Abstract
This chapter analyzes the transformation of the Bulgarian military and its concept of professionalism after the end of the Cold War, beginning with the social and political transition from socialism to democracy after the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact in 1991. The focus is the postmodern trends in the military organization, such as the change in the traditional warrior’s role as a result of participating in international missions and operations, the creation of an all-volunteer force, and the full integration of women into the services. In addition, this chapter presents survey results from military members regarding their perceptions of their social status, the prestige of the military profession, and the public image of the defense institution. Finally, public support for the military institution and the military profession is discussed. The chapter concludes with some views about the future of the military profession in Bulgaria and the key challenges to military expertise.
The views expressed in this chapter are solely those of the author and should not be attributed to the Bulgarian Defence Institute (BDI) or the Bulgarian Ministry of Defence.
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Yanakiev, Y. (2020). The Changing Military Profession in Bulgaria. In: Hachey, K., Libel, T., Dean, W. (eds) Rethinking Military Professionalism for the Changing Armed Forces. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-45570-5_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-45570-5_3
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