Emil Dimitriev

Incendiary statements by Hristijan Mickoski, the winner of North Macedonia's May 8 parliamentary election, have dispelled the illusion that his VMRO-DPMNE party, the core of the triumphant center-right coalition, is a modern European center-right party and not the nationalist populist formation led by his predecessor, Nikola Gruevski.

At a meeting with Macedonian Prime Minister Emil Dimitriev, Bulgarian PM Boyko Borisov expressed his expectation of a quick solution to the setting up of a memorial plaque to commemorate the soldiers who died at the Kaimakchalan peak, announced the press office of the Council of Ministers.

The leader of Macedonia's main ruling party is trying to raise anti-Bulgarian sentiment to win the forthcoming elections in the country, a Bulgarian MEP opines.

Andrey Kovatchev (EPP/GERB)'s comment comes amid a row between the two counties over a memorial plaque which a Macedonian journalist claims to have destroyed.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has said his Macedonian counterpart Emil Dimitriev assured him there would be a response from authorities to the desecration of a memorial plaque allegedly committed by a Macedonian journalist.

"I don't want to comment," he has told reporters after a summit in Vienna.

United States and European Union envoys to Macedonia have cast doubt on whether an early general election could be held in the country on April 24, 2016, as planned.

EU Ambassador Aivo Orav and US Ambassador Jess Baily said on Friday in Skopje that more work needed to be done before Macedonia faced April elections.

After Macedonia's ruling parties on Monday unilaterally elected a new interim government in parliament, paving the way for early elections in April 24, the leader of the opposition Social Democrats, SDSM, Zoran Zaev on Tuesday said his party was yet to decide on its response.

Macedonia's parliament voted on Jan. 18 to dissolve itself as of Feb. 24, clearing the way to an early parliamentary election two months later that the opposition says it will boycott.

The ruling majority in parliament on Monday verified the resignation of Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, voted to dissolve parliament and elected a new government, paving the way for elections on April 24.

An important progress towards solving the political crisis in Macedonia was made on Monday as resigned Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski confirmed that early parliamentary elections will be held on April 24 as had been agreed in the summer of last year.