Historic deal: Greece to return Tsar Samuel’s remains to Bulgaria after decades of negotiations

Bulgaria’s Prime Minister Rumen Radev announced on Tuesday that Bulgaria and Greece have reached a “historic agreement” on the repatriation of the mortal remains of Tsar Samuel, after “intensive negotiations” between the two countries, as the Bulgarian news agency BTA reported.

As the Greek portal naftemporiki.gr reported, the Greek government in Athens is expected to hand over the remains to Bulgaria within the week, thus closing a decades-long issue of special historical and symbolic importance for Greek-Bulgarian relations.

Radev invited all Bulgarians to gather on Saturday, October 3, at 12:30 PM at Battenberg Square in front of the Royal Palace in Sofia to welcome the remains together and honor the ruler, as Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) writes.

The remains were found in 1969 by Greek archaeologist Nikolaos Moutsopoulos in the Basilica of Saint Achilles, on the island of Agios Achilleios in the small Prespa lake. The request for their return was raised again in 2022 by then-prime minister Kiril Petkov during talks on energy and interconnection with Athens; according to Bulgarian media, the Greek Orthodox Church has also stated its position on the matter.

Tsar Samuel defended Bulgarian lands for 43 years against the Byzantine Empire and died on October 6, 1014, in Prespa, where he was buried in the Basilica of Saint Achilles.