Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski, in response to a journalist’s question that the authorities do not react when it comes to Bulgarian provocations, and on the other hand, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressly responded to the hate speech for last night’s match between Macedonia and Bulgaria, says that there is always a reaction when there are actions when reputation is damaged on any basis.

It is not true that we have not reacted; we have always reacted when there are actions when reputation is damaged on any basis. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reacted, but we also reacted to another match in which the national teams played, but I still think that the best way to cheer is to cheer on your own team and respect the opponents. That applies to us, of course, but it also applies to our opponents, Kovacevski said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs today condemned, as it stated, “yesterday’s expression of hate speech that could be observed during the football match between the national teams of Macedonia and Bulgaria.”

Sports events represent the highest expression of the principles of fair relations, mutual respect, and competition in the spirit of fair play. The misuse of these events to spread hatred and intolerance is the essential opposite of their basic idea, reads the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.