Rector Nikola Jankulovski, who heads the Ss. Cyril and Methodius University (UKIM) in Skopje, said that he will push against the registration of the name-sake university from the Bulgarian city of Veliko Trnovo in Macedonia, on name copyright grounds.

The Veliko Trnovo university announced it received approval from the Macedonian Government and then the relevant registration bodies, to open a branch in Macedonia. It’s part of the concessions Bulgaria wants from Zoran Zaev – that Macedonia becomes more open to Bulgarian investments, particularly in the cultural sphere with TV broadcasting and education. The Veliko Trnovo university is expected to work together with a smaller university in Sveti Nikole, and to offer classes in Bulgarian and in Macedonian. But the idea is meeting resistance from UKIM, which is the biggest public university in Macedonia.

We will use all available legal options in accordance with the copyright laws and industrial property laws, Jankulovski said.