Skopje, 13 July 2023 (MIA) - Bulgaria's insistence lately, unnecessary insistence, that we should complete the constitutional amendments, when we talk more and more about the constitutional amendments, I don't think it helps us, but the purpose is to move us away from the focus, because I am convinced that the constitutional amendments are in our interest, and I am convinced that not everyone in Bulgaria is happy about completion of the constitutional amendments, Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani told reporters at Thursday's joint press conference with Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský, and Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Wlachovský.

Asked about Prime Minister Dimitar Kovachevski's informal meeting with his Bulgarian counterpart Nikolay Denkov on the sidelines of the 2023 NATO Summit in Vilnius, which the FM attended as well, Osmani said it was a matter of a first meeting as the one he held with the Deputy PM Mariya Gabriel. 

"These are first meetings to get to know each other, during which, of course, both sides express willingness to continue more intensive communication. And that is my main argument during such meetings - we should meet because if we leave gaps, someone else will "hijack" our agenda, and obviously there are those from both societies and states who persistently try to move us away from improving relations. Likewise, the unnecessary insistence by the Republic of Bulgaria lately that we should complete the constitutional amendments, when we talk more and more about the constitutional amendments, I don't think it helps us, but the purpose is to move us away from the focus. Because I am convinced that the constitutional amendments are in our interest, and I am convinced that not everyone in Bulgaria is happy about the completion of the constitutional amendments," said Osmani. 

He added that the country should enter the process of constitutional amendments without prejudices regarding the outcome, seriously explaining to the citizens, the MPs and the political parties what this is essentially about. According to him, two options are at hand: either ending the negotiations with the EU or completing the amendments to the Constitution as soon as possible.

As regards his expectations from the visit by the three top diplomats of the Austerlitz-Format or the 'Slavkov trilateral' - Austrian FM Schallenberg, Czech FM Lipavský, and Slovak FM Wlachovský - Osmani told reporters the visit is to reaffirm that the EU stands behind the Negotiating Framework, that the country could not have gotten a better deal, and that no one can change it in the future.

"We are here to eliminate the false arguments of any promise by anyone that at any time they would be able to change even a comma in the Negotiating Framework, because they will not be able to do so. If that's the case, then why the delay? Two options are at hand – either we end the negotiations forever and clearly say that we do not want to join the EU because the conditions can't be changed, which obviously means either backing off from the idea of ​​EU membership or completing the constitutional amendments as soon as possible. There is no third option. No third option. I believe that is the clearest in this situation," said Osmani.  

Asked what could the ministers suggest at the meeting with the opposition, so that the opposition draws back from its strong position that it will not accept the constitutional amendments, Minister Osmani noted that the ministers' goal is not to interfere in the internal affairs of the state and to be part of the internal debate, but encourage the credibility of the European integration process.