Bulgaria and Macedonia Signed Good Neighbour Agreement

The Prime Ministers of Bulgaria and Macedonia, Boyko Borissov and Zoran Zaev, signed on 1^st of August the Good Neghbourly Relations Agreement between Bulgaria and Macedonia. It is subject to ratification by the parliaments of the two countries.

The agreement is based on the text of a 1999 declaration between Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia.

Signing the document is the basis for a lasting and sustainable building of friendly and good neighbourly relations and will contribute to strengthening bilateral and multilateral cooperation, expanding transport links and communications, facilitating contacts between citizens of the two countries.

The transport ministers of the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the development of the railway links between Sofia and Skopje.

The energy ministers of the two countries signed a Memorandum on cooperation in the area of natural gas.

The finalising and signing of the document was agreed during the visit of Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev in Sofia in June.

The agreement provides for establishing a multidisciplinary expert commission (on parity principle) on historical and educational matters to bring about an objective interpretation of historical events. It also envisages organizing of joint observances of common historical events and personalities. The document states that the two countries do not have and will not make territorial claims against each other. The two sides vow to take action for preventing hostile propaganda by their institutions and agencies.

Speaking in a briefing after the signing ceremony on 1^st of August, Bulgaria’s Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said that peace, friendship and good neighbourliness were more important than anything else,

The two memorandums are extremely important to you and to us, because Transport Corridor No. 8 is the link that joins the entire Balkans, he said. This transport corridor gives opportunity for every Balkan country to trade, do business and tourism with each other, Borisov noted.

He paid special attention to the Balkan hub, which will give opportunity to Macedonia to buy gas from the European gas hub directly and Bulgaria will transport it.

He predicted a positive reaction from the European Union to the signing of the agreement. I am sure that in 10 years’ time, the results of the treaty would be visible to citizens both of Bulgaria and of Macedonia, Borissov said.

Zaev said that the signing of the treaty showed that where there was political will, issues would be solved.

We made a historic step forward, paved the way for cooperation and friendship between the two countries for joint progress, we contributed to the stability of the countries in Southeast Europe, he added. We decided to make a solution-focused politics rather than a problem focused one.

This treaty is a common success and an overall contribution to the stability of the countries in the region. It is an example of cooperation in the region. We saw a constructive partner in the Bulgarian government, Zaev said.