site.btaUPDATED President Radev: Bulgaria Does Not Accept Statements, Behaviour Contradicting Friendship Treaty with Skopje

President Rumen Radev issued a position on Monday that said Bulgaria does not accept statements and behaviour contradicting the 2017 Friendship Treaty and other treaties signed by Skopje. The comment came in the wake of the inauguration ceremony of North Macedonia's newly elected President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova.

Radev said Bulgaria does not accept statements and behaviour that contradict both the 2017 Treaty of Friendship, Goodneighbourliness and Cooperation and other international treaties that the Republic of North Macedonia has signed. His position was circulated by the President's press secretariat.

Bulgaria has repeatedly and clearly stated its position that treaties must be implemented, President Rumen Radev noted. He recalled that North Macedonia is a member state of NATO, which entails corresponding obligations and responsibilities.

"I am convinced that the European perspective of the Republic of North Macedonia depends on the strict implementation of the international treaties to which it is a party, as well as on the negotiating framework, approved by the European Council in July 2022," the President said. According to him, the framework will not be revised - a fact he pointed out to the responsible institutions in Skopje. 

The State Election Commission of North Macedonia announced, after a meeting on May 11, the final official results of the May 8 elections for the country's president and new parliament. Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova was elected president of the Republic of North Macedonia with a majority of the votes cast - 561,000 votes against 251,899 of her opponent Stevo Pendarovski. She was sworn in before Parliament in Skopje. During the ceremony, Siljanovska said she swars to "carry out the functions of Macedonia's President in good faith and responsibly". In her election campaign, Siljanovska stated on a few occasions that she will not be using her country's official name "North Macedonia", which was adopted with the Prespa Agreement of 2018 with Greece.