The Bulgarian parliament has lifted its veto on the start of accession talks for Northern Macedonia’s EU membership. A French proposal was adopted, according to which Northern Macedonia will have to change its constitution to include the Bulgarian minority.
The decision was adopted by 170 votes to 37, with 21 abstentions, the vice-president of the Bulgarian parliament said after the vote. Atanas Atanasov, reports the French news agency AFP. MEPs have thus allowed the Bulgarian government to lift its veto on Northern Macedonia’s EU accession talks.
Bulgaria’s parliament voted no confidence in Kiril Petkov’s government on Wednesday, marking the fourth parliamentary election in Bulgaria last year.
The French proposal demands that Skopje recognize the Bulgarian minority
The breakthrough in Bulgaria’s blockade of Macedonia’s accession to the Union came at the suggestion of France, which currently holds the presidency of the EU Council.
According to the proposal, Northern Macedonia’s constitutional amendments should guarantee the rights of the Bulgarian minority in the country and oblige Skopje to maintain good relations with Sofia, and there should be nothing in official documents to indicate that Bulgaria recognizes the Macedonian language.
Macedonian Prime Minister: Current proposal unacceptable
Bulgarian Prime Minister Kirill Petkov France’s proposal was accepted by the EU-Western Balkans summit on Thursday and described as very good.
Macedonian Prime Minister Dimitar Kovachevski said at a meeting in Brussels that the current proposal for Skopje is completely unacceptable. “If an understanding is reached during the French Presidency, we are ready for talks,” he said. he wrote on Facebook.
Source: Rtvslo
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