Over the past three decades, the young Balkan state of Macedonia has been in the focus of political debate, not only among its neighbors but also at the European stage. The country has been on the brink of devastation more than once – the total plunder by Serbia, the harsh embargo by Greece, the internal tensions with armed incidents in 2001 – but it has always and unconditionally been able to count on its most sincere and faithful ally – Bulgaria.

Over the past 30 years, Sofia has extended a friendly hand to Skopje. The Bulgarian state guaranteed Macedonia's independence in its early days and has subsequently stood firmly for its European future.

North Macedonia's elections

The 2-in-1 elections on May 8 in North Macedonia ended with a foreseeable result. VMRO-DPMNE decisively won the "battle" against the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) in the parliamentary vote, and Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova toppled the former head of state Stevo Pendarovski.

Could Siljanovska bring a turning point for the Macedonian state after she broke the Prespa Agreement with Greece, which settled the dispute over the name "Macedonia," with her first words in the presidential office? Did the VMRO-DPMNE victors win a real victory for their people when they called the Negotiating Framework approved by the European Union a "Bulgarian dictate"?

The "large-scale internal party reforms" and the "new democratic vision" claimed by the leaders of VMRO-DPMNE remain captive to the Macedonism created in and by Belgrade.

Both of the main political parties in North Macedonia, whether in government or opposition, pursue their policies within this state ideology, which is essentially anti-Bulgarian. This ideology is suffocating the future of the country and its citizens. It is blocking integration into the EU, not Bulgaria, which recognizes Macedonian statehood and the right of self-determination of Macedonian citizens.

The postulates of Macedonism presage the denial of any Bulgarian aid, assistance, support, backing and helping hand. In September 1991, after a successful referendum, the Republic of Macedonia declared independence. Just a few months later, on Jan. 15, 1992, Bulgaria was the first country in the world to unconditionally recognize it under its constitutional name. Threats and economic plunder followed – not from Bulgaria, but from the dictatorship of Slobodan Milosevic. The plunder perpetrated by the retreating Yugoslav army extended from the barracks sinks to Macedonian properties on the territory of the former Yugoslavia to the radar of the Skopje airport.

Thanks to the efforts of Bulgaria's then-President Zhelyu Zhelev and his personal talks with the then-Turkish leader, President Süleyman Demirel, the Republic of Macedonia was recognized by Türkiye. Bulgaria did everything possible to ensure that Moscow and Washington did the same. Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin was persuaded by Zhelev to recognize Macedonia's independence during his barely 20-hour stay in Sofia. Yeltsin sent the decree minutes after taking off from the airport in the Bulgarian capital. With the active foreign policy of the Bulgarian head of state, the United States also recognized the independence of the Republic of Macedonia during the term of George Bush Sr.

In February 1994, Greece imposed a painful embargo. Thanks to Bulgaria, Macedonia received petroleum products and all kinds of other goods. The biggest "Macedonian" port at that time was the Bulgarian Black Sea city of Burgas.

Bulgaria prevented the dismemberment of Macedonia under the plan of Milosevic and former Greek Prime Minister Konstantinos Mitsotakis. President Zhelev refused to participate in the planned tripartite meeting and thwarted attempts of a brutal partition.

During the deportation of over 300,000 Kosovo Albanians to Macedonia in the spring of 1999 by the Milosevic regime, Bulgaria selflessly supported one of the largest refugee camps not far from Skopje – Raduša. During this period, Sofia pursued an active policy to prevent the destabilization of Macedonia.

In 2001, during internal tensions with armed incidents in Macedonia, Bulgaria gave its neighbor dozens of tanks and howitzers.

In the recent history of bilateral relations, Bulgaria played a central role in bringing its western neighbor out of international isolation after the fall of Nikola Gruevski, the then-leader of the now "reformed" VMRO-DPMNE. Just months later, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boiko Borisov signed the Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighbourliness and Cooperation with then-Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev. This treaty opened the door to resolving the dispute over the name "Macedonia" between Athens and Skopje, and later, the Republic of Macedonia joined NATO.

In the years that followed, the EU approved the Negotiating Framework for the opening of negotiations on North Macedonia's membership in the bloc. The framework was ratified by the parliaments of both countries, but the former SDSM government and the parliament in Skopje refused to implement the agreements. Nevertheless, there is a full consensus among all political formations in Bulgaria that Skopje should be part of the European family and Bulgaria maintains its efforts to accelerate this process.

Atatürk's emphasis on Bulgaria-Türkiye ties

Back in 1931, in an interview for the Bulgarian newspaper "Утро" (Morning), the father of the Turkish nation Mustafa Kemal Atatürk described the friendships he had made with his Bulgarian fellows in Thessaloniki years earlier.

"Every Bulgarian misfortune causes me unimaginable pain. I have always done my best to help Bulgaria. Türkiye and Bulgaria should be friends. Whoever is against Bulgaria is also against Türkiye," Atatürk said 93 years ago.

Today, a similar creed lies at the heart of the Bulgarian people's attitude toward its southwestern neighbor – every trouble and failure for Macedonia brings pain to Bulgaria. Whoever is against North Macedonia is also against Bulgaria.

North Macedonia's misfortunes are not caused by Sofia but by the foreign geopolitical project that is killing the common past, the difficult present, and the shared future. Skopje's self-isolation from the European path is a danger, not only for North Macedonia itself but also for the security of the entire region because it opens the path for anti-European influences in the Balkans. North Macedonia has a place in the EU and will continue to receive sincere Bulgarian support. North Macedonia and Bulgaria will certainly live together in a united Europe with freedom and independence.