News: EU Enlargement Commissioner urges Bulgaria to lift Skopje veto

During the international conference "The EU meets the Balkans" held in Sofia on 26 April, the European Commissioner for Enlargement, Oliver Varhelyi, stated that Bulgaria must lift the veto on the integration of North Macedonia by June, date marking the end of the French Presidency of the EU Council. The reasons for the veto lie in Bulgaria’s refusal to recognise North Macedonia as an independent state, distinct from its own territory. During the conference, the Bulgarian Foreign Minister, Teodora Genkhovska, stated that the indispensable condition for starting negotiations with the country is the constitutional recognition of the Bulgarian minority present in the country. On the other hand, the Foreign Minister of North Macedonia, Bujar Osmani, said that the confidence of the Macedonian people in the European institutions is declining and he stated the need to leave historical identity disputes out of the accession negotiations.