The Ministry of Foreign Affairs handed over yesterday verbal note to the Bulgarian MFA in which the sharpest Condemns Articles "Macedonia is Bulgaria", which could be seen in the hands of some MPs yesterday during the session after the first item in the Bulgarian The National Assembly, but also orally transmitted from the rostrum during the same session.

"Such messages are contrary to European democratic values, but also contrary to the Agreement on Friendship, Good Neighborliness and Cooperation and do not contribute to nurturing the principles and spirit of the Agreement," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement yesterday.

The statement said country expects Bulgarian officials to condemn explicit hate speech and territorial claims against northern Macedonia, as an extremely inappropriate act towards a neighboring friendly country.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria, however, announced yesterday that it is ready to proceed with the signing of the Protocol, in accordance with Article 12 of the Treaty of Friendship and Good Neighborliness with the Republic of Northern Macedonia.

As MIA correspondent from Sofia reports, such a statement by the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry follows yesterday's The decision of the National Assembly of Bulgaria to give the green light to the proposal of the French Presidency for the start of negotiations for the accession of Northern Macedonia to the EU.

The statement said that "it is time for the responsible factors in the Republic of Northern Macedonia not to show in words, but in deeds, their commitment and desire for their own and European future of the region."

"The speed with which the Republic of Northern Macedonia will join the European Union depends on it and will not be delayed if the country fulfills its obligations in terms of European values ​​and good neighborly relations," the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The resigned Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the Socialists Cornelia Ninova also reacted to the unsigned protocol yesterday. did not fully respect their so-called red lines for the implementation of the bilateral cooperation agreement by the country.

Ninova said that the decision says that the negotiations will start after Skopje changes the Constitution and includes local Bulgarians in it, which according to her is a good proposal, but still it refers to a bilateral protocol that has not been signed. According to Ninova, Bulgarian interests are "not protected" so far, because the protocol has not been signed.

Deputy Prime Minister in charge of European Affairs Bojan Maricic and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Bujar Osmani on Friday reported that North Macedonia will accept the proposal of the French presidency for the start of negotiations with the EU if The issue of the Macedonian language should not be problematized in the negotiating framework and historical issues should not be included and if the beginning of the negotiation process is not tied to the inclusion of the Bulgarians in the Constitution.

Bulgaria's National Assembly on Friday approved a document known to the public as a "French proposal" to unblock the European route to northern Macedonia. The decision gives the green light to the government to resign as prime minister Kiril Petkov "To approve the negotiating framework and the conclusions proposed by the French Presidency with the Council of the EU for resolving the complex relations between Bulgaria and Northern Macedonia if several conditions are met." It requires: effectively implementation of the Good Neighbor Agreement, guarantee of the rights of the Bulgarians in the Republic of Northern Macedonia through their insertion in the Constitution, nothing in the accession process of RSM should be interpreted as recognition of the Macedonian language by Bulgaria and EU guarantees that all this will be fulfilled.

Commenting on the latest developments on the Skopje-Sofia route, the American university professor and expert on the Balkans, Edward Joseph assessed that the President Joe Biden can not be allowed among NATO allies, one member state to "force itself" and harass another member state because it is bigger or as it is in the case of Bulgaria and Northern Macedonia, because it is a member of the EU, because that is, he says, already a problem of NATO.

- That is already a NATO problem. We can not allow that. This is an alliance, NATO is an alliance, the United States can not tolerate aggression against identity, use of force, in this way. This is serious, not a small issue. The identity of the people is related to the identity of the state, to the progress of the state, to the internal stability and the good relations between the Macedonians and the Albanians, which is in our interest. On the other hand, Vladimir Putin is interested in divisions and conflicts. Divisions between Bulgarians and Macedonians, divisions between Albanians and Macedonians, between Serbs and Kosovars, all this. "Putin wants it in Ukraine, he wants it in the Balkans, divisions, conflicts, while the US interest is to stop it all, starting with the affirmation in the official written form of the Macedonian identity," Joseph said in an interview with TV Klan Macedonia.

According to him, in that way, with the American affirmation of the Macedonian identity, nation and language, a message will be sent to Sofia: "You will never win, you will never erase the Macedonian identity". He believes that this is the signal needed in Bulgaria by Bulgarian leaders, such as Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, who want to resolve the issue.

Asked to comment on the "French proposal", Joseph said does not believe France and its president Emmanuel Macron had "bad motives", but the problem is in the "weakness and powerlessness of the European Union", and Bulgaria, he believes, is using that situation, abusing the EU process.

- The rules, the EU protocols say that you must not enter bilateral issues in the accession process. That process refers to something else - whether Northern Macedonia meets the conditions, whether it implements reforms and the rule of law and other issues, but not for complaints about history and language, said Joseph.