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Bloomberg
Bulgaria is poised to object to the official start of European Union accession talks with North Macedonia, hindering the former Yugoslav country’s efforts to open the long-delayed negotiations by year-end.
Countries in the Western Balkan region, engulfed by bloody wars following the breakup of Yugoslavia, are all striving to join the EU to raise living standards.
Albania and North Macedonia have waited more than a decade to start talks, with the latter even changing its name to resolve a dispute with Greece.
But that’s still not enough. At a virtual meeting of EU affairs ministers on Tuesday, Bulgaria is set to effectively veto a negotiation framework for North Macedonia on the grounds that its neighbour is violating a 2017 bilateral treaty aimed at resolving historical disputes.
EU membership for western Balkan nations would strengthen the position of the West in the regional tug of war with Russia.