The way in which the current Bulgarian government, at the beginning of its mandate, “positions itself” towards North Macedonia is not optimistic, believes the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of the Republic of North Macedonia, Timcho Mucunski, according to whom it is “crystal clear that constitutional changes (for the inclusion of Bulgarians in the country's constitution) are not Bulgaria's only request”, BTA reported.
”There are many elements that they (the Bulgarian government) see as an important part of our European integration process, which we believe do not need to be discussed in this time in which we live. Bulgaria has expectations of us as a country that are related to identity issues such as language, history and culture. "Yes, the Bulgarian side, unlike all other member states and all European institutions, believes that the 2022 agreement (negotiation framework) is much more than constitutional changes and this is the reality we are facing and for which we must find a solution," Mucunski said in an interview with TV Sitel.
According to him, the focus of the talks with the President of the European Council Antonio Costa, who arrives in Skopje today as part of his tour of the Western Balkan countries, will be the reform agenda and the European integration process, as well as the possibilities "for overcoming the obstacles that hinder (North) Macedonia's progress towards the EU." Mucunski specified that the country's government is not ready to discuss “any issue related to identity, language, culture and history”.
In response to a question about who pays the price for the country's delay in negotiations, Mucunski stated that it is paid not only by the state, but also by the entire region “and by the entire EU, which is losing confidence in itself by allowing bilateral issues to hinder European progress and the promises and guarantees that have been given to the country and the region as a whole”.
“The fact is that we need to find a solution, there is no dilemma about that. But if this decision means only the beginning (of the EU accession negotiations) without certainty about the end and knowing that in the meantime Sofia is very specific in its demands for national concessions (towards North Macedonia), then there is no point in embarking on a path that is uncertain, where the price will be new national concessions without any guarantees,” said Mucunski.
When asked whether citizens should be asked in a referendum what they think about changing the country's constitution, Mucunski said that “the referendum at this moment neither makes sense, nor can it mean anything concrete, nor provide any breakthrough in the situation”.
”This serves only as an internal political tool of the main opposition party (SDSM), which, if you follow their press conferences, does not even know when the deadlines for implementing the reforms are... And the essence is that all polls show us absolutely unequivocally that citizens support the European path. But at the same time, we should not continue the path of concessions one after another, without clear signals that this is the end... One of the institutions that can, through its conclusions, provide guarantees that there will be no additional demands on our country related to history, identity, language and culture, is the European Council as the main institution that makes decisions on behalf of the member states. However, we should not ignore our expectation that neighboring Bulgaria will show a minimum of good faith towards us and assume its obligations in accordance with the European Convention on Human Rights,” stated Mucunski.