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This article was first published by Truthmeter.mk (North Macedonia), within the framework of Western Balkans Anti-Disinformation Project.

Negative sentiment toward Bulgaria has been declining over the years, but the eastern neighbor still ranks as the country’s primary “enemy.” Despite the EU’s repeated emphasis that constitutional changes are a mandatory step for starting negotiations, why does the government persist in its refusal to make such changes? Interestingly, about a third of citizens (29 percent) believe that there are sources or entities in the country that promote Russian interests and positions, but almost as many (24 percent) do not recognize or do not believe in the presence of Russian influence

Authors: Olivera Vojnovska – Stojan Sinadinov

The issue of constitutional amendments to include Bulgarians in the Constitution remains sensitive, and a significant portion of the public does not support such a step. The majority of citizens perceive the EU as an institution that sets complex and unfavorable conditions and consider the accession process to be long and difficult. At the same time, a large part of citizens see Bulgaria as North Macedonia’s biggest enemy, and Serbia as its biggest friend. This is based on the Public Opinion Survey of the Metamorphosis Foundation, conducted by the Indago agency, from 6 to 17 October 2025, which surveyed a representative sample of 1,100 respondents via telephone survey.

What did the research specifically reveal?

According to the survey, the highest level of disagreement (51 percent) is with the statement that the country should change the Constitution as soon as possible in order to become a member of the EU. High levels of disagreement are also recorded with the view that imposing sanctions against Russia is a good policy (45 percent), that the EU will soon fall apart (43 percent), and that an alliance with Russia is more beneficial than one with the US or the EU–43 percent (Chart 15).

It is striking that as many as 45 percent of respondents identify Bulgaria as North Macedonia’s biggest enemy (Chart 18). Greece follows with 15 percent and Albania with 7 percent, while Russia was mentioned by 6 percent of respondents. Smaller percentages were recorded for Kosovo and Serbia (4 percent each), the United States (2 percent), and China (1 percent), while 9 percent of respondents refused to answer this question.

On the other hand, most respondents consider Serbia their greatest friend (40 percent), followed by the USA (15 percent), Turkey (12 percent), and Albania (8 percent) (Chart 17).

These results actually confirm the traditional sympathies towards Serbia and Turkey, as opposed to reservations towards certain neighboring EU member states.

It is also interesting that when asked whether there are sources or entities in the country that promote Russian interests and positions, 29 percent of respondents answered “Yes,” which indicates that about a third of citizens believe that such influences exist (Chart 14). Furthermore, 24 percent answered “No,” which indicates that part of the public does not recognize or does not believe in the presence of Russian influence. The majority of respondents, 46 percent, answered “I do not know”, which indicates significant uncertainty or insufficient information on this issue.

Truthmeter.mk recently analyzed the pro-Russian narrative of the leader of The Left, Dimitar Apasiev, as expressed during the parade in Moscow on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the victory over fascism. On that occasion, he emphasized that ” in the fight against fascism we were united and that solidarity is the basis of our historical connection, which we are obliged to preserve,” even though contemporary international instability has in fact, been undermined for the past three years precisely by Russia, which launched a full-scale military invasion of Ukraine on February 22, 2022.

On the other hand, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić often uses a manipulative substitution of theses, exploiting the topic of the alleged existence of a “Macedonian scenario” for Serbia. This manipulation protects the geopolitical strategy of the so-called “Serbian world” in the region, i.e. the political idea from the mid-19th century, with which Serbia strives for an all-Serbian unification that would also overpower other nations from the Western Balkans.

Oscillations in the perception of friends/enemies

If these results are compared with those from two or three years ago, that is, with those from 2023 and 2022, oscillations in the perception of friends/enemies are observed among the respondents. In 2023, 56 percent of the respondents considered Bulgaria to be Macedonia’s biggest enemy, in 2022 almost 50 percent thought so, and now 45 percent. However, although there has been a decline in negative sentiment towards Bulgaria over the years, the eastern neighbor still tops the list of “enemies.”

On the other hand, there is also a decline in the percentage of respondents who perceive Serbia as our greatest friend: 66 percent in 2022, around 71 percent in 2023, and today only 40 percent. Which is a fairly large decrease–over 30 percent, but even with such a decline, Serbia is still the favorite among the “friends.”

Table: Biggest Friend/Enemy in 2022

What are the oscillations due to?

What is the impact of global and regional geopolitical trends? Is the so-called “Serbian World” losing its ability to influence North Macedonia, while on the other hand, we have a status quo regarding European integration? Why, despite the constant emphasis by the EU that constitutional amendments are a mandatory step for the start of negotiations, does the government (until a year and a half ago and as an opposition) stubbornly persist in the position that there will be no constitutional amendments?

Zoran Bojarovski, journalist and editor of the portal “Racin.mk”, says that the “love” of Macedonians towards Serbia and their resistance towards Bulgarians has an explanation, although like any love or hatred, it is complex. According to him, one explanation is the “emotional” side of these relations: the nearly five decades during which Macedonians and Serbs lived in a common state, where the main “glue” was brotherhood and unity, created bonds of closeness and trust that have endured even after the collapse of Yugoslavia.

That community invented and used all the tools to nurture and maintain that emotional connection. The ideological matrix of that state, when it comes to Macedonia, created an environment of extreme distrust toward the rest of our country’s neighbors, especially Bulgaria and Albania, and showed little effort with regard to Greece as well, Bojarovski believes.

He adds that we still feel the consequences of those walls today.

The “rational” aspect of these relations is even more complicated when it comes to the attitude of Macedonians towards Bulgaria, which is mainly negative, mostly due to the unresolved misconceptions of a serious part of that country regarding the genesis of the Macedonian nation. While, unlike Serbia, which long ago, or in time, gave up the anachronisms of Southern Serbia and the Vardar Banovina, Bulgaria has not yet come to terms with its own frustration with Macedonia, which, as it interprets it, is the “romantic” part of its history. But for a “romantic” relationship to exist, it takes two, and therefore, in addition to one frustrated partner in the East, there should also be a relaxed, I would say, “cool” partner on this side of Deve Bair. Only in this way will we leave irrational rivalry, accompanied by hate speech, behind us, so that we can begin to cultivate close relationships between equal partners and people who have so much to share with each other, without absurd frustrations, Bojarovski analyzes.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Timco Mucunski, defended himself from the parliamentary rostrum against fake news and disinformation related to the dispute with Bulgaria. At the session dedicated to parliamentary questions on 18 November 2025, MP Redzep Ismail from Levica (The Left), asked Minister Mucunski on what basis textbooks for the fifth and sixth grades in Bulgaria had been sent for censorship, to which the minister responded indignantly (1.33 minutes into the video) that this was disinformation and fake news.

Nothing has been sent to Sofia for approval. That is disinformation, fake news. Our state institutions did not send anything, neither a textbook nor a document in Sofia for approval. No such thing happened, said the foreign minister.

According to him, we should have a dialogue with all our neighbors and we should work to close all open issues, but he emphasized that they must not and do not have the right to do so at any cost and to the detriment of our national interests.

I know you would be most happy to prove that your thesis is correct and that VMRO-DPMNE has made a concession. But list one concession of such nature that has been made in the last year, he said, adding that he believes the MP is not in coordination with historians from Sofia. 

But the fake news that Minister Mucunski reacted to and angrily gestured at from the parliamentary rostrum is not the only disinformation about relations with our eastern neighbor.

Truthmeter.mk has repeatedly reviewed Facebook posts on this topic, for example, in one of them, which was spread during the campaign for the local elections, it was claimed that boycotting the elections would also entail the annulment of the Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighborliness and Cooperation (and the Prespa Agreement), which is of course not true. Whether people vote in local elections or boycott them has no effect at all on the agreements with Bulgaria and Greece, but rather on the citizens’ choice of who will govern the municipalities in which they live. International agreements, on the other hand, produce legal obligations for both fulfillment and termination—annulment.

An inappropriate parallel

Disinformation has also been spreading recently, drawing inappropriate parallels between Bulgaria’s EU membership and the Tripartite Pact. For example, a pro-Russian propaganda post misleadingly describes the visit of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to Bulgaria and its weapons factories on August 31, 2025.

The post says that these weapons are intended for the EU for a war against Russia. However, the weapons are meant for the liberation war that Ukraine is waging against Russia, and Ukraine receives them as aid from the EU. They are also produced for the defense of the EU itself. The post omits these facts, creating the impression that the EU is preparing a war against Russia, i.e. an attack on it. More about this can be read in this review.

Putin’s “statement” that “fascist Bulgaria should be divided into 3 parts” was spread and fabricated on social networks. The excerpt from the alleged statement being shared has no source, and no evidence can be found that Putin ever said such a thing. The archives of global media contain no such “statement” by Putin. Had it ever been made in any context, it would surely have attracted worldwide media attention. Such a statement would also have prompted reactions from Bulgaria (considering that Bulgaria is a member of the EU and NATO), which is not the case. More about this can be read in this review.

And what does the Treaty with Bulgaria provide?

The Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighborliness and Cooperation between the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia was signed on August 1, 2017 between Prime Ministers Zoran Zaev and Boyko Borisov in Skopje. The Treaty consists of 14 articles regulating the economic and bilateral relations of the two countries, based on international law and good neighborliness. The authorities of the two countries undertake to create the necessary legal, economic, financial, and trade conditions to ensure the widest possible movement of goods, services, and capital, as well as to increase tourism cooperation, to improve transport links and communications between them, including within the framework of regional infrastructure projects. In the area of ​​cultural heritage, the two countries undertake to jointly honor historical events and figures by mutual consent. In the area of ​​cooperation in the fields of culture, education, health, social care, and sports, it is envisaged that a joint multidisciplinary expert commission on historical and educational issues will be formed within three months of the entry into force of the Treaty, which will work on preparing educational content based on historical evidence.

Let us recall that just a few days after taking office (June 23, 2024), Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski stated (on July 1, 2024) that the Treaty with Bulgaria could be “renegotiated.” However, a response immediately came from Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, who told Mickoski that the Treaty must be respected and implemented, not revised.

The US Ambassador to the country, Angela Aggeler, commented that there are no negotiations on agreements that have already been concluded, which affect the country’s progress toward the EU.

These days, European representatives have once again told us to complete our commitments and make constitutional amendments.

At the “EU Enlargement Forum 2025” held recently (18.11.2025) in Brussels, Danish Minister for European Affairs Marie Bjerre, whose country holds the EU presidency, was asked for a message to Macedonian citizens. She emphasized that the country must deliver on what was agreed, that is, implement the constitutional amendments in order to move forward.

The momentum is here, you have to seize the momentum and make the reforms, and North Macedonia still has to deliver. And also there is an agreement that was signed, I know it was signed by the previous government, but there is an agreement that is signed that has to be implemented, and once that is done, then you are delivering, and then you are on the track. Yesterday, we opened a chapter with Albania, we are closing hopefully, chapters with Montenegro next month. We are moving forward, but we can’t move forward if North Macedonia is not moving forward, Bjerre said (at 1:17 in the video).

That progress in relations with Bulgaria is particularly important in order to achieve further successes in the EU accession process, said German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul in an Instagram story post (19.11.2025) after meetings in Skopje with Prime Minister Mickoski and Macedonian Foreign Minister Mucunski, as part of his tour of the Western Balkans.

Here in Skopje, the prospect of future EU accession is a major topic. Germany supports North Macedonia on this sometimes difficult path. North Macedonia has already achieved a lot. Now, progress in the relations with Bulgaria remains crucial in order to make headway in the accession process, the German ministersaid in a story post on Instagram.

Patriots on batteries

Political analyst, university professor Mersel Bilalli says that the current government has conquered all levels of power–legislative, executive, local, media, and is on its way to usurp the judicial power. He wonders: And what next ?! According to him, the government has no will to unblock the EU integration process, it is even doing the opposite, so now, in addition to “guarantees” for further non-blocking, it is demanding “reciprocity” for minorities.

Red lines–Mickoski does not allow bullying, betrayal and capitulation

Prime Minister Mickoski reiterated about ten days ago that the Government’s position is very clear regarding the red lines in the dispute with Bulgaria.

Our position is very clear. Everyone knows what the red lines are. We have described those red lines many times before. We are ready to sit down and talk, and it would not  not be correct for anyone to expect that this Government, while I am Prime Minister, will suddenly say, well, what we have been saying so far does not apply, we will now sit down and make constitutional amendments. At least while I am the Prime Minister, if someone else comes, let them push for a different policy. But such betrayals and capitulations while I am the Prime Minister will not happen–says Mickoski. (from 10:05 to 10:37 minutes of the video)

He announced that the Government will do everything in its power to complete its homework.

We will do everything in our power to finish our homework, let’s see what happens then. Because 8 years ago, when we were changing our names and surnames, they told us that we were frontrunners and that if we change our names and surnames, we would be in the EU in 3-4 years. Those 3-4 years passed 3-4 years ago, where are we today–where we were 25 years ago. It’s great, if we change the Constitution, we will be the best, we will be the best! If we are not Macedonians, if we are something else, we will be the best. In the way that someone is bullying us and wants to stop Macedonia from progressing in the EU. We will not allow that, this Government will not allow that, while I am here. When someone else comes, it’s their business … – says Mickoski (from 16:42 to 17:29 minutes of the video)

Therefore, considering the Prime Minister’s stance on constitutional amendments, it is unlikely that we will seize the moment now and implement the agreement with Bulgaria, as Eurodiplomats advise. It is much more likely that we will sweep this issue under the rug, (mis)using it in the name of patriotism for daily politics and rating-building, while faltering on the road to European Union membership and missing this opportunity as well.