The leading Macedonian newspaper "Utrinski Vesnik" commented in its Friday editorial on the thousands of Macedonians seeking and receiving Bulgarian citizenship by calling the issue "a suicide" for Macedonia.

The article reminds that in 2007 some 6,000 Macedonians had been granted Bulgarian passports stressing that Macedonian politicians did not seem to be alarmed by the situation in any way.

According to Utrinski Vesnik, the thousands of young Macedonians sought Bulgarian citizenship primarily because they wanted to be able to travel and work in the European Union.

The author of the editorial points out that the process of getting Bulgarian citizenship involved providing evidence and signing of a declaration by the applicants that their ancestors had been Bulgarians.

In his words, Macedonian historians were justified in their claim that accepting the citizenship of a country, which does not recognize Macedonian history and national identity, was suicidal for Macedonia.

The editorial underscores that Bulgarian politicians often stated with satisfaction that the process of "bulgarianization" of Macedonia continued.

It adds that even though those who get Bulgarian passport did not become Bulgarians at once, this allowed Sofia to claim that Macedonians went back again to their Bulgarian roots. It also strengthened nationalist sentiments in Bulgaria according to the article.

The author is positive the young Macedonians taking the "Thorny Road to Europe via Sofia", as the title of the editorial reads, were not to blame. Rather, it was the fault of the country's politicians, who did not care enough to make Macedonia a better place for living. The publication reminds of the former Macedonian Prime Minister Lyupcho Georgievski who became Bulgarian citizen.

Meanwhile, the Serbian newspaper "Politika" also published an article on the same issue under the title "Voluntary Bulgarianization". The article says the granting of Bulgarian passports to Macedonians was part of Bulgarian political propaganda and its position that a Macedonian nation did not exist.

"Politika" also mentions former Macedonian PM Georgievski and several other Macedonian politicians and current members of parliament who accepted Bulgarian citizenship as well as the several thousand Macedonian students studying in Bulgarian universities.

The Serbian edition states that Macedonia's society was not so sensitive to the issue any more mainly because Bulgarian passports were sought by people who did not understand the political connotation of their act.

At the end of January Bulgarian Vice President Angel Marin announced at a press conference that some 14,000 Macedonians and 11,000 Moldovans had received Bulgarian passports since 2002.

According to Bulgaria's official naturalization policy both of these groups are seen as part of Bulgarian communities abroad, and their members are granted citizenship upon providing evidence of their Bulgarian origin.

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