Bulgarian Foreign Affairs Minister Daniel Mitov said that the talks with Macedonia on concluding an agreement on good neighborly relations are in a final stage, but it is unlikely to be signed, due to the political situation in Macedonia.
The two countries have been negotiating this agreement for years, with Bulgarian Governments often raising it as a condition for Bulgaria to fully support Macedonia on its European Union accession path.
"There are some issues that need to be cleared up and agreed, but the problem is that the political situation in Macedonia right now does not present the optimism that we can reach the end of signing the agreement. There needs to be a Parliament, an opportunity to sign the agreement, to have it legitimized, to have an implementation mechanism and to have it realistically implemented", Minister Mitov told Macedonian journalists in Thessaloniki, where he attended a regional meeting of foreign ministers.
Talks are held away from the public eye, but the key issues are believed to be the historic perspective of events and persons who are revered both in Macedonia and Bulgaria, and the issue of minority rights.
Mitov added that he wishes Macedonia would one day also join NATO.
"Our peoples will continue to live together, to travel together, to communicate freely, to trade. But, the responsibility is on the back of the Macedonian politicians and we have noted multiple times that in this situation they will need to revert to what was agreed in the past year. They need to have elections, which of course need to be in line with all rules. The most important thing are the reforms. The agreed reforms should be implemented. You can't blame EU or NATO for not being invited to join or for not opening accession talks and cite that as a reason for the crisis in the Republic of Macedonia. The situation is reverse. It was so with Bulgaria, first you implement reforms, the Government shows good will, makes the necessary institutional changes, the needed climate for European standards, and then you move toward membership", Minister Mitov said.