Bulgarian Foreign Minister: The good neighbour agreement with North Macedonia provides all guarantees to resolve the open issues

If the good neighbour agreement between Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia is implemented and no ways of circumvention are sought, it provides all the guarantees to resolve the open issues, Bulgaria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ekaterina Zaharieva said on November 9 after an online meeting on the first joint presidency of the Berlin Process for the Western Balkans.

Her counterpart, Bujar Osmani, added that the agreement is an excellent framework for overcoming differences.

Ekaterina Zaharieva, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria: I think that if there is no real reconciliation and if the open issues are not laid on the table for resolution, with a spirit of honesty and good will, this reconciliation will not be possible. In the past few months alone, there have been over 10,000, to put it mildly, negative publications about Bulgaria, and I would define them as hate speech. This should not continue. Bulgaria is, has been and will continue to be one of the countries that will support the countries of the Western Balkans, including the Republic of North Macedonia on the path it has embarked upon. Of course, they must also fulfill their responsibilities.

Bujar Osmani, Foreign Minister of the Republic of North Macedonia: The Good Neighbour Agreement is an excellent framework and formula for overcoming the differences between the two countries on all points. I believe that continuing and dynamizing with good will, with a focus on our future together between the two countries is the only solution. I am optimistic that we all agree on this process and the consequences in the event of failure. The commissions may not have solved all the points, I understand that there may be different expectations, but it creates an excellent platform to build upon in good faith, respecting the sensitive topics of each of the parties in this process.