site.btaNorth Macedonia to Start Accession Negotiations Right After It Implements Constitution Changes, Commissioner Kos Says

The political goal of the European Commission is for North Macedonia to start accession negotiations as soon as possible, right after the country meets the criteria agreed on with the European Council, meaning after it implements the changes in the constitution, EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos said on Tuesday.

Kos was speaking at a joint press conference with North Macedonian Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski in Skopje on Tuesday. The two spoke to the media after the meeting of the leaders of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia which aimed to accelerate the delivery of the EU's Growth Plan for the Western Balkans.

The Commission continues to insist on the importance of constructive dialogue between North Macedonia and Bulgaria, to build a spirit of mutual trust and understanding, Kos said. She added that this is very important, and that the meeting has shown that it is imperative to advance North Macedonia on its accession path, especially in view of the fact that some other countries are strong competitors in the pre-accession negotiations. The opportunity for enlargement is open and the chance should be seized, Kos added.

Asked to comment on the guarantees that the EU can provide to ensure that there will be no more conditions set by Bulgaria, Kos replied that EU membership is the best way to protect the identity, culture and language of the people of North Macedonia because the EU is built on diversity.

Kos added that identity can never depend on political decisions, because it is something people carry in their hearts and souls. Identity is how people feel, how they feel about their homeland and traditions.

To a question related to the EP report on North Macedonia's progress, North Macedonia Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski replied that he expected “all kinds of engineering” and added that nothing would surprise him. 

"I am more careful when it comes to identity. Yes, we have it in us, but I have to admit that in these 30 years we have lost a big part of it, changing the flag, the name, changing the constitution several times. And in an environment where we have no guarantee that this will be the last concession in terms of identity, I would be much more careful because I am guided by the motto “don't listen to what people say, watch what they do”. And what some of the MEPs from our eastern neighbour have done and are still doing has nothing to do with European values. My identity is not only the wonderful Macedonian cuisine, but also Gotse Delchev, [Kuzman] Shapkarev, the Miladinov brothers, the Ilinden Uprising, Dame Gruev, Yane Sandanski, etc. I don't know if the same thoughts will be shared by our Eastern colleagues [from Bulgaria], but these are the people who are part of our North Macedonia identity," Mickoski said at the joint press conference.

In his statement Mickoski was referring to prominent figures of the Bulgarian National Revival and renowned revolutionaries from Bulgaria and North Macedonia who fought for independence of the lands that were still under Ottoman rule. The Ilinden (St. Elijah’s Day) Uprising was an organized revolt against the Ottoman Empire prepared and carried out by the Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organization, with the support of the Supreme Macedonian-Adrianople Committee, which included mostly Bulgarian military personnel. Bulgaria has called for common celebrations, as the uprising is marked by both Bulgaria and North Macedonia as the peak of the struggle against Ottoman rule.