site.btaPolish Ambassador to Skopje: Reconciliation with Bulgaria Must Begin

Representatives of the Polish Foreign Ministry will soon be visiting Sofia, where, among other issues, the situation with the European integration of North Macedonia will be discussed, Poland's charge d’affaires to North Macedonia Mariusz Mariusz Brymora said in an interview on MRT1.

In his words, enlargement to include the Western Balkan countries is part of the priorities of the Polish EU presidency, but he is sceptical about the North Macedonian government's ideas for constitutional changes to come into force once the country becomes an EU member.

"The impasse (in which the process of North Macedonia's European integration is) is one hundred percent a bilateral issue and as such needs to be resolved by the parties involved. What we can do, I mean the other EU members, is to support a solution that is aimed at reaching a compromise in any international forum or at EU level and we will definitely support such a solution. But it is up to you to start talking and to agree on a compromise (with Bulgaria). Furthermore, in my opinion, and I speak on the basis of the Polish experience, there is another factor that is very important and that is reconciliation. Personally, I believe that a process of reconciliation with the Bulgarians must begin because, as far as I know, the problem that is blocking progress in EU enlargement is part of a much wider and much longer historical dispute. The Poles, from their own experience in reconciliation with the Germans, know this very well and are ready to share this experience.", Brymora said.

In his words, despite the claims of "some allies of the government" in Skopje that it is possible Bulgaria to accept a change of the constitution, which would enter into force after North Macedonia completes the negotiations, "there is no indication that Brussels or Bulgaria would change their position".

"As you have heard, the new EU enlargement commissioner Marta Koss said she expects North Macedonia to implement the constitutional changes. It is all about the old Latin principle in international law - pacta sunt servanda, which means that treaties must be respected. We started talking about certain challenges that Europe is facing, from the war that is on our borders to all the different crises that we are dealing with. This could lead to your efforts for European integration being neglected. If you add to this a certain unpredictability, such as the arrival of a new administration in the US, which could shift the focus from the EU to other issues, such as control of the Panama Canal or the peace project in Ukraine, then it may turn out that the EU's priorities will change and this moment may pass. Therefore, if I were your advisor, which I am not and this is just my personal opinion, then I would like your government to weigh the pros and cons and see what it needs to do to get the most benefit for the citizens of North Macedonia," Brymora said.