To
Her Excellency
Ms Natasa Pirc Musar
President of the Republic of Slovenia
Dear Madam President,
It was with deep concern and disappointment that we learned from media reports in the Republic of North Macedonia about your statement made during your meeting with the President of the Republic of North Macedonia on 18 May 2026, in which Bulgaria was portrayed as a state “holding Macedonia hostage.” Such a qualification, as well as the use of “Macedonia” instead of the constitutional name “Republic of North Macedonia”, is not only politically unfounded, but also constitutes a serious distortion of the actual nature of the problems obstructing the country’s European integration.
This is not an isolated case. In recent years, Slovenian political representatives have repeatedly demonstrated a tendency to uncritically adopt the narratives promoted by Skopje, while systematically disregarding the well-documented problems related to human rights violations, hate speech, historical falsifications, and discrimination against citizens with Bulgarian self-identification in the Republic of North Macedonia. This creates the well-founded impression that Slovenia is among the European Union member states most strongly influenced by inherited Yugoslav interpretations of the Macedonian question.
The Republic of North Macedonia is insisting on the immediate opening of accession negotiations with the European Union without having fulfilled its undertaken commitments and without carrying out the necessary democratic reforms. This contradicts the very principles of European enlargement. The European Union is not a geopolitical club in which membership is obtained through political pressure, but a union of states founded upon the rule of law, respect for human rights, non-discrimination, and democratic standards.
This is not a “bilateral dispute” between Sofia and Skopje, but a profound internal problem within the Republic of North Macedonia itself, originating after 1944 with the forced denationalization of the local Bulgarian population as part of the Yugoslav communist project. The repression against Bulgarian identity, the distortion of historical memory, and the persecution of people with Bulgarian self-identification are not historical myths, but a documented reality that continues to this day. We do not dispute the existence of a contemporary Macedonian identity; rather, we support the right of those citizens who continue to preserve their Bulgarian identity to express and defend it freely. The victims of this policy are not abstract historical categories, but real European citizens who remain subjected to pressure and discrimination even today. It is precisely for this reason that the European position places emphasis on the democratization of the Republic of North Macedonia and on guaranteeing the rights of the Bulgarian community before the actual start of accession negotiations.
Particularly concerning is the fact that certain European political circles are attempting to portray the implementation of already agreed European conditions as unilateral Bulgarian pressure. The constitutional inclusion of Bulgarians in the Republic of North Macedonia is not a demand imposed by the Bulgarian state, but arises from the need to guarantee the rights of the Bulgarian community in the country, which for decades has been subjected to discrimination, denationalization, and assimilationist pressure. This condition was officially accepted both by the European Union and by the authorities in Skopje. The unwillingness to implement it constitutes not only a refusal to comply with European agreements, but also a refusal to pursue the country’s genuine democratization.
Such a policy of indulgence toward systemic violations in the Republic of North Macedonia carries serious risks for the European Union itself. The EU cannot afford the integration of a state in which practices of institutional pressure against a particular ethno-cultural group continue, hate speech against a neighbouring EU member state is systematically employed, and historical intolerance is encouraged. Tolerating such a model would mean importing instability, unresolved identity conflicts, and anti-democratic practices into the European Union itself.
Particularly painful for Bulgarian society is the fact that Slovenia — a country whose representatives in the past often demonstrated understanding toward the tragedy of the Macedonian Bulgarians — is today adopting positions that, in practice, legitimize the policy of their denationalization.
The historical facts demonstrate otherwise. After the Second World War, representatives of Slovenian and other Central European circles repeatedly supported the struggle of the Macedonian Bulgarians against the Yugoslav communist policy of forced denationalization. In numerous publications, memoranda, and international initiatives from the period after 1950, Slovenian intellectuals and public figures clearly viewed the Bulgarians in Macedonia as victims of denationalization and repression in communist Yugoslavia. Particularly notable in this regard is the Slovenian publicist Mirko Geretič, editor of the émigré newspaper Slovenska država (“Slovenian State”), who, together with the Macedonian Bulgarians, conducted a consistent struggle against Yugoslav communist centralism and in favour of the democratization of Yugoslavia. These materials originating from Slovenian circles constitute an important part of the international support for the cause of protecting the rights of Bulgarians in Macedonia and testify to the understanding of the issue as a matter of human rights rather than a mere “historical dispute.” Today, this tradition of Slovenian sensitivity toward the problems of the Macedonian Bulgarians appears to have been abandoned.
Today, unfortunately, we are witnessing a sharp contrast between this historical tradition and the current position of Slovenian state representatives.
Such statements not only offend Bulgaria, but also deeply undermine the dignity of the Bulgarian people, who have contributed to the stability and European development of the Balkans. They are particularly painful for the thousands of descendants of repressed Macedonian Bulgarians whose human rights were violated for decades.
We call upon the Republic of Slovenia to adhere to the principles upon which the European Union is founded — the rule of law, the protection of human rights, non-discrimination, and respect for historical truth. We expect the Slovenian institutions not to support policies of denationalization and hatred, but instead, both bilaterally and at the European level, to encourage democratization and reconciliation in the Republic of North Macedonia.
This letter is not an expression of distrust toward the Slovenian people or toward the Republic of Slovenia as a European partner, but rather a call for a more in-depth, balanced, and fact-based approach to an issue concerning human rights, historical memory, and the dignity of thousands of families. We expect Slovenian institutions to support not the circumvention, but the implementation of the already agreed European conditions, because only in this way can the European perspective of the Republic of North Macedonia be genuine, sustainable, and founded upon the values on which the European Union itself is built.
True European solidarity does not mean unconditional support for every government in the Balkans. It means defending European values, even when doing so may be politically inconvenient.
The future of the Republic of North Macedonia lies within the European Union. However, this path must pass through genuine reforms, the protection of human rights, the overcoming of hate speech, and the recognition of the historical and social realities within North Macedonia itself, rather than through pressure on EU member states to abandon the fundamental principles upon which the European Union is founded.
Respectfully,
Co-Chairpersons:
Prof. Spas Tashev, D.Sc.
Prof. Trendafil Mitev, D.Sc.
Ilija Stojanovski
Secretary:
Dimitar M. Dimitrov
Appendices
Appendix 1. Historical Resolution of the Macedonian Patriotic Organizations (1951)
Attached is a facsimile copy of a resolution adopted unanimously at the 30th Congress of the Macedonian Patriotic Organizations, held in Columbus, Ohio, in September 1951, entitled “Greetings to the Croats and Slovenes.”
The document is of particular historical significance because it reflects the political cooperation and solidarity between Macedonian Bulgarians, Slovenian, and Croatian anti-communist democratic circles during the post-war Yugoslav period. It demonstrates that representatives of Slovenian public and émigré circles openly recognized the existence of Macedonian Bulgarians as victims of denationalization and supported their struggle against the Yugoslav communist policy of forced assimilation.
The resolution presents the Macedonian question not as a dispute over history or identity, but as a matter of freedom, democracy, and human rights within communist Yugoslavia. It also illustrates the historical tradition of cooperation between Macedonian Bulgarian organizations and Slovenian democratic circles in support of political pluralism, national freedoms, and democratization in the Balkans.
The attached facsimile is reproduced as a historical archival document and should be understood within the political and historical context of its time.
Appendix 2. Article from the Slovenian émigré newspaper Slovenska država (1965)
Attached is a facsimile reproduction of a 1965 article published in the Slovenian émigré newspaper Slovenska država (“Slovenian State”), discussing a resolution of the Macedonian Patriotic Organizations and the future of a democratic and independent Macedonia.
The document is of particular historical significance because it demonstrates that parts of the Slovenian democratic émigré community during the communist period openly acknowledged the existence of Macedonian Bulgarians and regarded their cause within the framework of anti-totalitarian resistance, human rights, and opposition to forced denationalization policies in communist Yugoslavia.
Especially noteworthy is the fact that the article explicitly states that in a future free and independent Macedonia all national communities – including Bulgarians, Aromanians (Vlachs), Greeks, Albanians, Jews, Turks, and others – should enjoy absolutely equal rights. This historical position, expressed in Slovenian émigré circles as early as 1965, corresponds closely to the contemporary European principles of equality, non-discrimination, and protection of community rights.
For this reason, the document is also relevant to the current European debate concerning the constitutional recognition and equal treatment of the Bulgarian community in the Republic of North Macedonia. It demonstrates that the demand for equal rights for Bulgarians in Macedonia is neither new nor artificial, but part of a longstanding democratic and human-rights tradition recognized historically even within Slovenian public and émigré circles.
The attached facsimile is reproduced exclusively as a historical archival document and should be interpreted within the political and historical context of the period in which it was published.