Strong Reaction from VMRO Against Hungary and France Over the "Macedonian Question"

Representatives of the party VMRO (Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation) on July 1 handed letters to the embassies of Hungary and France, in which they strongly condemn the position of the Hungarian authorities, who in the Foreign Policy Committee of the European Parliament refused to allow the Bulgarian proposals for amendments in the report on the progress of the Republic of North Macedonia in the process of European integration.

VMRO claims the report fails to address the violations of the rights and legitimate interests of Bulgarians in North Macedonia. The letters are addressed to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and French President Emmanuel Macron, as France is the guarantor of the so-called French Proposal, which outlines the conditions North Macedonia must meet for EU membership.

According to former MEP Angel Dzhambazki, Skopje has not fulfilled any of the commitments.

When asked by Bulgarian National Television (BNT) what should happen next, Dzhambazki said:

“A reasonable option is to gather enough support to amend every instance in the Weitz report where 'Macedonian identity and language' is mentioned, by adding clarifications such as ‘contemporary’, ‘modern’, or ‘present-day’. This is a form of crisis rescue. If that doesn’t happen, we must work to block the report from being voted on in plenary, which would not be a precedent.”

Outside the French embassy, Alexander Sidi also commented:

“We came here to remind President Macron—through his ambassador—that he was the guarantor of the EU agreement with North Macedonia. We want to ask why the so-called French Proposal is not being implemented.”
The letters were accompanied by books featuring Hungarian and French authors who have written about the Macedonian question. VMRO also requested formal meetings with the ambassadors of both countries.