Skopje, 4 June 2026 (MIA) - Our strategic orientation in foreign policy remains clear, but our position that there currently are no conditions for the adoption of the constitutional changes remains unchanged as well. Conditions for the constitutional changes can be created on the basis of building mutual trust, and mutual trust can be built primarily if there are institutional guarantees, something which I believe almost all EU member states have no issue with, except for one, said Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Timcho Mucunski in answer to a journalist’s question Thursday.

“This is the greatest concern and also the expectation that neighboring Bulgaria, since it expects us to add the Bulgarian minority to our Constitution, the least it could do is fulfill its own obligations according to international law. I am referring to the European Convention on Human Rights,” Mucunski said in a statement to the media before the beginning of a business forum of ICT companies, organized by the Chamber of Commerce for Information and Communication Technologies – MASIT and the Association of Information Technology & Communications Enterprises of Greece (SEPE).

Regarding the statement made by the President of the European Council, António Costa, in Skopje that the only conclusions that can be made is that North Macedonia needs to implement what has been agreed, Mucunski said he did not hear such an explicit statement, adding that the country remains committed to European reforms.

“I am glad that Mr. Costa, as one of the highest representatives of the EU, publicly said what the Government has been saying for a long time – that this country has a Government that is committed to the European reforms, a Government that implements European reforms and a Government that has a clear strategic orientation. And he took down the hysteria that certain political structures in the country were trying to create. I didn’t hear and wouldn’t like to engage with interpretations of Costa’s statement,” Mucunski said.

Mucunski said he believes there is a desire among the highest representatives of the EU to encourage dialogue between the two countries, adding that the Government will be not only constructive, but also a productive actor in that aspect.

“Besides stating that we have clear positions, I always stress that we don’t have any alternatives to the European path. It is evident that currently there’s serious interest by the member states and the European institutions to advance the enlargement policy and if that interest is sincere, of course an appropriate European solution will be found for our dispute as well,” Mucunski said.

Quizzed about his expectations from the EU – Western Balkans summit in Tivat, Montenegro, Mucunski said the very fact it is being held in the Western Balkans is a message to the region, and he expects additional encouraging signals to be sent to the region as a whole.

“Since German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is expected to attend, it is likely that one of the topics of discussion will be his view of the enlargement policy. One of the positive signals we are hearing, and will probably hear them in Tivat directly, is that the ideas he outlined in his letter are not being interpreted as an alternative, i.e., as some kind of a new model without a path to full-fledged membership, but rather as a parallel process. Of course, it is always best to hear from the highest representatives of the member states and European institutions directly what they have to say,” Mucunski said.

Regarding the draft report on the country by MEP Thomas Waitz adopted on Wednesday by the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET), which contains remarks about the reforms in the rule of law, Mucunski said the final version has not been adopted yet, and that it covers a reporting period up until November or December of 2025.

“I would see this report as a balanced report and we as a country don’t agree with everything in it, but we don’t have the right to be critics of the content of that report, we have a duty to see it, provide our position, and continue doing what the country is doing properly and appropriately – not just based on my assessment, but also based on the assessment of the highest representative of the EU – that is, implementing reforms. The country is implementing reforms and I will reiterate, you can hear what Mr. Costa said, and you can also read the report which commends the foreign policy and strategic orientation of the country,” Mucunski said.

On the amendments to the report submitted by Bulgarian MEPs, which call on the governments of both Bulgaria and North Macedonia to hold the third intergovernmental commission to implement the Treaty of Friendship, Good-Neighborliness, and Cooperation and its protocols, Mucunski said the country must undoubtedly maintain a dialogue with Sofia and hold high-level meetings.

"That is not the issue. The issue is that, among other things, Bulgaria is violating the Treaty of Friendship, Good-Neighborliness, and Cooperation. Is it good or bad? Let's set that question aside. I have my own views on this, but let's just put that aside for a moment. In that agreement, Bulgaria committed to encouraging and supporting our path toward EU integration, and it is not doing so. If you are asking me whether we should have more high-level meetings, yes, we should. Next week, I expect President Siljanovska-Davkova and I will be in Sofia. There is a regional event where we will meet with our colleagues and talk once again. As a European nation and a NATO member state, we do not have the choice or the luxury to cut off communication with our neighbors, no matter how difficult that communication may sometimes be," Mucunski stressed. 

Photo: MIA