‘They won’t stop here!’ Macedonian citizens on why they’re skeptical of accession talks

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Many citizens in North Macedonia are expressing their skepticism when it comes to whether or not much will change, after today’s start of accession negotiations with the European Union.

In a few interviews for Euronews Albania, some said that they don’t see any short-term benefits from today’s decision and that Bulgaria won’t give up any time soon and that it will continue to block North Macedonia’s road toward EU integration.

“I’m hearing everything, especially about our language being disputed, our Macedonian language! But, we’ll see how this will unfold in the end. At this rate, however, Bulgarians won’t give up any time soon and I am 100% sure of this. But I can’t tell you exactly when this will all stop,” – said one of them.

“This isn’t good at all for the Macedonian people. Our identity is disappearing, it is getting crushed. Our people are being forced to accept many things. They’re continuously forced to kneel down. That’s why this isn’t good at all for our people and our nation,” – said another. citizen

But there are also those who are optimistic and consider this a very important moment for the country and the people living in it, despite the fact that there may not be any short-term results.

“I think that we will benefit from this and that we will join the European Union. We will need to implement the steps that are definitely difficult, but we will be able to deliver in the end” – said another.

For the past 2 weeks, the opposition has been organizing mass protests against the French proposal, claiming that it won’t resolve the dispute with Bulgaria and that it violates and endangers the Macedonian language and its national identity.

On the other hand, ethnic Albanian politicians and citizens have, for the most part, supported the French proposal as a precondition to start accession talks and continue on their Euro-Atlantic journey.

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