Relationship dossier
Bulgaria
Italy
Relationship assessment
Bulgaria and Italy cooperate through a bilateral strategic partnership and NATO security arrangements.
Bulgaria toward Italy
+35Bulgaria has hosted the NATO multinational battlegroup led by Italy, facilitating the allied security deployment on Bulgarian territory. The two governments also maintain a strategic partnership framework.
Italy toward Bulgaria
+35Italy has led a NATO multinational battlegroup deployed in Bulgaria, contributing to allied security cooperation there. The two governments also maintain a strategic partnership framework.
Overall relationship
+35The relationship has a cooperative institutional basis in a bilateral strategic partnership and practical NATO security cooperation, including Italy's leadership of a multinational battlegroup hosted by Bulgaria. EU and NATO membership provide further settings for cooperation, though those ties alone do not establish the strength of the bilateral relationship.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Bulgaria and Italy maintain a cooperative relationship supported by a strategic partnership framework and practical security cooperation within NATO. Italy has led a NATO multinational battlegroup in Bulgaria, while Bulgaria has hosted the allied deployment. Their broader cooperation also takes place through the European Union and NATO; the scope and implementation of bilateral initiatives are less clear.
Key developments
Bulgaria and Italy established a strategic partnership framework.
Italy led a NATO multinational battlegroup deployed in Bulgaria, with Bulgaria hosting the allied force.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of the Bulgaria–Italy strategic partnership are unclear.
- Details of additional bilateral security cooperation are limited.