istry of Foreign
Trade, Ministry of Finance, and the state banks. Bulk of trade is with
Soviet Union and other COMECON countries.

20. RAILROADS: Operational network totals about 2,620 miles, most of it
standard gauge. System carried bulk of long-distance domestic cargo and
passenger traffic.

21. ROADS: Total mileage about 21,000, but less than one-half has
asphalt or other paved surface. Highway vehicles carry increasing
traffic, preponderance of short-haul cargo and passengers.

22. INLAND WATERWAYS: Lower course of Danube River accommodates
2,500-ton vessels. Black Sea and ocean commerce increasing rapidly.

23. CIVIL AVIATION: State-owned Balkan-Bulgarian Airlines (BALKAN)
connects Sofia with about a dozen cities on internal routes and almost
twice as many foreign capitals.

24. ARMED FORCES: Bulgarian People's Army is subordinate to Ministry of
National Defense. Ground forces have 80 percent of its personnel; air
and naval forces, included in the army, have only about 15 and 5
percent, respectively, of total strength.

25. SECURITY: Ministry of Internal Affairs controls police and security
organizations, except Border Troops, which are part of army. Party and
mass organizations apply pressures on behalf of public order and in
defense of the system.

BULGARIA

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

FOREWORD iii

PREFACE v

COUNTRY SUMMARY vii

SECTION I. SOCIAL

Chapter 1. General Character of the Society 1

2. Historical Setting 9
Early History--Turkish Rule--The Rise of Nationalism
--Liberation and Its Aftermath--World War I--The
Interwar Years--World War II--The Communist State

3. Physical Environment and Population 37
Natural Features--Boundaries and Political
Subdivisions--Settlement Patterns--Population--
Transportation

4. Social System 65
Ethnic and Religious Composition--The Family--Social
Stratification--Other Social Groups

5. Living Conditions 79