Minorities action plan: Mickoski says 26 EU members agree, while Bulgaria has objections

The Action Plan on the rights of minorities and communities is again among the main topics in North Macedonia's relations with Bulgaria and the EU. Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said on June 6 that the plan is finished and, unofficially, agreed with 26 EU member states except one. That one state is Bulgaria. This is a government statement, not an official vote, so the number “26” should be read as the government's own assessment.

According to the government, the plan was prepared in Macedonian and English by domestic and international experts, in close consultation with the Council of Europe and the European Commission. It contains concrete measures, deadlines and institutions responsible for implementation. Mickoski said an EU human rights expert took part in the preparation and that two public debates were held. The government describes the plan as fully aligned with the highest European standards.

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Mickoski says Bulgaria's main objection, as he was told, is that the plan is written in Macedonian. Asked what Sofia's specific demands are, he said he would answer if he knew. He also linked the Bulgarian position to North Macedonia's participation in the Three Seas Initiative. In the available reports Bulgaria has not published its objections in a way that can be checked, so the two sides of the story are not equally documented.

Why does the plan matter? It is part of the 2022 European consensus, which calls for practical implementation and protection of constitutionally guaranteed rights. The EU negotiating framework, according to a BTA report, requires Bulgarians to be included in the Macedonian constitution before the second intergovernmental conference can open and negotiations begin. North Macedonia still lacks the last step to open the first negotiating cluster, on fundamentals, which European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen confirmed in Skopje on October 2.

On September 21, in an interview with MIA, Mickoski said he was ready to discuss harmonizing the plan with the international community present at the talks. He judged that bilateral dialogue with Bulgaria alone would support the Bulgarian view that this is a bilateral issue, and proposed that an EU representative take part as well. He added that trust must be built first and that he would not enter a process without knowing the likely outcome. Mark Trosanovski, president of the Institute for Democracy “Societas Civilis”, said the plan has the support of all member states and the European Commission except Bulgaria, but that is his assessment, not a verified count.

On October 2, von der Leyen announced a first step toward breaking the deadlock. She said that once the stalemate is overcome, the process could move “very quickly”, but also that “there is still a lot of work to be done”, and she called Skopje's reform progress “impressive”. Mickoski said a diplomatic note would be sent and that he had asked the foreign minister to request a meeting with the Bulgarian counterpart during a visit to Sofia for Corridor 8 events.

What is not known? I could not find confirmation of whether the meeting in Sofia took place or what was agreed. It is not known how many of the 26 members have formally backed the plan, or what Bulgaria's specific objections are in written form. It is also unclear whether the EU will take part in the talks, as Mickoski proposes.

What does it mean? The plan is ready on the Macedonian side, but the road to negotiations does not depend on it alone. Constitutional changes and dialogue with Sofia remain. If Bulgaria has written objections, the public will be able to judge them more easily once they are published; until then, only one side's statements are on the record.

MKNews Hub · Macedonia · October 19, 2026