The proposal of the Portuguese EU Presidency, which will now be assumed by Slovenia, is still the only valid proposal for resolving the dispute with Bulgaria, Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani told a press conference in Ohrid on Thursday.
Osmani discussed during the press briefing activities and the importance of the first international conference within the Prespa Forum Dialogue for North Macedonia’s and the region’s EU integration in response to a reporter’s question on whether finding new solutions at the margins of the event is possible. The Foreign Minister added that the Portuguese proposal remains valid.
“Bulgaria hasn’t openly rejected the proposal, which we now consider to be the only valid solution being transferred to the new Presidency. Of course, the Presidency will determine the approach on how to establish dialogue. Talks with counterpart Logar have shown that the Slovenian Presidency will focus on the issue with the goal of crowning success at the Summit scheduled for October 6,” Osmani said.
He noted that the timing for holding the conference is favorable, adding that the event was initially supposed to be held June 15-16, ahead of the EU Summit, in which case participants would have discussed hopes and expectations.
“I think that at this forum, we’ll discuss and reflect on what happened, as well as how to restore this process in the region. It has no alternative. The theme of this conference is Western Balkans – the missing puzzle for completing Europe. The Balkans is an island within the EU, it’s geographically, economically, politically and culturally impossible to have any other alternative,” the top diplomat underlined.
He added that the main question is how to convince EU members that it’s in their best interest to close the gap at the heart of Europe.
“Gaps present weak spots and entrance points for different issues that can affect the whole continent that we’re an inseparable part of,” Osmani stressed.
During the press conference, he also mentioned the B-6 format of meetings between regional foreign ministers, that launched Wednesday in Ohrid at his initiate.
FM Osmani also stressed that he and counterparts didn’t discuss on Wednesday the ‘Mini Schengen’ initiative, but instead focused on the idea of establishing an informal platform for foreign ministers to hold regular meetings at their own initiative ahead of major international meetings to align positions and stand united on issues of shared interest.
