About the familiar and the unfamiliar things

You are close to the end of your second term in Bulgaria. What is the feeling you work here with, are you still learning, are there unfamiliar things for you?
Of course, not everything is familiar to me and it cannot be from many points of view. What makes my work different from this of other colleagues is that I can read the Bulgarian newspapers, listen to the news, watch TV; at official meetings I speak in Bulgarian and this draws us closer. It is much easier for an Israeli diplomat to work in Bulgaria than in other countries. Here there is practically no anti-Semitism but positive attitudes towards Israel. Many Bulgarians and Israelites from the elder generation keep up active contacts and ties.

It seems in the last years we, Bulgarians, passed through at least two phases of our perception of Israel. First we suffered from the nearly mythological attitude: They made a garden out of the Israel desert, and here it is the reverse. Then we witnessed some investment and privatization transactions that served to sober us from the uncritical position. Where are we today?
I can only say that in the last year our trade exchange has grown by nearly 100%. The investments are considerable, too. Officially and formally we rank 20th, but at the Agency for Foreign Investments I was told we are actually in the top ten since there are several big Israeli investments recorded as Austrian or Dutch because the companies are registered there.

Israel ranks third in real estate investments. This is very significant, in view of the fact that it is a small state. Many people think it is a large and rich country. Well, this is not so. Gradually our businessmen and investors are getting to know better the Bulgarian economy and acquire greater confidence in Bulgaria. Ever more often these are business people who have no old, family relations with Bulgaria. But I think the boost of economic relations will start after Bulgaria's accession to the European Union. There will be greater trust as well as many more opportunities for cooperation will open up.

About Bulgaria

To Ambassador Sharon one of the signs of the great mutual respect is the Bulgarian Jewish school in Sofia. He does not miss a celebration of the first school day. He is proud that such a school exists. We have Jewish schools in other countries, but the one in Sofia is unique - it is a Bulgarian state school, where Hebrew is taught and a large part of the students are not Jews. Apart from the language, they study the history, tradition and customs of the Jewish people. I know this school is considered to be one of the best and many people insist on enrolling their children in it. I think this is very good for the future and for the ties between our two countries.

A little over 50 years ago, Avi Sharon finished third grade in his Sofia school in Oborishte St. It was very close to his home. Most of his coevals had already left for Israel. When the Sharons went the same way, it took them to their first Israeli home in Lud. Later they moved to Tel Aviv. Today the family of Ahuva and Avraham Sharon live in Jerusalem. I like its climate, I like its atmosphere, the Ambassador says. I have graduated the University of Jerusalem. It is a unique city. Here, in Bulgaria, Veliko Tarnovo reminds me of Jerusalem.

Nearly every month, Ambassador Sharon and his wife are out of Sofia. On the map of Bulgaria most towns and villages are familiar territory to them. They have official meetings with mayors and regional governors. They visit museums, find themselves in the homes of ordinary people whom they befriend and return to see them again. We love this country, he says, we love the people, the landscapes, the archaeological finds… Each district has its own beauty. Smolyan with the silhouette of the Rhodopes, Russe with its architecture, Belogradchik with its unique rocks, Burgas and Varna with the beaches. We find it interesting everywhere, we feel well everywhere.

About the special relations

With so many historical and specific reasons for the links between Bulgarians and Jews, between Bulgarians and Israelis, can we speak of special relations existing between the two countries?
Let us see what the reasons might be for such an assertion. Firstly, nearly all Bulgarian Jews live in Israel and have not forgotten Bulgaria. On the one hand, they are Zionists and this is why they emigrated. On the other, they preserve their great feeling towards Bulgaria and it is somehow handed down to the next generation and many people come here to see where their parents lived. All of them in Israel talk about Bulgaria. Fortunately, in recent years many Israeli tourists come, not only of Bulgarian descent. Last year their number reached 100 thousand.

Our relations, however, have older and deeper roots. Everybody knows about the saving of the Jews. And because even now there is no exact explanation how this happened, we in Israel say: The Bulgarian people saved the Jews. There are at least two more facts that could be primary reasons for our special relations. Perhaps they are not so well known to the broad public. One is that in 1948-1949 Bulgaria, already a communist country, was the only one from the Eastern bloc that allowed Jews to emigrate to Israel unconditionally. The result is well-known - 45 out of the 50 thousand Bulgarian Jews departed.

Something more, the majority of the Bulgarian Jews are from Spanish origin, Sephardic Jews of those banished from Spain in the late 15th century. It is true Bulgaria was then a part of the Ottoman Empire, and it was the empire that opened its doors to receive them. But it should not be forgotten that here, in these parts lived Bulgarians, lived Christians and Muslims. The Bulgarian society at the time accepted the Jews and they felt at home. In time, whole families of Sephardic Jews who lived in Istanbul and Thessalonike came and settled in the Bulgarian lands. So, the biography of the special relations goes far back in history.

Forward in history

Many years back, a young man who was born in Bulgaria and had graduated the University of Jerusalem in History of the Near East and International Relations, went in for the competitive examinations at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs. After two years of successful probation, his real diplomatic career started. Postings abroad and years in the ministry alternated. So did the continents where Ambassador Sharon worked: Africa, Latin America, North America, Europe. His three children grew up in Malawi, Venezuela, Chicago and Sofia. Today the photos of his grandchildren hang on the walls of the office of the Israeli Ambassador to Bulgaria, together with the portraits of Israeli politicians. One of them is of the Israeli President Moshe Katzav. I don't know how often Ambassador Sharon looks at it. But in the last months he has been working intensively for the preparation of his visit to Bulgaria. Fifteen years after the first visit of President Haim Herzog in Sofia (1991) another presidential visit is forthcoming. What it means a state visit to take place during one's term as ambassador can be fully appreciated only by people from the career. We wish Ambassador Sharon success!