On March 3 (February 19, old style) 1878, the Treaty of San Stefano was signed, ending the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 and restoring Bulgarian statehood after five centuries of Ottoman rule.
“Thank you to everyone who carefully preserves the historical truth and cares about the memorial heritage of the Russian-Turkish war,” Mitrofanova said.
According to him, Russian-Bulgarian relations are currently going through difficult times. The Russian diplomat noted that some political forces in Bulgaria seek to rewrite common history, fight against monuments and inculcate Russophobia. But despite this, monuments to Russian soldiers continue to be treated with fear across the country, giving hope that good relations between the two peoples cannot be broken for opportunistic reasons.
“I wish you prosperity, prosperity, peace and goodness. Happy holidays, happy Bulgarian Liberation Day!” – Mitrofanova congratulated the Bulgarians.
Meanwhile, as reported by the Bulgarian newspaper Trud, at 11:30 local time the Shipka Pass, whose battle became one of the turning points during the liberation war, was closed to cars. The reason was the influx of people who wanted to visit the Freedom Monument and honor the memory of the fallen Russian soldiers and Bulgarian militias.
