Skopje, 12 July 2023 (BTA/MIA) — Bulgaria expects North Macedonia to actually implement the 2017 Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighbourliness and Cooperation as well as the two joint protocols, Vice President Iliana Iotova told Christian Danielsson, Secretary of State for European Union Affairs of the Kingdom of Sweden, the press centre of the Head of State said Wednesday.

"A mandatory condition from which Bulgaria will not back down is the inclusion of the Macedonian Bulgarians in the Constitution of the Republic of North Macedonia. A fundamental value of the European Union is respect for human rights," she said.

Among the main topics of the talks between the two in Sofia was EU enlargement.

Danielsson thanked Bulgaria for its support during the past Swedish presidency of the Council of the EU, as well as for Sweden's NATO membership.

"We hope for positive developments in the autumn regarding Bulgaria's accession to Schengen. My country has long fulfilled the membership criteria, it is a secure external border of the European Union," Iotova said, stressing that Bulgaria relies on Sweden's support.

"After the resignation of [Dutch] Prime Minister Mark Rutte, we do not know what the position of the Netherlands will be," she said.