Bulgaria wants to see actions not words. We are prepared to work and find solutions towards overcoming this accumulated mistrust and be true members of the European family, said Bulgarian Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva after a meeting with North Macedonia’s Special Representative for Bulgaria, Vlado Buchkovski, in Sofia on Wednesday.
“We are continuing discussions on finding a solution for the outstanding bilateral issues with the Republic of North Macedonia as well as a way to the negotiating framework over the country’s EU membership. It is wrong to call this a veto because it is only a non-approval of the negotiating framework. We are in a delicate stage of our relations,” said FM Zaharieva told the joint press conference.
According to her, Bulgaria did not veto the decision because enlargement was not even on the agenda of yesterday’s ministerial council.
“Bulgaria’s position is clear – it wants guarantees for its demands: fulfillment of the Friendship Treaty, a roadmap for its implementation, declaration of no aspirations for the Macedonian minority, and use of the language in accordance with the 2017 Treaty. This is not part of the negotiating framework and Bulgaria cannot support this,” said Zaharieva.
She added there is disappointment on both sides and urged the joint commission on historical and educational issues not to be used for political goals.
“We have warned our neighbors for a year and a half now. There are a few aspects here: blocking and politicization of the Commission, administrative obstacles for Bulgarian businesses, unofficial support of individuals and organizations by claiming there is a Macedonian minority in Bulgaria, along with a lack of progress and delays of Corridor VIII,” noted Zaharieva.
She said Skopje and Sofia showed they could coordinate by the Berlin Process co-presidency, and this should be used to return the lost trust and “put an end to the destructive approach”.
“The anti-Bulgarian campaign is visible, the attempts to discredit Bulgaria in all organizations, the claims of a veto and that Albania would be stopped in parallel, and other things that are not true. All of this is not helpful and prevents the trust-building process. This strategy is unacceptable for us, but also unproductive. I am convinced that only a well-intentioned approach leads to overcoming accumulated mistrust. We are extending our hand towards finding solutions that are mutually acceptable and long-lasting, opening the path to new relations,” said Zaharieva.
The FM said the building of trust gave prime ministers Zoran Zaev and Boyko Borissov the strength to negotiate and sign the Friendship Treaty, adding bilateral or multilateral agreements must be observed if a country wants to join the EU.
“When aspiring to become a member of a family, it is absurd to join while discrediting members of this family. The objective of enlargement is to make EU stronger not weaker,” underlined Zaharieva.
