Before the start of the European Council meeting, President Rumen Radev commented that in the past month and a half Bulgaria has come under enormous pressure from its European partners for the go-ahead to be given to the accession negotiations with the Republic of North Macedonia at today’s council, the presidential press service has reported. This item was dropped from the agenda at the last minute.

“What I found at the previous Council in May was Bulgaria in isolation, finger-pointing and accusations that it is blocking the negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania,” President Radev pointed out and added that the caretaker government has made enormous efforts to make up for the years wasted.

In the words of the President Bulgaria has a clear position for finding a solution to the problem, and insists on reliable guarantees of sustainable and irreversible results in bilateral relations. “It is time we left the domain of familiarity in diplomacy in front of the cameras and focused on pragmatic solutions,” Rumen Radev said and cautioned that the pressure on Bulgaria will continue.

Rumen Radev stressed further that Bulgaria cannot support the launch of EU accession negotiations with the Republic of North Macedonia “until we are convinced that our neighbour  is not going to build its identity based on theft of Bulgaria’s history,” the presidential press service states.