Sofia ‘Concerned’ as North Macedonia Rejects Bulgarian Club’s ‘Offensive’ Name

Sofia has expressed "concern" after North Macedonia's Justice Minister, Krenar Loga, on Thursday banned a Bulgarian club from being named after a Bulgarian nationalist who became a Nazi collaborator, after a state commission in charge of advising on such issues recommended the move.

It argued that celebrating Mihailov [1896 to 1980] was insulting and provocative for the national feelings of Macedonians.

Its explanation says Mihailov - a pro-Bulgarian nationalist in interwar Yugoslav-ruled Macedonia - became a Nazi collaborator and "was a person close to the Fascist ideology and with his actions, he denied the uniqueness of the Macedonian people".

"Celebrating and praising Mihailov and his work are causing irritation, intolerance and hatred in Macedonian society," it added.

The Bulgarian Foreign Ministry wrote in a press statement that it "follows with concern the developments in North Macedonia related to the right of association of Bulgarians", especially regarding the latest developments regarding the Ivan Mihailov club in Bitola, North Macedonia.

The opening of the club last year, as well as another in the town of Ohrid, named after the Bulgaria's wartime King Boris III - who led Bulgaria into the Nazi-led Axis alliance in World War II and occupied much of today's North Macedonia, sparked protests in North Macedonia.

The moves have been criticised as a threat to attempts to reconcile the two countries' dispute over history. Sofia insists it is all about the right of Bulgarians to freely form associations.

In a move that followed the ban on the Bitola Club, North Macedonia also said it had rejected a request of the King Boris III association in Ohrid to be officially listed. This time, it cited administrative...