Bulgarian Parliament Rejects Idea of Plan B for North Macedonia

Sofia, Bulgaria (Photo: Pexels)

The Bulgarian parliament is preparing a declaration which will dismiss recent attempts to implement a "plan B" to unlock the start of North Macedonia’s EU membership negotiations,  the Brussels-based portal EUalive reported on May 30, adding that the document would also urge Skopje to adopt a plan for the protection of minority rights.

According to the portal’s sources, Bulgarian MPs will respond to what they see as an attempt by Skopje to avoid amending the Constitution of North Macedonia to include in it the Bulgarian minority. Bulgaria has been blocking North Macedonia’s accession talks since 2020, citing unresolved issues related to history and culture, as well as anti-Bulgarian policies affecting ethnic Bulgarians in that country.

In 2022, Sofia lifted its veto on North Macedonia’s EU accession and supported the "French proposal" arranged by the Union during the French EU presidency, the purpose of which was to allow Skopje to begin negotiations with the EU provided that it amended the Constitution to include the Bulgarians as a minority. However, negotiations have not yet begun because Hristijan Mickoski’s government strongly opposes the constitutional amendment.  Instead, Mickoski has been mentioning "creative solutions" for launching the accession talks.

The Brussels portal recalled that President of the European Council Antonio Kosta, during his visit to Skopje in May, rejected the possibility of renegotiating the 2022 agreement. He called on North Macedonia to focus on implementing "plan A" and amending the constitution.