“What we see on the Bulgarian side is a strong development of a national narrative that creates divisions and is directed against the neighbor and, in fact, I would say against their closest friends in the region. But, unfortunately, your Prime Minister is investing in something similar on the North Macedonian side as well,” said the EP rapporteur for North Macedonia, Thomas Waitz.
Weitz has criticized the Bulgarian government, just as he criticized Prime Minister Mickoski for this, and as long as we nurture these feelings, the division, the gap between our societies, this does not lead us towards a successful European Union.
Asked whether at the Enlargement Forum, here in Brussels, all candidate countries are represented in some way, whether by prime ministers or by someone else, except Macedonia, Waitz said he was sure that representatives from North Macedonia were invited to participate.
“I’m sure that representatives from North Macedonia were invited to participate today, but I don’t know what the background of the organization is. So, I would be surprised if this came from the European Commission. But this is not a punishment, it clearly is not. I’m sure that there was an invitation and that there were some problems why Prime Minister Mickoski or Foreign Minister Mucunski could not participate. But, on the EU side, there is a blockade from Bulgaria. This is what we need to talk about, and this is problematic for the Union as well.
“But the general atmosphere towards North Macedonia, as I perceive it, is positive. I am regularly contacted by members of the European Commission or services, trying to offer support, to find solutions, asking me what the next steps might be. So, there is a lot of commitment here to support North Macedonia on its path,” Waitz said in an interview for “Sloboden Peçat”, during the Enlargement Forum. /Telegraph/