The international conference The 12th Drinov Readings "Central and Eastern Europe in Regional and Global Security Systems"

Dear Esteemed Colleagues, we are pleased to invite you to take part in the international conference The 12th Drinov Readings, dedicated to the topic "Central and Eastern Europe in Regional and Global Security Systems". The conference is held on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the founding of the Marin Drinov Centre for Bulgarian and Balkan Studies. It is organized within the framework of the project East Ukrainian Centre for European Studies (EAUCES — ERASMUS-JMO-2024-COE 101176972). The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences is a co-organizer of the conference.

The conference is planned to address the following thematic areas:

• The search for stability amid permanent conflicts of the Early Modern period
• The region as a component of the Westphalian balance of power
• The implementation of security principles of the «European Concert»
• Attempts to establish collective security in the interwar period
• Central and Eastern Europe as a geopolitical buffer during the Cold War
• Central and Eastern Europe in the security projects of the post-bipolar world
• Ukraine in regional security visions and strategies

The XII-th Drinov Readings will take place on 27-28 November 2026 and will be hosted by the Marin Drinov Centre for Bulgarian and Balkan Studies, V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, in an online format. Participants are kindly requested to submit conference abstracts by 1 November 2026 via a dedicated electronic form on the website of V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University.

Abstracts (up to 2,000 characters including spaces) should clearly formulate the research problem, briefly characterize the source base of the study, and present its content and results. The Organizing Committee reserves the right to select abstracts for participation in the conference.

Working languages of the conference: Ukrainian, Bulgarian, and English.

Address of the Conference Organizing Committee. Room 491, 6 Svobody Square, Kharkiv, 61022, Ukraine, tel.: +380 (97) 084-49-30, e-mail: dmykolenko@karazin.ua.