Opposition in North Macedonia Claims Minister is Secretly Negotiating with Bulgaria over Country’s Future

The opposition Social Democratic Union of Macedonia has accused North Macedonia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Timčo Mucunski, of holding secret talks with Bulgaria about the country’s future.

In a statement, SDSM, the largest opposition party, asked: „How can the future of Macedonia be a secret for its citizens?“

On Sunday, Timčo Mucunski essentially confirmed that work is being done „under the radar“ on a permanent and sustainable solution that would unblock North Macedonia’s European path, but said he could not disclose details of the talks and did not specify with whom the discussions were being held.

„We are working on a solution, but not a solution at any cost and not a solution that in itself would not be sustainable and would create risks of ending up again in the situation we are currently in,“ Mucunski said in an interview with the MIA agency.

North Macedonia’s negotiations on accession to the European Union (EU) have been blocked due to a bilateral issue with Bulgaria, which has become part of the Negotiating Framework.

Skopje began the „first phase“ of negotiations with the EU in July 2022 by adopting the Negotiating Framework, but in order to move to the „second phase“ and start opening chapters, it must include Bulgarians in the Constitution. However, Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski’s government does not want to do this without guarantees that this will be the last bilateral demand in the accession negotiations.