EU Council Chief to North Macedonia: Change Your Constitution or No EU Talks

European Council President António Costa delivered a blunt message to North Macedonia's Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski in Skopje on Tuesday: amend the constitution to recognize the Bulgarian minority living in the country, or EU accession negotiations will stay frozen.

Costa made clear that the 2022 commitments North Macedonia signed onto are non-negotiable. He called the constitutional amendments "the only path" to formally opening negotiations, and warned that the accession process runs on merit, pointing to Albania and Montenegro as countries that have already moved ahead to different negotiating stages.

"The accession process runs on merit" — Costa, pointing to Albania and Montenegro as countries that have already moved ahead.

North Macedonia's EU path has been effectively stalled since Skopje failed to follow through on a 2022 EU proposal requiring explicit constitutional recognition of the country's Bulgarian minority. The previous center-left government had accepted the deal, but Mickoski's ruling VMRO-DPMNE party, then in opposition, rejected it outright and has not reversed course since taking power.

Costa is currently on a six-country tour of the Western Balkans, aimed at sending a clear signal that EU enlargement remains a live and realistic prospect for the region. His first stop was Sarajevo on Monday, where he met with the Bosnian Presidency and the president of the Council of Ministers. Earlier Tuesday, he met Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama in Tirana, urging Tirana to intensify efforts against organized crime and corruption. He said the European Commission has already recommended closing three negotiating chapters with Albania, calling the goal of completing accession talks by 2027 "ambitious but achievable."

Costa is set to visit Pristina on Wednesday for talks with outgoing Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti and opposition leaders, then Belgrade on Thursday for meetings with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. The tour wraps up in Montenegro, where regional leaders will gather for a dinner marking 20 years of Montenegrin independence. On June 5, Costa will co-chair the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Montenegro, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU member state leaders also attending.