An unresolved issue for decades with a special historical and symbolic significance for Greek-Bulgarian relations is about to end, writes the Greek publication epolitical.gr.
The government in our southern neighbor is expected to hand over the mortal remains of Tsar Samuil to Bulgaria by the end of the week. They were discovered in 1969 by the Greek archaeologist Nikolaos Moutsopoulos in the basilica of “Saint Achilles“ in the Small Prespa Lake.
Sofia's request for their return is not new. It has been discussed repeatedly between the two countries over the past decades, without, however, reaching a final solution. The issue was raised again in 2022, during the government of Kiril Petkov. This was a period in which Athens and Sofia developed particularly close cooperation, especially in the field of energy and interconnections against the backdrop of the energy crisis that followed the war in Ukraine.
Within these contacts, Petkov also raised the issue of Tsar Samuil's remains again in an attempt to find a solution to a case of particular importance for Bulgarian historical memory.
However, the case was far from simple. For years, a number of issues related to the return of church treasures, manuscripts and relics taken from monasteries in Northern Greece during the two world wars have remained unresolved between the two countries.
Four years after Petkov's government raised the issue of Tsar Samuil's remains again, the procedure seems to be about to end. If their handover takes place as planned, it will be a move with high symbolic value for relations between Athens and Sofia.