Bulgaria has objected to the Action Plan for Minorities submitted by the Republic of North Macedonia because it is in Macedonian, said the Prime Minister of North Macedonia Hristijan Mickoski, quoted by MIA, writes BTA.
The Action Plan for the Protection of Minorities is part of the process of North Macedonia's integration into the EU.
In front of the media, Mickoski said that what he warned his partners in Brussels about had happened, namely “that even the best Action Plan for Minorities we make, it will be rejected by Bulgaria“.
“No member state is against it, no minority in Macedonia is against it given that there was an open debate. Well, the problem was that it was in Macedonian. "Excuse me, but my mother tongue is Macedonian, the official language for international use is Macedonian, there is no other. If this bothers someone, I cannot help here and I regret that this is so," said Mickoski.
In response to a question during his visit to the village of Sopište near Skopje, he pointed out that everything that was requested had been done - the proposals of an expert from Italy in the development of the plan were accepted and Brussels' request to "send it to Bulgaria a day earlier to show goodwill" was fulfilled.
“This once again shows that there is no connection with the minority or with the Bulgarians in the Constitution. "Their (Bulgaria's) demands have much deeper roots and the problems are deeper and once again show that their intention is completely different," said the Prime Minister of North Macedonia.
He added that at the moment his government has no contacts with Bulgaria, but "we are available whenever and wherever, to any organization to go and talk and present our arguments."