Sofia has once again showed good will and hope for the peaceful development of the situation in Macedonia after the overcoming of the political crisis there. After months of political tensions Macedonian President George Ivanov has finally handed a mandate for forming of a government to leader of the Social Democratic Union Zoran Zaev.

Bulgarian PM Boyko Borissov hailed that decision, stating that a close nation lived in that country and commented that Sofia could only benefit from a Macedonian EU membership. Borissov added that “only a stable government in Macedonia can calm down the political tension” with the work on the roadmap for its EU accession starting afterwards. He wouldn’t miss the chance to mention the forthcoming Bulgarian EU presidency over the first 6 months of 2018, when Sofia could support the EU accession of its neighbor, provided that “Macedonia does its homework, the way Bulgaria did 10 years ago”.

However, the homework is not that easy this time. Above all Macedonia should settle down its relations with EU member Greece which argues the legitimacy of the name Macedonia. Hence for its veto on the EU accession of the latter. Once again Sofia upheld Skopje last week, when parliamentary Chair Dimitar Glavchev stated the firm support of the state towards the Republic of Macedonia, regarding its name. Glavchev recalled the fact that Bulgaria was the first to recognize the young republic after the collapse of Yugoslavia.

No new political or ethnic turbulence in Macedonia is expected in the near future. Washington and Brussels made Macedonian politicians realize that they should settle down their matters peacefully, as new borders were not envisaged anywhere across the Balkan Peninsula.

In the early 21^st c. Macedonia was about to face a civil war of its two major ethnic minorities – Macedonians and Albanians. The crisis was solved with the Ohrid Agreement of 2001 and Bulgaria still defends this document. According to it, the Albanian language can be used in Macedonian municipalities with predominant Albanian population. However, now the Albanian parties practically want the revision of that treaty, also the Albanian to become the second official language etc. We’ll see.

At the same time Skopje has to solve another major issue, related to Bulgaria. Macedonia tends to appropriate persons, dates and events from the Bulgarian history and while Sofia has been insisting for years on the signing of a good neighborly relations treaty, the other party hasn’t shown understanding so far. The Bulgarian authorities uphold the Euro-Atlantic future of Macedonia, but during the rule of the first Borissov cabinet the appointment of a date for the start of EU membership negotiations did not receive support.

As historian Georgi Markov says in an interview for BGNES “Bulgaria has special relations with the Republic of Macedonia, similar to the ones between the two German states in the past, after WWII”. The historian outlines that the so-called Macedonian nationalism or Macedonism was grounded on anti-Bulgarian basis, as Bulgarians lived in the so-called Vardar Macedonia till the end of WWII. “Unfortunately generations were brainwashed there,” he concludes, adding that we should support our brothers in Macedonia and comprehend them, since they have gone through a fearful test. At the same time this support shouldn’t be unconditional – it has to be based on prerequisites, related to history, politics and law.

English version: Zhivko Stanchev