Bulgarian Bestseller Publishing House started the year once again with a grand premiere – of Simeon Vasilev's book Version International Politics, the third in his series World Gambit

The author is well known to the public with his presence in the media, as a political observer and analyst. His latest book raised great interest, which was attested to by the overcrowded hall of the Central Military Club on January 23. The huge turn-out included politicians, diplomats, journalists, friends and admirers of the author. Among the guests were Prof. Ognyan Gerdjikov, the Deputy Mayor of Sofia Mr. Minko Gerdjikov, H.E. Mr. Rolf Baltzersen, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Norway, H.E. Mr. Pham Quoc Bao, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Mr. Zlatin Sarastov, Executive Director of Air Bulgaria, the MPs Mrs. Anastasia Moser and Mrs. Tatyana Doncheva, Mrs. Ann Begramian, Cultural Attache of the French Institute, Mrs. Maria Konakchieva, public relations officer of the French Institute, Mrs. Rositsa Stanimirova, chief expert of the parliamentary committee on human rights and denominations, the journalists Raina Yotova, Reneta Nikolova, Vladislav Punchev and many others.

The book was presented by Prof. Angel Popov, deputy chairman of the Union of Scientists in Bulgaria and chairman of the managing board of the research section of Sofia University, Prof. Veselin Dimitrov, from the department of journalism and mass communication, Mr. Kamen Velichkov, head of Political Affairs Department at UN and Global Affairs Directorate of the Foreign Ministry.

Prof. Popov read the speech of Prof. Mincho Semov: “…we hold in our hands a precious document about the history of the world political processes… The author does not deal with theoretical formulations, he does not make use of the categories and concepts of political and especially geopolitical science. His success as an analyst and commentator is largely due to the elaboration of his own cognitive instrument, a unique approach to structuring the political reality.”

In the preface, Prof. Andrey Pantev highlights: “…he could make and carry through politics, instead of elaborating on it, a little better than most political leaders, preachers and celebrities… Even if we know all the information, we get a deeper grasp of it thanks to him. He decides who will be in the spotlight of truth. Events, personalities, tendencies, the future.”

Reading between the lines, we can see the future. And it does justify our deeds and makes our efforts worthwhile.

Invited to comment on the book, Prof. Veselin Dimitrov opened his speech with the following words:

“In his monumental work Diplomacy, Henry Kissinger rounds up with a Spanish proverb that goes, “Man on the road, there are no roads, roads are made by walking.” Obviously Simeon Vasilev is well aware of this rule, he knows of many paths to success in his trade, moreover he knows how to break his way forwards. Vasilev has been to numerous countries, seen them in his own way, which enabled him to be equally precise both in evoking memories and in handling details from the political everyday life. His personal meetings with great figures on the international scene from the late 20th and early 21st century. Equally important are his analyses of the world media, those mirrors of reality, creators of introspections of human relations.

Simenon Vasilev is a gripping writer. His style is elegantly expressive. The similes he employs are vivid, and the metaphors – right to the point.

Any randomly selected page of his book will attract your attention and make you think.”

The diplomat Kamen Velichkov described the book as a doubtless contribution to blazing a trail for professionalism in journalism and in the topics dedicated to international issues. He expressed hope that journalism would become the corrective, the source of ideas that Bulgarian foreign policy needs so much.

On his part, the author thanked his publishers for their trust in him and for publishing the book, and the Banker newspaper, because it published many of his articles. Simeon Vasilev commented briefly, “The handling of the EU topic in Bulgaria may seem short in comparison to everything else, which I hope I have rendered a worthwhile account of in the other chapters, but in the last years Bulgaria has indeed faced up to unique geopolitical situations, and I feel happy that from a foreign political and diplomatic point of view, the Bulgarian situation was adequate. There is concrete evidence of this.”

In his book, Vasilev comments on events in the period 2003-2005, analyzing to a certain extent the activities of leading world organizations. He gives a special place to the UN as an organization playing a leading role in resolving conflicts. Next comes NATO, the other significant and important power for the establishment and operation of world relations, especially after the extension of their responsibilities over the whole world in the wake of the jubilee Washington Session. For Simeon Vasilev it constitutes the pillar in creating the modern structure of world relations. The author attributes the key role in the making of world politics to the US.

In his analysis, the journalist does not neglect to mention the EU. Its place and role are defined as important, but he indicates the deficiency of energy in the EU policy. Debatable is the question of Bulgaria's return in 2004 to Europe and the world and the author aptly sets out his views on this. He devotes relatively little space to the contribution of our country to international politics and regards its interference as humble.