North Macedonia’s president and prime minister expressed frustration with the European Union over a dispute with Bulgaria that has hindered the country’s accession process. The conservative Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski criticized the EU for trying to “dictate” North Macedonia’s actions and insisted on no further delays in membership talks. Reports suggested that the EU had decided to push ahead with Albania’s accession process independently, further complicating North Macedonia’s path to membership.
The EU had started membership talks with both North Macedonia and Albania in 2022, but North Macedonia’s bid was delayed due to a dispute with Bulgaria over Balkan history, language, and culture. The country’s previous government had attempted to break the impasse by accepting a Bulgarian demand to insert a reference to a Bulgarian ethnic minority in the constitution, but lacked the parliamentary majority to do so. Mickoski’s new conservative government insisted on amending the constitution only after Bulgaria approved North Macedonia’s EU membership.
President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova compared the country’s EU membership path to waiting for “Godot” at the UN General Assembly, emphasizing the frustration of continuously being told to make more concessions for EU membership. The main opposition leader blamed Mickoski’s government for the setback, calling it a “huge disaster” for citizens. The dispute with Bulgaria is reminiscent of North Macedonia’s previous naming dispute with Greece, which was resolved in 2018.
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