Bulgaria expressed serious concern over the attack on its cultural and information centre in Skopje, with its Foreign Ministry saying the attack had taken place amid an ongoing ‘anti-Bulgarian campaign’ in North Macedonia.
On Thursday night, unknown persons broke into the new premises of the centre, which was opened at the end of last year. Part of the property was damaged in the incident, and police are still investigating what exactly happened. Some of the institution’s computers have disappeared.
Following the incident, Sofia urged Skopje to demonstrate that encroachments against Bulgarian representations are “absolutely unacceptable and will be prosecuted with all the strength of the law”.
“It is of particular importance not to allow the perpetrators of such acts to maintain a sense of impunity, for which both the effective administration of justice and the public narrative created by politicians are important.”
The two countries concluded an agreement on the opening of the Cultural and Information Centres twenty years ago, and undertook to guarantee the normal functioning of the Cultural and Information Centres in the two capitals.
Last year, Bulgaria accepted the so-called French proposal and agreed to lift its veto against the opening of North Macedonia’s EU negotiations, but only if Bulgarians are to be included in North Macedonia’s Constitution as a state-creating nation.
The largest opposition party VMRO-DPMNE opposes the implementation of this condition and blocks changes to the constitution.
Source: euractiv.com
