German Chancellor Olaf Scholz continues his tour of the Western Balkans. In Skopje, he said Northern Macedonia’s EU accession talks must begin immediately. Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, however, told him that Sofia insists on the terms.
In Skopje, Scholz emphasized the need to start accession negotiations between Northern Macedonia and Albania and the European Union. He added that Germany is working to integrate the Western Balkans into the Union.
“The accession negotiations promised by Northern Macedonia and Albania, which were promised two years ago, must begin now. I will strive for that“the German chancellor said after talks with the prime minister of northern Macedonia Dimitar Kovačevski in Skopje.
The six countries of the Western Balkans were first offered the opportunity to move closer to the Union almost 20 years ago. Scholz said that “as the European Union, we have a duty to deliver on our promises“.
Kovacevski expects the negotiations to be confirmed in June
Kovacevski made it clear that Northern Macedonia hopes that the June EU summit will confirm the start of accession negotiations. “We expect the step we deserve. Chancellor Scholz’s visit is a strong signal that Berlin recognizes that we meet the criteria” he said.
Northern Macedonia has been a candidate for EU membership for 17 years. The European Commission gave the green light in principle for the negotiations in July 2020, but was blocked by Bulgaria over issues of the history of the language and the rights of the Bulgarian minority in northern Macedonia.
Kovachevsky said this had become a domestic political issue in Bulgaria, which was “often instrumentalized and politicized in a unilateral way“.
Bulgaria insists on its terms
Bulgaria, meanwhile, insists on its conditions for starting EU accession talks with Northern Macedonia. Bulgarian Prime Minister Kirill Petkov After talks with Scholz in Sofia, he stressed that Bulgaria continues to demand that the Macedonian parliament constitutionally recognize the Bulgarian minority and ensure that its rights are respected.
In Sofia, Scholz also called for the start of the union’s accession talks with Northern Macedonia. At the same time, he expressed understanding for the problems and stressed the need to find compromises. “We can’t prescribe these things, we have to get to them together,“His words are quoted by the German news agency dpa.”I believe that there is room for improvement,“he added, calling for overcoming historic divisions.
Due to unresolved bilateral issues, including the recognition of the Bulgarian minority, Bulgaria has been blocking the process of bringing Northern Macedonia closer to the EU or starting accession negotiations for more than two years, even though the country meets the conditions.
According to official data, 3504 Bulgarians live in northern Macedonia, which represents 0.19 percent of the population of 1.8 million.
Scholz on a tour of the Western Balkans
On Friday, Scholz set out on a trip to the Western Balkans to help relaunch the stalled accession processes of six countries in the region to the EU.
In addition to Northern Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo are more or less likely to join the EU, with the first four countries already having confirmed candidate status.
Source: Rtvslo
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