Regarding the canonization of educator Kiril Pejcinovic and the reactions in Bulgaria, the president of VMRO-DPMNE, Hristijan Mickoski, says that “serious attempts are being made to deny the authentic struggle of Pejcinovic for Macedonia and our people and identity”.

They want to portray him as a Bulgarian and they don’t stop there; they go further and say that the Macedonians will not stop there, but they will also do it with Krcovski, the Miladinov brothers, Sapkarev. What is that? Is it friendship or good neighborliness? I can’t come to terms with that. That’s why I say we are ready when we form a government, to sit down and renegotiate this part of the Agreement with Bulgaria. We have no problem with cooperation with our eastern neighbor in the field of education, agriculture, and tourism, building railways and roads, Mickoski said on the MTV debate last night.

He believes that “Macedonia in the EU suits Bulgaria best.”

Instead of being our biggest sponsor and friend, they behave like Russia in Ukraine. Thus they deny the Ukrainian language and identity, so official Sofia today denies the Macedonian language and identity. They say that our language is a linguistic norm. Is there a bigger insult than this from an EU member state in the 21st century, and today we are talking about green transition, Europe without borders, and artificial intelligence? We only ask that they respect us. That is what VMRO-DPMNE is seeking, Mickoski said.