Talks with Bulgaria will continue, the country is our neighbor and we have to seek settlement to the differences through European dignified policy. Negotiations will continue with this administration in Bulgaria and with any other in the future, Justice Minister Bojan Maricic said in an interview with MIA.

The minister emphasized that the opening of Macedonia’s negotiations for EU membership being delayed again is a major mistake.

Our country has done everything it was asked to do as a precondition to start negotiating. Also, PM Zaev has said many times that there is no alternative to EU membership, but the price cannot be paid with our Macedonian identity or language, Maricic said.

According to him, the opening of negotiations would mark more intensive reforms in all areas, because any support from the European Union would be more intensive.

It means we’ll face no delay in the implementation of reforms – we aren’t implementing any reforms for the European Union, we’re doing it for our citizens. In fact, it’s a reality that we are losing so much by not opening an intensive process of close cooperation with Brussels and the EU partners. It’s key to find a solution that protects our state interests and allows us to start negotiations, he said.