lecture: Prof. Dr. Daniela Koch-Kozhuharova, moderator of the event and long-standing former Head of the Foreign Languages and Applied Linguistics Department, the Rector of UNWE Prof. Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov, H. E. Alejandro Polanco Mata |
Before the lecture H. E. Alejandro Polanco Mata met with the Rector of UNWE Prof. Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov. "We had a fruitful conversation with Mr. Ambassador about the opportunities that our university provides for Spanish students and the implementation of other common initiatives at UNWE related to business and cultural exchange", said Prof. Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov at the opening of the public lecture.
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| Н. E. Alejandro Polanco Mata gave as gift to Prof. Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov the book Bulgarians and Spanish | Búlgaros y Españoles, which presents the interesting parallels and mutually beneficial contacts between the two peoples and the two countries from ancient times until today |
Moderator for the event was Prof. Dr. Daniela Koch-Kozhuharova, a long-standing former Head of the Foreign Languages and Applied Linguistics Department, who focused on the non-random choice of the date for the lecture by H. E. Alejandro Polanco Matta, namely one day after 23 April - the World Book and Copyright Day which was chosen as a symbolic tribute to two of the greatest colossi of the world literature - Miguel de Cervantes and William Shakespeare both died on 23 April in 1616.
In his lecture H. E. Alejandro Polanco Mata concerned three topics: 110 Anniversary of the establishment of official relations between Bulgaria and Spain, an overview of the relations up to now with a brief summary of their political, cultural and other aspects and the forthcoming Spanish Presidency of the EU in the second half of 2023.
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Н. E. Alejandro Polanco Mata |
He emphasized on the fact that the relations between Bulgaria and Spain, officialized in 1910, date back long before that. Already in the Middle Ages, the Spanish King Alfonso X the Wise mentioned the Bulgarians as a people in a chronicle from the 13th century. The settlement on the Balkan Peninsula by the Jews expelled from Spain in the 15th century (besides Constantinople, they settled in Thessaloniki, Plovdiv and the Black Sea towns), the establishment of honorary consulates in the 19th century in Varna and Ruse and of an embassy of the Kingdom of Spain in Bulgaria in 1910 as well as of a Bulgarian one in Spain, are also important.
The Ambassador also concerned the relations between the two countries in more recent times outlining the fact that Spain has "supported Bulgaria with concrete actions" for its membership in NATO and the EU.
"We have great political relations which have a positive impact on the economy, the export of goods from Spain to Bulgaria increases, and vice versa, investments grow, over 80 Spanish companies having over 3 000 employees operate in Bulgaria", said Н. E. Alejandro Polanco Mata.
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In the discussion after the lecture took part Assoc. Prof. Dr. Blaga Blagoeva, Head of the Political Science Department, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Antonia Pencheva, Head of the Foreign Languages and Applied Linguistics Department, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Monika Moraliyska, Deputy Head of the International Economic Relations Department and Business, lecturers and students from the UNWE. Among the issues discussed were the ever-growing cultural and economic exchange, the increasing number of schools where Spanish is taught, the new specializations in Spanish, the growing number of contemporary Bulgarian writers translated into Spanish, and the influence of Spanish culture on Bulgarian culture.
Н. E. Alejandro Polanco Mata has held diplomatic posts in Austria, Slovenia and Morocco and has been Ambassador of Spain to the Embassies of Mauritania, Mali and Algeria.
More information about the Ambassador can be found HERE.
