Bulgarian FM Zaharieva says Support for Skopje is not Unconditional

According to Bulgarian FM Ekaterina Zaharieva, the support for Macedonia’s EU road isn’t unconditional. “There is no way for you to aspire to become an EU member while having unresolved bilateral relations. That’s not only a Bulgarian criterion, but also one of the criteria for EU membership – friendly and good-neighbourly relations,” she said on Wednesday. As she added, the historical part between Bulgaria and Macedonia is more difficult than the name change resulting from the Prespa Agreement. Zaharieva considers that the whole identity and history since Macedonia’s existence since 1944 has been founded on parts of “our joint history”. On the other hand, former Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev openly condemned the activities of the authorities in Sofia.