Osmani: French Proposal Is Acceptable if Solution Is Found for Protocols

“The only contentious issue in the French proposal is the bilateral protocol, and if a solution is found for it, the rest of the proposed negotiating framework is acceptable,” said in a recent television interview Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani. Regarding the protocol, he confirmed that progress had been made during a meeting with Gencovska in June, but that the text had not been finalized on some of the issues. Although Osmani believes that there are no legal consequences for him to be part of the negotiating framework, he says that it is not acceptable because the focus of the negotiations will shift, because that way historical issues will dominate. He did not want to predict whether an agreement is possible in the coming days. “I cannot say that we did not accept the document, we did not accept the part that is disputable for us. So, we could not agree with Bulgaria, although I think it can be solved very easily if there is political will,” Osmani concluded.