SDSM: A referendum against EU has no support and won’t succeed
Skopje, 5 September 2022 (MIA) – The referendum initiative is Hristijan Mickoski’s personal decision to save his own seat in VMRO-DPMNE, said SDSM in reaction to the announcement that VMRO-DPMNE will collect signatures for a mandatory referendum on the Friendship Treaty with Bulgaria.
The citizens, SDSM stressed, are in favor of progress, membership in the EU. We stand on the brink of achieving this strategic goal of the country, set since its independence, a dream of many generations, the party pointed out.
“We started negotiations with the EU with a protected Macedonian identity. All political parties that think well of the country and the citizens support the European process to full-fledged membership. Only Mickoski and his pro-Russian partner Apasiev are against the EU. The referendum initiative is Hristijan Mickoski’s personal decision to save his seat in VMRO-DPMNE. After all his lies about Bulgarization and assimilation failed, after the VMRO-DPMNE MPs ran away and didn’t vote against it in the Parliament. Now Mickoski wants the responsibility for his failures to fall on his members,” reads SDSM’s reaction statement.
According to the party, Mickoski is using the wrong ways to save his seat, with new attempts to stall the country and block EU membership.
“A referendum against the EU, against the Macedonian language in the Union, has no support from the citizens and will not succeed. An initiative against the EU has no support even from the opposition parties, and there are divided views even in VMRO-DPMNE itself, where the pro-European wing is strengthening, which doesn’t think the same as Mickoski and wants to support the country's European path. Especially since Mickoski is not being honest and lies to its members, just as he lies to the citizens. His statement at a meeting with the former prime minister, Boyko Borissov, where he publicly supported the Friendship Treaty with Bulgaria also confirms this,” SDSM said.
The party stressed that the country will not stop, adding that Mickoski cannot stop it. According to SDSM, there will be no turning back or deviating from the European path.
