The Academic Council of Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski has unanimously backed an open letter advocating for the continuation of the Czech Centre in Sofia, following the institution’s announcement of its impending closure in the Bulgarian capital. The Czech Centre issued a statement on Monday confirming that, by decision of the Czech Centres network Director General, the facility would cease its operations in Bulgaria.
According to the announcement, planned activities would continue through the end of May. The Czech Centre in Sofia holds significance as the oldest Czech institution of its kind abroad and one of Bulgaria’s longest-running foreign cultural organizations. The centre is scheduled to mark its 77th anniversary on May 5.
Historically, the facility traces its roots to the opening of an art and craft shop called Ceskoslovenska tvorba Orbis on May 5, 1949, established under an intergovernmental cultural agreement between Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria. Following the establishment of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic as independent states in January 1993, the Czech Republic subsequently established the Czech Centres as successors to the former Czechoslovak cultural centres abroad. Given this history, the Academic Council of Sofia University voiced considerable concern regarding the planned closure.
The Council urged a reconsideration of the decision, emphasizing the centre’s deep historical and cultural importance and its vital role in sustaining long-standing cultural ties between the Czech Republic and Bulgaria within Sofia.
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