North Macedonia, Bulgaria PMs Proclaim Goodwill Ahead of Tough Talks

Bulgarian and North Macedonian Prime Ministers Kiril Petkov and Dimitar Kovacevski told a press conference after their meeting in Skopje on Tuesday that as a sign of initial goodwill, Bulgaria will no longer make an issue of the use of the name North Macedonia in international organisations, dropping its previous claims that the name implicates territorial claims against Bulgaria.

In return, Skopje has already sent a verbal note to the United Nations, saying that the short version of the full name Republic of North Macedonia in no way or form implies Skopje has territorial claims on Sofia's territory.

"We agreed that Bulgaria accepts the use of the short name, North Macedonia, along with the long name, Republic of North Macedonia. Bulgaria has already notified the UN about this," North Macedonia's Kovacevski told the joint press conference.

"I think that what we achieved at our first meeting should signal that we are ready and willing to completely change the meaning of good neighbourly relations," Petkov said.

On the core issue that mars bilateral relations, the issue of different readings of the two countries' history and identity, Skopje and Sofia have agreed to work on them, but first to focus more on other areas where there is potential cooperation.

"We will pay attention to the issues that bring us closer, and we will give a longer time [to solve] the other issues," Petkov stated.

Both countries agreed to form working groups in five areas - the economy, infrastructure, EU integration, culture and historical questions, which will convene on a weekly basis so communication between the two countries can intensify in practical terms, the two premiers said.

Both have also agreed to hold a joint inter-governmental...