Skopje, 4 January 2026 (MIA) - It is regretfull they have once again missed the chance to act as good neighbors, said Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski on Sunday, in response to Bulgaria's challenging of the Action Plan on Minorities because it was written in Macedonian language.

"No member-state has anything against it, no minority in Macedonia has anything against it because it went through a public debate. The problem now is the Macedonian language. Forgive me, but Macedonian is my mother tongue, it is the country's official language and the one used internationally, there is no other. I cannot do anything if someone is bothered by this," PM Mickoski told reporters.

The PM said that everything was done as suggested by the Italian expert who worked on the plan's drafting, along with Brussels' request to send the document to Bulgaria in advance, "in order to demonstate good will".

"We did this, and now they are bothered by the fact it is written in Macedonian language. This is the official language in line with the Constitution and neither me nor the minister can break the Constitution. According to the Constitution, we do not have any other language, the Macedonian language is the only one. They are showing once again that the issue has nothing to do with minorities or Bulgarians included in the Constitution. The roots of their demands go much deeper and they are again demonstrating that their intentions are entirely different," said Mickoski.

He said the Government has no communication with Bulgaria at this time, while adding "we are at disposal to meet anytime, anywhere, to put forward our arguments".

"We can accept any remarks but I cannot give up on my mother tongue, the Macedonian language," said Mickoski.

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