President Rumen Radev and caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev issued positions on Monday that said Bulgaria does not accept statements and behaviour contradicting 2017 Friendship Treaty, other treaties signed by Skopje. Their comments came in the wake of the inauguration ceremony of North Macedonia’s newly elected President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova.

President Rumen 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. 

Glavchev also issued a statement, circulated by the Government press service, that says Bulgaria does not accept statements and behaviour that contradict both the 2017 Treaty on Friendship, Good Neighbourliness and Cooperation and the agreements in principle between the European Union and the Republic of North Macedonia.

“Bulgaria has repeatedly and clearly stated its position that the agreements must be strictly implemented. We recall that the Republic of North Macedonia is a member state of NATO, which implies corresponding obligations and responsibilities,” Glavchev said.

“We are convinced that the European prospects of the Republic of North Macedonia will depend entirely on its comprehensive implementation of the agreements agreed by all in July 2022,” the statement further reads. 

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.