The prospects for the EU enlargement process were discussed by President Rumen Radev and European Commissioner Oliver Varhei

EU enlargement should be based on clear principles, taking into account each country's own merits in the integration process. Compliance with this principle is a guarantee of maintaining stability and security in Europe. This was stated by President Rumen Radev at a meeting with the Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy of the European Union, Oliver Varhei, who is on a working visit to our country. The European integration of the Western Balkans has no alternative and the progress of the countries of the region should not fall out of the focus of the European institutions, said Rumen Radev, quoted by the press center of the head of state.

The head of state expressed his appreciation for the fruitful dialogue and the efforts made by Commissioner Varhei for the development of the European integration process. Rumen Radev and Oliver Varhei discussed the prospects for the enlargement process, both in the Western Balkans and in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. Noting the differences in the geopolitical context in which the individual candidate countries find themselves, the two emphasized that each country's EU accession is based on its own merits based on the fulfillment of clear and unambiguous criteria and conditions that are well known to all countries.

President Rumen Radev expressed the expectation that after the end of the election campaign in the Republic of North Macedonia and the holding of the elections there, the political situation in our south-western neighbor will enable the full implementation of the European decision from July 2022, which is an unavoidable element on Skopje's path to the EU. Statements by leading political figures in the RSM, made during the campaign of a provocative nature, do not help to strengthen the dialogue between our two countries, said the Bulgarian head of state. Rumen Radev added that good neighborliness is a major aspect in the expansion process and emphasized the readiness of our country, regardless of the negative messages from Skopje, to renew efforts for constructive bilateral cooperation.

President Radev and Commissioner Varhei also discussed the debated options for future EU reform, including changes to decision-making mechanisms in the Council of the EU. The Bulgarian head of state stated that on the topic of enlargement, our country categorically supports the preservation of the principle of unanimity.