Telegram of Congratulations from Mao Zedong, et al. on the National Day of the People's Republic of Bulgaria (September 8, 1958)

To Comrade Todor Zhivkov, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party, Comrade Georgi Damyanov, Chairman of the Presidium of the National Assembly of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, and Comrade Anton Yugov, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the People's Republic of Bulgaria:

On the occasion of the 14th anniversary of the National Day of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, we, on behalf of the government of the People's Republic of China and the Chinese people, extend our warmest congratulations to the government of the People's Republic of Bulgaria and the Bulgarian people.

Under the leadership of the glorious Bulgarian Communist Party and the government of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, the Bulgarian people, in a short historical period, have transformed their motherland from an agricultural country into a socialist country with developed industry and large-scale cooperative and mechanized agriculture.

The Bulgarian people have always been faithful to proletarian internationalism and have made important contributions to strengthening the unity of the socialist camp, defending the principles of Marxism-Leninism, and criticizing modern revisionism in the great struggle.

The People's Republic of Bulgaria is waging an unremitting struggle to ease international tensions and defend peace in the Balkans and the world.

The Chinese people are sincerely pleased with these brilliant achievements of the fraternal Bulgarian people.

The fraternal friendship and comprehensive mutual assistance and cooperation between the Chinese and Bulgarian peoples have seen new development over the past year. There is no doubt that this will greatly contribute to the socialist construction of our two countries and to strengthening the strength of the socialist camp headed by the Soviet Union.

We wish the Bulgarian people new and greater achievements in realizing the resolutions of the Seventh Congress of the Bulgarian Communist Party and completing the cause of socialist construction.

Mao Zedong, Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China
Liu Shaoqi, Chairman of the People's Republic of China
Zhou Enlai, Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China
Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China

[Date] September 8, 1958, in Beijing

Published in the *People's Daily* on September 9, 1958.