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Bulgaria has blocked the start of EU accession negotiations with its neighboring country due to a dispute with North Macedonia over history and language. “Bulgaria cannot support the draft negotiating framework with the Republic of North Macedonia at this stage,” Foreign Minister Ekaterina Sakhareva said after an EU videoconference at ministerial level.
Bulgaria now complains that Skopje is not complying with a bilateral agreement signed in 2017. So Sofia insists that the fulfillment of this contract should be included in the negotiation framework.
“When negotiations are in progress, two sides are needed”
Bulgaria was “always open” to continue talks with Skopje and find solutions, Sakhareva stressed. “You take two sides when negotiating,” he said. On Bulgarian state television, the minister previously said: “The Republic of North Macedonia will have a place in the European Union when it is ready. At this point, Bulgaria discovers that it is not ready. “
The dispute between the two neighboring Balkan countries revolves around their shared history, with Bulgaria complaining that North Macedonia “has stolen history”. Furthermore, Bulgaria refuses to recognize the Macedonian language as an independent language, as Sofia considers it a Bulgarian dialect.
Part of the dispute is also the name change to North Macedonia. Bulgaria insists that the new name “Republic of North Macedonia” be used in its entirety because North Macedonia is the part of the geographical area of Macedonia that is owned by Bulgaria.
