Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Bulgaria to the United States of America visited USC Monday night to talk to students. Elena B. Poptodorova visited the USC campus with South Carolina Congressman Joe Wilson to discuss relevant Bulgarian political topics.
Wilson developed an interest when in Bulgaria when he was appointed to a delegation that went to Sofia, Bulgaria. He later met Poptodorova at the White House when Bulgaria was accepted as a member of NATO.
Poptodorova’s political career began as a member of the Bulgarian parliament. Later she became an ambassador and she spoke about her goal to change what Americans knew about Bulgaria from communist times.
“The big challenge for me at the time was to fight a reputation,” Poptodorova said. “That’s the hardest battle one can have, to change the image of your own country.”
She identified Bulgaria’s admittance into NATO as the biggest factor in changing Bulgaria’s reputation. She said that Bulgaria’s historical reputation of being a loyal, Soviet satellite nation has been replaced with one of a devoted ally to the U.S. in the eyes of the world as a result of that membership.
Poptodorova also spoke about the challenges of being a female leader and methods for success. She said that men have led for centuries but that is changing along with the rest of the world.
“I happened to be in the most male fields, politics and foreign policy. It’s not easy because it’s considered to be kind of reserved territory for men. For a woman it’s always harder to do it,” she said. “You have to train twice or three times as much, you have to be at least twice as good as your male colleagues.”
Later, Poptodorova identified terrorism as the most important judgment a president can make and said Bush’s instinct about terrorism was correct. She related to Obama by saying all leaders want to be known for peace, and then identified new and changing threats as factors in changing opinions about conflict in the Middle East.
“I think President Bush had the passion, had the drive to step forward. President Obama is more reflective, more pensive, which at times may mean slowing down certain decisions,” Poptodorova said. “We need America’s leadership. Not just Bulgaria, the world needs it. No need to pretend otherwise.”
Poptodorova talked at length about the situation between Russia and Crimea. She said the situation is closer and more dangerous to them, making them a “frontline state” because they share a border with Ukraine and the Black Sea with Crimea.
As part of the response to Russia, Poptodorova mentioned a NATO decision to establish a command center in Bulgaria and other eastern European countries. The plan is intended to serve as a response to aggressive Russian actions in the past year.
“History is history and geography is geography," Poptodorova said. "We don’t want to be enemies and we are not enemies with Russia.”
Poptodorova wants a complete and honest teaching of history so Bulgarians can know all that has happened in history, not just the information the Soviet Union allowed to spread.