site.btaPresident Radev Congratulates Counterpart, Citizens of North Macedonia on National Holiday

President Rumen Radev congratulated his counterpart Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova and the citizens of North Macedonia on the country's holiday, Ilinden - Republic Day, the head of State's press secretariat said. 

“The sacrifice of the heroes of the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising carries the memory through time, which will forever link Bulgaria and North Macedonia and their citizens. As heirs of our ancestors, we have the responsibility and the historical duty to follow and preserve the worthy covenants of our past for the sake of our common European future,” Rumen Radev said. 

He pointed out that August 2 remains a glorious date for our common history, along with the events related to the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising, which are a reason for pride and admiration for the courage and dedication of our ancestors in the name of their aspirations for freedom, equality and justice. "The high ideals of the uprising today stand at the core of the values of united Europe," Rumen Radev noted. 

President Radev says that the two countries’ common European future requires the necessary will and sincere approach in implementing the 2017 Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighbourliness and Cooperation and implementing all the commitments made. "The Republic of Bulgaria remains determined to work for the establishment of good neighbourly relations with the Republic of North Macedonia and to provide the necessary support for the fulfilment of the agreed criteria for EU membership," the head of State said in his congratulatory message.