TIRANA, June 25 – After official Skopje rejected the French proposal as unacceptable for the country, North Macedonian Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani indicated that a window remains open on the issue of the Bulgarian veto, but the question of time is pressing.
Osmani said he expects Paris to submit a new proposal by the end of the French presidency, which terminates this month. If there is such a step on the part of France, then the new proposal will be carefully considered by the relevant institutions, promised the head of diplomacy of Skopje on Saturday.
“The French presidency lasts until June 30. This means that if they decide on a new proposal in accordance with the positions of both parties which have already been made public in the coming days, we are here to evaluate it. If we have a proposal, the relevant institutions will be consulted and a decision will be made. We will absolutely not be led by hybrid attacks, by frustrated politicians who think they can get their careers back,” he said.
Bulgaria’s parliament on Friday gave the green light to the country’s government to approve the negotiating framework for North Macedonia’s membership talks with the European Union, thus lifting the veto imposed in 2020 due to history and language disputes. Lawmakers voted to allow the government to lift its veto following changes to the text of the negotiating framework that would guarantee the rights of Bulgarians in the country through constitutional changes and boost Skopje’s commitment to maintaining good relations with Bulgaria. According to lawmakers, the framework should also not contain any references that might suggest that Bulgaria recognizes the Macedonian language.
The compromise was proposed by France, and was considered by the Bulgarian side as the best offer they have received so far.
But it was not accepted by Skopje. Macedonian Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski said historical issues could not be criteria in the negotiating framework. Negotiations between North Macedonia and the EU should begin before the procedure for constitutional changes for the inclusion of Bulgarians in the Preamble to the Constitution begins. “There must be strong guarantees from the EU and Bulgaria that the latter will not make new conditional demands,” Kovacevski said.
/Argumentum.al
