The French Proposal and North Macedonia’s European perspective: a political geography
Journal
Geographical Reviews, Scientific Journal for Geography
Date Issued
2025-11
Author(s)
Kitevski, Goran
DOI
10.35666/23038950.2024.52.151
Abstract
This paper examines the so-called French Proposal, a diplomatic framework
specifically designed to overcome Bulgaria’s veto and facilitate the continuation
of North Macedonia’s accession process to the European Union. The proposal’s
most contested element is the requirement to amend North Macedonia’s
Constitution to explicitly include Bulgarians as a constituent people —an
obligation that serves as a gateway for opening a broader negotiation process.
This requirement is embedded within a broader framework that incorporates the
2017 Treaty of Friendship, Good-Neighbourliness, and Cooperation, thereby
elevating a long standing bilateral dispute to the level of a formal EU accession
criterion. By integrating identity-related and historical disputes into the
negotiation process, the proposal effectively Europeanizes a bilateral issue. This
study argues that the constitutional amendment represents only one aspect of a
deeper and enduring challenge: the identity-based dispute with Bulgaria, now
institutionalized within the EU framework, will remain a decisive factor
influencing both the pace and prospects of North Macedonia’s European
integration.
specifically designed to overcome Bulgaria’s veto and facilitate the continuation
of North Macedonia’s accession process to the European Union. The proposal’s
most contested element is the requirement to amend North Macedonia’s
Constitution to explicitly include Bulgarians as a constituent people —an
obligation that serves as a gateway for opening a broader negotiation process.
This requirement is embedded within a broader framework that incorporates the
2017 Treaty of Friendship, Good-Neighbourliness, and Cooperation, thereby
elevating a long standing bilateral dispute to the level of a formal EU accession
criterion. By integrating identity-related and historical disputes into the
negotiation process, the proposal effectively Europeanizes a bilateral issue. This
study argues that the constitutional amendment represents only one aspect of a
deeper and enduring challenge: the identity-based dispute with Bulgaria, now
institutionalized within the EU framework, will remain a decisive factor
influencing both the pace and prospects of North Macedonia’s European
integration.
Subjects
File(s)![Thumbnail Image]()
Loading...
Name
TheFRproposalapoliticalgeography.pdf
Size
534.27 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum
(MD5):84b32668808cab0385b7296b93c59e79