No one has the right to expect that this government will unconditionally make changes to the country's constitution, said the Prime Minister of North Macedonia Hristijan Mickoski in an interview on Channel 5.
According to Mickoski, his conversation with the President of the EC Ursula von den Leyen, who was in Skopje yesterday as part of her Balkan tour, was friendly, and the topics they discussed were many. He pointed out that "no one lives in an illusion" and he knows well that the changes in the constitution - the inclusion of Bulgarians in the country's basic law - is a condition for opening the negotiation clusters, but while he is prime minister, "constitutional changes will not happen without a clear fulfillment of the obligations of the eastern neighbor, as well as specific guarantees from the European Union".
"No one has the right, nor is it fair to expect that this government will unconditionally do this, nor does the government intend to do it while I am prime minister. This must be clear, I have said it many times, we demand consistent compliance with international law, and our eastern neighbor also has obligations. We also want guarantees. And if the EU really wants to see (North) Macedonia in its company, at least a little of what it does for some other countries, it will do for us too. And this is a clear position&rdquo, said Mickoski, who explained that "in the interest of the processes that follow" does not want to talk about the details.
After his several-hour visit yesterday to Skopje, where he met with the president, the speaker of parliament and the prime minister of North Macedonia, after which there was no press conference, the EC President wrote on the "Ex" platform that he supports the country on its path to the EU, and "the next and only step before the start of negotiations is clear". "You must make the agreed constitutional change. The ball is in your court. The EU is ready," wrote Ursula von der Leyen.
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Oct 17, 2025 05:07 968