FM Osmani: Bulgaria has right to veto but six months too long in context of region
Skopje, 15 December 2021 (MIA) – Bulgaria has a right to veto, but six months is too long in the context of the region, Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani said on Wednesday regarding the position of new Bulgarian PM Kiril Petkov.
He underlined that EU makes enlargement decisions based on consensus, noting that North Macedonia’s position is based on principles and backed by many member states.
“Six months is too long in the context of the region. There are many unresolved issues. Waiting so long doesn’t work for us. We should sit with Petkov and discuss what this means. The first intergovernmental conference is no different than the rest. There’s no need to hold the entire region hostage,” Osmani told TV24.
The Financial Times wrote on Tuesday that new Bulgarian PM Petkov has signaled that Sofia will end its obstruction of North Macedonia’s bid to join the EU once his new government takes office in the coming weeks.
“We are on the right side of NATO and EU policies, 100 per cent. We will propose a new process [on North Macedonia], very fast, with a limited timeframe, just six months long,” he told FT, MIA reported from Sofia.