site.btaBulgaria Marks 70 Years of UN Membership with Commemorative Stamp Issue

A commemorative postage stamp marking the 70th anniversary of Bulgaria’s membership in the United Nations (UN) was officially issued at a ceremony at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria, the Ministry’s press office said on Friday. The event was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications, Grozdan Karadjov, and Foreign Minister Georg Georgiev, who placed the first postmark on the jubilee edition.

Addressing the ceremony, Georgiev said that Bulgaria sees multilateralism and the United Nations as the most effective tool for addressing the challenges of the contemporary international environment. He underlined the country’s long-standing commitment to the principles and objectives enshrined in the UN Charter, which provide a foundation for peace, security and sustainable development. Georgiev reaffirmed Bulgaria’s support for the ongoing UN reform process aimed at enabling the organization to respond more effectively to dynamic global challenges in a context of conflict, instability and terrorism.

Themes related to international organizations have held a special place in Bulgarian philately since the early 1960s. Among them are editions dedicated to the International Committee of the Red Cross, the World Wide Fund for Nature, UNESCO and the UN. The first Bulgarian postage stamp dedicated to the UN was issued in 1961.

During the ceremony, Georgiev presented awards to the finalists in the national student essay competition on the theme “Bulgaria in the UN: The Voice of Small and Medium-Sized States in Global Politics.” The first prize was awarded to Lazara Prichkapova, who will join the Bulgarian delegation to the 80th session of the UN General Assembly in New York City.

Bulgaria became a full member of the UN on 14 December 1955, along with 15 other countries, according to information from the Archives and Reference Directorate of Bulgarian News Agency. The decision was adopted by the UN General Assembly following a recommendation by the UN Security Council.