Two parliamentary committees - the Foreign Policy Committee and the European Affairs and Oversight Committee of the European Funds - will review the ratification of the Treaty of friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation between the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia on Wednesday 17 January.

In the early afternoon, at 2:30 pm, the foreign policy committee that is leading will consider the draft ratification bill. An hour later, the Committee on European Affairs and Oversight of the European Funds will be presenting, reviewing and adopting the Report on the Bill on the ratification of the Treaty of friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation between the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia.

The bill was submitted to the Bulgarian Parliament by the Council of Ministers on 8 November 2017 and distributed for the second plenary session. On Monday, Macedonian Parliament ratified the treaty signed by Prime Ministers Zoran Zaev and Boyko Borisov on 1 August 2017 in Skopje with 61 votes. The treaty guarantees the sustainable building of friendly relations between Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia and is a stable basis for cooperation in the region based on European values, was the unanimous assessment of Borisov and Zaev, who spoke on the phone after the ratification by the Macedonian Parliament. The ratification of the treaty by the Macedonian Parliament is a natural continuation of the pragmatic dialogue that our two governments started last year in Skopje with the signing of this treaty and of nine cooperation documents in Strumica during the joint meeting of the two governments, recalled Boyko Borisov . As we have stated many times, the European future of the Republic of Macedonia is one of the main priorities of the Republic of Bulgaria's policy and will continue to be so after the Bulgarian presidency of the EU Council, Boyko Borissov said.

As early as Monday, Macedonian Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov said that "the treaty protects our interests and the interests of Bulgaria." He defined as a nice sign that the treaty was ratified today, in 1992 Bulgaria was the first in the world to recognize the independence of the Republic of Macedonia under its constitutional name. Parliament Speaker Tsveta Karayancheva, President Rumen Radev, Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva and MFA welcomed the approval. The Republic of Bulgaria will continue to be active in its support for the European integration of the Republic of Macedonia.

This is a strategic choice of our country, also underpinned by the priorities of the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the EU. The Friendship, Neighborhood and Cooperation Treaty with the Republic of Macedonia is based on shared European values ​​that make the region more unified and stronger, the MFA said. The ratification of the document is a historic step that confirms the willingness of our two countries to continue their efforts to build modern, good neighborly relations based on European values, Tsveta Karayancheva, said in her letter to Macedonian counterpart Talat Jaferi. She expressed her conviction that the treaty would give impetus to the development of cooperation and friendship between Bulgaria and Macedonia in all areas. The head of state also praised:

This completes the procedures and opens the way for the entry into force of this policy document, which is most important to the bilateral relations. The treaty, which is the result of long-standing efforts by diplomats and statesmen, opens a new European page in bilateral relations. The entry into force of this international act comes at a time when Bulgaria took over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. This is of great importance for the Bulgarian-Macedonian bilateral relations and gives a strong signal of the positive developments in the Balkans, which bring the region closer to Europe, in the context of the priorities of the Bulgarian presidency, said President Rumen Radev.

The President urged that the conditions laid down in the treaty be strictly fulfilled, as well as the launch of all the projects that would be made possible in the name of the well-being of the citizens of the two close nations.