Petkov: Bulgaria and N. Macedonia preparing for joint observation of Goce Delchev’s birth anniversary
Sofia, 28 January 2022 (MIA) – Preparations are under way for Bulgaria and North Macedonia on February 4 to mark together the 150th birth anniversary of Goce Delchev, Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov announced Friday in Parliament.
In Parliament, Petkov is answering questions from MPs following a request by the opposition party GERB about his meetings with North Macedonia’s Prime Minister Dimitar Kovachevski earlier this week in Sofia, MIA’s correspondent reports from the Bulgarian capital.
Having been elected more than a week ago, Petkov said, Kovachevski has spent four days with the Bulgarian government and has showed willingness for results to be delivered regarding the dispute with Bulgaria.
According to him, many Macedonian ministers had been part of the delegation’s Sofia visit during which major progress had been made over several topics of the talks with their Bulgarian colleagues.
Three memorandums were signed at a joint meeting, including on Corridor 8. According to PM Petkov, it has been removed from the list of European projects and if the two countries wanted to restore it on the EU agenda, it might happen as a result of joint efforts.
During talks on the economy and infrastructure, Petkov said, the two delegations had discussed issues of importance for Bulgaria – the rights of Bulgarians in North Macedonia and the framework position.
Speaking before lawmakers, Petkov said that Kovachevski has stated he saw no issue in including Bulgarians in the North Macedonia Constitution, without providing a timeframe. He stressed that there is no longer talks on 5+1. “We’re discussing 4+1, which is a progress in itself,” he said.
Every seven days, the Bulgarian PM said, a date will be set for meetings and I’m glad that even the joint history commission is set to convene three meetings in the coming months.
Petkov stressed Bulgaria will not replace any member of the Bulgarian team of experts in the commission on historical issues. He also said he believed that the Bulgarian government had done a good job in the past two weeks.
