Skopje, 14 May 2026 (MIA) - SDSM leader Venko Filipche said Thursday Hristijan Mickoski and VMRO-DPMNE should apologize to the citizens for, he said, “the wasted years, all the insults suffered by those who supported SDSM, those who believed in the European Union, and to the many who left the country and moved out due to the Euroscepticism and this false campaign” over the Prespa Agreement.

The opposition leader said all politicians who accused SDSM of being a treasonous party due to the Prespa Agreement, now recognize the agreement.

In the press conference, Filipche said President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova in her latest statement admitted that VMRO-DPMNE has been lying to the citizens for years about the country’s identity and the Prespa Agreement.

“Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova said she would never utter North Macedonia. Hristijan Mickoski said while he is in VMRO, the Prespa Agreement is not a closed issue. And what happened? President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova publicly stated the Prespa Agreement reaffirms and preserves the Macedonian national identity,” Filipche said.

The SDSM leader said the Prespa Agreement does not endanger Macedonian identity, instead, he said, it strengthens it.

“There is nothing in the Prespa Agreement that endangers our national identity, on the contrary, it strengthens it. We, at SDSM, are proud of that, and all our citizens who were lied to until now should be proud too,” Filipche said.

Regarding the constitutional amendments to add minorities to the Constitution, Filipche reiterated that this is a request from the European Union and not Bulgaria, as, he said, VMRO-DPMNE is trying to portray.

“We are not negotiating with Bulgaria, we are negotiating with the European Union. And let me go back to the issue with Bulgaria, and once again clarify why the inclusion of the minorities, specifically the Bulgarian one, does not in any way pose a risk to our identity. This would invalidate the decades-old Bulgarian claim that we are the same people in two countries. From the moment the Bulgarians are included as a minority in the Constitution, a clear distinction is being made between the Macedonian people and the Bulgarian minority. The entire propaganda refuting the existence of a separate Macedonian people collapses,” Filipche said.

The opposition leader called on ruling politicians to apologize to the citizens.

“Not only did they not restore the old name, but daily, at official meetings, as we’ve been told by the foreign partners they meet, behind closed doors they use the constitutional name – North Macedonia. And where is the treason now? This is not politics. This is pure deceit of their own nation. It is time for this organized group of Hristijan Mickoski and VMRO to apologize to the citizens for years of lies and toxic divisions in society. It is time to cease the theatrics and continue the policy of a European future. If they don’t want to, and they don’t because of their businesses, they should leave,” Filipche said.