[ad_1]
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of North Macedonia, Bujar Osmani, today called on the EU to avoid “blackmail” against his country, which faces new obstacles on its way to the EU, reported AFP.
“Our efforts to maintain good relations with our neighbors have not been rewarded,” Osmani told a press conference in Prague, where he is visiting, adding that the dispute with Bulgaria will have a negative impact on the entire Balkan region.
After speaking with Osmani, Czech Foreign Minister Tomas Petricek expressed the hope that a compromise could be reached by the end of the year.
“There are very intense talks in the EU on how to make a breakthrough /…/ we would like to reach a compromise by the end of the year,” Petricek said.
“The EU must maintain /…/ its status as a reliable partner for countries that implement reforms and fulfill their obligations,” he added.
Welcoming the support of the “26 countries” of the 27 EU member states, Osmani said that “the support of the European countries is the best way to restore enthusiasm and confidence in the process.”
According to him, “supporting and accelerating the integration process is the best way to improve relations between neighbors.”
Earlier today, in an extensive interview with Die Welt, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva explained why Bulgaria was blocking North Macedonia’s accession process to the EU. According to her, Bulgaria’s support for starting accession talks with the Western Balkan countries has always been consistent, but not unconditional. These conditions were established when Bulgarian approval was given for the start of negotiations in March. One of these conditions was that North Macedonia achieve tangible results in the implementation of the bilateral good-neighbor agreement.
