Bulgaria’s position: Not ready to support North Macedonia to start EU accession talks

Bulgaria is not ready to say "yes" to North Macedonia to start EU membership talks, Deputy Prime Minister Ekaterina Zahariev told a briefing on November 3.

Last night, she was in Berlin, where a meeting with the Ministers for European Affairs and Foreign Affairs of North Macedonia took place at the invitation of the German Presidency of the Council of the EU. On the topic, Bulgaria’s Prime Minister held a video conference with Chancellor Merkel. The Head of State Rumen Radev and Deputy Prime Minister Krassimir Karakachanov also expressed positions.

The reason for last night's meeting in Berlin, organized with the mediation of Germany as the rotating president of the European Union, is the willingness of the Republic of North Macedonia to have a clear negotiating framework by the end of this year.

Deputy Prime Minister Zaharieva reminded that Bulgaria has always supported the European path of North Macedonia, but in the decision to give the green light to the negotiations with the European Union in March and in a series of declarations thereafter it is clearly stated that good neighbourly relations and the agreement with Bulgaria, signed in 2017, should be complied with.

"Unfortunately, for more than a year now, we have been witnessing permanent and systematic non-compliance with this agreement," Ekaterina Zaharieva, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister said.

Zaharieva explained that it is not just about the work of the joint Bulgaria-North Macedonia Commission on Historical Issues, but there are also obstacles to important infrastructure projects and the unwillingness of the Republic of North Macedonia to adhere to the language wording.

The biggest problem for Bulgaria regarding the work of the commission on historical issues, is that the personalities on which agreement has been reached have not been announced publicly at the moment and the agreements are not reflected in the textbooks and museum exhibits.

"We have heard many accusations that Bulgaria does not recognize reality, on the contrary, we recognize reality, even with the fact that we were the first to recognize the existence of the state," Zaharieva said.

At the same time, Zaharieva noted with concern that the non-recognition of the historical truth has serious reflections in reality, expressed in minority claims. No one has the right to determine for a citizen how he/she self-identifies and what language he/she speaks.

"We have made some progress on the open issues. You know that for the name and rather the use of the short name for Bulgaria it is important that they declare what they did in NATO, that it does not lead to the geographical part of Bulgaria and that it is in no way connected with territorial or minority claims. With regard to language, we reiterated that there are two options - either to use the 2017 formula, which is absolutely sufficient for us, or to recognize the evolution and genesis of language," said Ekaterina Zaharieva.

The position of both the Prime Minister and the Bulgarian government is very clear and it is: we are benevolent, but we cannot make concessions that will continue to lead to an anti-Bulgarian campaign, she said.

European countries are facing many challenges at the moment, including the COVID crisis. That is why it will not be beneficial for Skopje to miss this window because not all member states are as enthusiastic about EU enlargement as Bulgaria and Germany, Bulgarian foreign minister said.

The topic is expected to be discussed at a meeting of the General Affairs Council on November 10, and by then the Bulgarian position should be clear.

In a 40-minute videoconference conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on November 3, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov informed about the position of Bulgaria, presented by Ekaterina Zaharieva yesterday in Berlin.

"Bulgaria and I are grateful for the commitment of the German Presidency and you personally for finding formulas that will allow the Republic of North Macedonia to start negotiations on membership in the European Union," said Prime Minister Boyko Borissov.

Borissov also expressed hope that correct decisions on the topic would be reached within the German presidency.

Deputy Prime Minister Krassimir Karakachanov also commented on the topic. He said he supported the Bulgarian foreign minister's main findings that the good-neighbour agreement was not being complied with.

"I do not think that Bulgaria currently has guarantees from the Macedonian side for the implementation of the August 2017 Treaty and I do not accept that such guarantees can be statements of members of the Macedonian government, or only a declaration by them. The only guarantee would be a written annex to the 2017 Treaty, reflecting the Bulgarian Framework Position and the declaration of the Bulgarian Parliament of October 2019," Karakachanov said.

Speaking to media, President Rumen Radev said that Bulgaria needs guarantees that the unity of the Bulgarian nation and our cultural and historical heritage will never be called into question by external factors.

"We cannot legitimise and give European legitimacy to the hatred towards Bulgaria. As a self-respecting nation, 3 years after the signing of the good neighbourly relations agreement, we shouldn’t expect to see offensive and unacceptable wording regarding Bulgaria in texts in textbooks, in museums, monuments, on university websites and scientific institutions,", Bulgaria's President Rumen Radev said.

From now on, according to the head of state, there is only one way out: postponing the negotiations until a clear, binding bilateral agreement is concluded between Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia to clear up all bilateral issues.