Skopje, 9 January 2025 (MIA) - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of the Republic of North Macedonia said in a statement Thursday it “firmly condemns the Facebook post made by the leader of the Bulgarian political party Revival, Kostadin Kostadinov, and current MP in the National Assembly of Bulgaria, in which he expresses clear territorial pretensions towards our country”.

“Such malicious statements by officials from the Bulgarian political scene are a direct attack on the sovereignty, integrity and independence of our country, while also being in direct opposition to the rules and principles of international law, the non-meddling of states in internal affairs and policies, and the policy of building good neighborly relations,” the Foreign Ministry said.

The Ministry assessed the statement by the Bulgarian politician as “inappropriate” and said it expects the authorities in Sofia to denounce it.

“We expect official Sofia to denounce the statement as inappropriate to the spirit and the age in which we live, as well as the European standards which we firmly respect, and in opposition to our commitments to ensuring lasting peace, security and prosperity in Europe and beyond,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade said.

Earlier on Thursday, the leader of the ultranationalist and far-right Bulgarian party Revival, Kostadin Kostadinov, called on the Bulgarian Government to officially assert its claims to North Macedonia and the Ukrainian region of southern Bessarabia.

In the post on Facebook, Kostadinov expressed support for U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s statements on Canada and the Panama Canal, noting that Bulgaria has a similar situation with North Macedonia and southern Bessarabia, before claiming it would be “logical” for the two countries to unite.

Revival is currently the third largest party in the Bulgarian Parliament, holding 35 seats out of 240. At the last general elections, it won 12.92 percent of the vote.