Scientific Gathering at MANU Dedicated to Modern Macedonian State

“The demands from Bulgaria encroach on the Macedonian identity and there is no room for compromise. The agreement with Greece is not good either, but it closed a difficult issue,” this is the position of the former President of Macedonia Branko Crvenkovski who believes that the state should not wait for instructions for reforms from the European Union, but to take growth into its own hands. With a series of criticisms of the political situation in recent years, at a scientific gathering on the occasion of 30 years of independence, Crvenkovski said that he has three key problems in the country: he assesses that Macedonia is corrupt, internally divided and indebted. He sees the solution in a national platform that will define the fight against corruption and appealed to President Pendarovski to initiate such a document. Former President Gjorge Ivanov also criticized the level of corruption, crime and political culture in the country. Through a video address, he also referred to the agreements with Greece and Bulgaria. “It is an unprecedented precedent for politicians to give a historical interpretation of the facts, the Agreement with Bulgaria satisfies only the Bulgarian side,” said Ivanov. The current President, Stevo Pendarovski was the last to address the scientific gathering. Unlike his predecessors, he is optimistic that the agreement with Bulgaria will not bring negative effects even after the full implementation, and as a guarantee, he says, they have adopted red lines in the Parliament. He agrees that internally the level of political polarization must be reduced. “It is clear that at this stage of our political development, civil reconciliation is impossible, but all of us, the current political actors, are obliged with a modest personal example to contribute to the de-escalation of tensions that at times paralyze the entire country. We need a new, broad national and state consensus for development that will be supported by the relevant political entities continuously, regardless of whether they are in power or in opposition,” says President Pendarovski.