The Bulgarian-Macedonian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has sent a declaration to the Prime Ministers of Macedonia and Bulgaria, Zoran Zaev and Stefan Yanev to express concern over the negative impact of bilateral disputes on business and trade relations between the two countries and urged for the political crisis to be resolved, MIA reports from Sofia.

As MIA’s correspondent, who had insight into the content of the document, according to the Chamber, in the past 50 months since the signing of the Friendship and Cooperation Agreement on August 2, 2018, “none of the proposed measures in the White Paper at the Round Table has been implemented.” 

Bulgarian and Macedonian citizens continue to pay for the most expensive roaming in the region, go through double border and customs control, cannot use tax breaks when leaving a neighboring country and there is no cross-border infrastructure project, the Declaration states.

According to the Chamber, there is no transport, digital or infrastructural connection between Bulgaria and Macedonia, and instead there is confrontation, administrative barriers, hostility and lack of prospects for understanding and cooperation.