Over the last 20 years, Bulgaria and Greece have pursued variable and divergent policies toward their Muslim minorities. During a brief period near the end of the Communist regime, Bulgaria forced Turks to assimilate. This policy was abandoned by the democratic government that took power in the 1990s. At the same time, Greece recognized its Muslim minority and facilitated the "Turkification" of its Muslim citizens throughout the 1980s, but then abandoned that policy by blocking minority rights in the 1990s. Harris Mylonas suggested that these policy shifts are commonly explained by assumptions or models that link minority treatment, regime type, ideology and leadership personalities. Rejecting these hypotheses, Mylonas argued that the structure of the international system was the most salient indicator influencing the treatment of Muslim minorities in both countries.

Josiah Ober, Constantine Mitsotakis Professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences, Departments of Political Science and Classics, Stanford University

Mr. Dimitrios Katsoudas, Secretary General For European Affairs, Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Panos Livadas, General Secretary of Information