German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited North Macedonia and Bulgaria on Saturday in a bid to resolve the dispute between each nations that has seen European Union membership talks with each North Macedonia and Albania blocked.
He known as for the EU to begin membership talks, however appeared to attain little progress in Sofia the place the Bulgarian authorities reiterated its objection to North Macedonia's accession.
Scholz mentioned that “the Western Balkans are of strategic significance” for Germany and that his nation is “severe” in supporting European integration of the area.
“North Macedonia and Albania deserve to begin the membership talks,” Scholz mentioned at joint information convention with North Macedonia Prime Minister Dimitar Kovachevski within the capital, Skopje.
Kovachevski mentioned that his nation's dream of becoming a member of the European Union was being held "hostage" by neighbouring Bulgaria.
"One EU member state (...) is holding two candidate nations, North Macedonia and Albania, hostage on the street to European integration," he informed journalists.
These phrases had been a transparent reference to Bulgaria, which has been blocking the opening of EU accession negotiations with Skopje since November 2020 due to disputes over language and historical past.
Bulgaria insists North Macedonia should formally recognise that its language has Bulgarian roots, to say a Bulgarian minority in its structure and to stamp out allegedly anti-Bulgarian rhetoric. North Macedonia says its identification and language aren't open for dialogue and that the answer have to be based mostly on European values.
Kovachevski mentioned that North Macedonia has fulfilled all standards to begin membership talks with the EU, based mostly on a “benefit system,” and once more known as on EU leaders to offer the inexperienced mild for opening talks on the forthcoming EU summit on June 23.
The German Chancellor then travelled to Sofia the place he met his Bulgarian counterpart, Kiril Petkov.
Bulgaria refuses to approve the EU’s membership negotiation framework for North Macedonia, successfully blocking the official begin of accession talks with its smaller Balkan neighbour.
Petkov defined that Bulgaria would look into how the EU accession course of could possibly be used to enhance the standing of the Bulgarian minority in Northern Macedonia.
Scholz expressed confidence that progress could possibly be made, including that "the numerous objections which have constructed up between the 2 sides over time needed to be overcome".
On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron mentioned he was able to welcome the Bulgarian and North Macedonian authorities to Paris "when the time is true" to conclude a bilateral settlement that may permit the opening of negotiations for Skopje's accession to the EU.
France, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU till 1 July, has been supporting "for a number of weeks" the seek for an answer to the dispute between the 2 nations, the Elysée mentioned after talks with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev and Dimitar Kovachevski.
5 nations are presently official candidates for EU membership: Northern Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and Turkey.
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