“The conditions are not at hand for Bulgaria to agree to the start of negotiations by the Republic of North Macedonia on accession to the EU,” reads a position by the Executive Bureau of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), the party’s press service has announced.

According to the BSP Bulgaria’s consent cannot be traded or given under outside pressure. “Bulgaria’s position must be unequivocally in favour of the use of the full constitutional name Republic of North Macedonia as an applicant country,” the position reads further. Ambiguously regulated concessions in this direction could call in question the territorial integrity and national security of Bulgaria, the Bulgarian Socialist Party position reads.