The European Parliament has never before openly mentioned the Macedonian identity and language in an official European document. For the first time in 34 years, these issues have been included in the rapporteur's report on Macedonia, said the Prime Minister of the Republic of North Macedonia, Hristijan Mickoski, to Sitel TV, quoted by MKD, reports Focus.
„The fact that the report was adopted by the Committee on Foreign Affairs and will be presented to the European Parliament in this form shows that our identity and language will be officially put on the agenda in the European capital. Unfortunately, there will probably also be MEPs with ‘Taliban’ approach that will bring forward proposals for their deletion“, commented Mickoski.
He stressed that more and more allies in Europe understand the essence of the problem:
„It is becoming clear that the issue is deep and that everything we said about historical damage turns out to be true. The truth cannot be changed.“
The Prime Minister insisted that the trust of the Macedonian people must be restored:
„People must be sure that no one will set them new conditions or ultimatums that leave wounds on their national fabric. If someone claims that the elimination of language and identity is not excessive, then I do not know who would be.“
Regarding the request to include Bulgarians in the Constitution, Mickoski pointed out two key dilemmas:
„First, human rights. In a number of reports by the Council of Europe there is no evidence of systemic violations in the country. Secondly, if there really are 200 thousand Bulgarians, which is about 10% of the population, this could lead to future demands for 10% quotas for judges, prosecutors, administrative positions, etc. And if this is not implemented, there will be a new veto.“