site.btaGERB-UDF Calls Arson on Bulgaria's Diplomatic Mission in North Macedonia Vehicles Attack Against European Union

GERB-UDF MP Georg Georgiev, in a declaration read out from the parliamentary rostrum on Wednesday, on behalf of the GERB–UDF parliamentary group, said that the attack on Bulgaria’s diplomatic mission in the Republic of North Macedonia is not merely an attack against a single state, but an attack against a member state of the European Union and, in that sense, against the Union as a whole.

In his statement, Georgiev, who previously served as Foreign Minister in the Rosen Zhelyazkov government, condemned the arson attack on two diplomatic vehicles belonging to the Bulgarian Embassy in Skopje, which were set on fire outside the premises of Bulgaria’s diplomatic mission in the Republic of North Macedonia.

"We will be neither understanding, nor patient, nor tolerant toward any act of violence," Georgiev declared. "I call on the Foreign Ministry, as well as the government as a whole, to be unequivocal in the messages they convey to the Republic of North Macedonia and to the competent authorities responsible for investigating the incident and bringing those responsible to justice."

"This is not a precedent, it is a recurrence," Georgiev added. The Treaty of Friendship, Good-Neighbourliness and Cooperation with the Republic of North Macedonia, signed in 2017 after many years of effort and considerable resistance, was expected to mark a new chapter in relations with what was then the Republic of Macedonia and is now the Republic of North Macedonia. Regrettably, however, this has not proven to be the case, Georgiev noted.

According to him, not only good-neighbourly relations but also projects related to military mobility, transport connectivity, and infrastructure investment, such as Corridor VIII, linking Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Albania, continue to suffer because Bulgaria continues to encounter obstruction from its western neighbour when it comes to developing normal European relations.

"The 2022 European consensus, better known as the French Proposal or the French Compromise, provided a pathway out of the crisis surrounding North Macedonia’s European integration. At the same time, it ensured the sustainability of a strategic priority that the Bulgarian government led by Boyko Borissov placed on the European agenda in 2018: the integration of the Western Balkans into the European Union," Georgiev stated.

He stressed that the European integration of the Western Balkans remains a key priority for Bulgaria for a number of reasons, foremost among them, particularly in the context of the war in Ukraine, the need to strengthen collective security.

"GERB–UDF strongly condemns any conduct that incites violence, demonstrates contempt for democratic values, and runs counter not only to established European standards, but also to the basic principles of statehood, humanity, and moral conduct," Georgiev said.

"The outstanding issues with the Republic of North Macedonia are not matters between Sofia and Skopje, but between Skopje and Brussels. The commitments that the government of North Macedonia is required to fulfil stem from international agreements, the negotiating framework, and the relevant protocols approved by the Bulgarian Parliament. These commitments do not concern only our two countries. They are embedded within a broader framework of international decisions which, since 2022, the Bulgarian state has successfully upheld and continues to defend to this day," he stated.