North Macedonia Parliament paves way for EU accession negotiations | Abroad

The parliament in Skopje gave the green light to the framework for negotiations with the EU. That framework also includes a compromise for the conflict with neighboring Bulgaria. The North Macedonians commit themselves to recognize the Bulgarian minority in their country in the constitution and to take other measures to protect the rights of minorities. Also, Bulgaria does not have to recognize the Macedonian language. The compromise came about on a proposal from France, which was president of the Council of the EU until the end of last month.

The Social Democratic government in North Macedonia has shown willingness to make these concessions in order to finally get accession negotiations on track, but the compromise has put national politics under high pressure.

The nationalist opposition party VMRO-DPMNE does not want to hear about it. She warns against an erosion of national identity. Members of parliament left the hall in protest on Saturday. They could not prevent the approval of the framework, but a two-thirds majority is required for a constitutional amendment. 68 of the 120 MPs voted in favor of the proposal.

On Saturday, Brussels reacted with satisfaction to the decision of the parliament. “It was a historic opportunity and you took it. A major step forward on your path to the European Union,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen greeted the vote.

European Council President Charles Michel also praised the breakthrough. The Belgian former prime minister promises that the intergovernmental conference — the official start of the negotiations — can take place as early as next week.

North Macedonia has been a candidate country since 2005 and has been waiting for the start of negotiations since 2008. For years, Greece blocked any overtures until the small neighboring country agreed in 2018 to change its name from Macedonia to North Macedonia.

After the Greek veto, however, came a Bulgarian, which also wanted to negotiate concessions in terms of language, history and the protection of minorities. However, pressure on Bulgaria to end its opposition to talks with North Macedonia increased after EU leaders agreed to Ukraine’s and Moldova’s candidate membership. However, the lifting of the Bulgarian blockade led to major protests in Bulgaria.

These protests were a major factor in the lost confidence vote that caused the Bulgarian government to fall last month.

There are daily protests in North Macedonia against the French compromise proposal. Protesters say the deal poses a threat to Macedonian language and identity. VMRO-DPMNE, but also some liberal critics of the compromise, fear that Bulgaria will demand even more concessions during the accession negotiations.

However, von der Leyen had assured during a visit to Skopje this week that the Macedonian language and identity will be respected. “There can be no doubt that the Macedonian language is your language,” she said. “Bilateral matters such as the interpretation of history are not preconditions for accession negotiations.”