This project aims to analyze the bilateral agreements with Greece and Bulgaria, assess their implementation and examine the implications on North Macedonia’s EU accession process. The establishment of a Strategic Partnership between the Parties (Prespa Agreement) with Greece and the Treaty of friendship, good-neighbourliness and cooperation (Treaty with Bulgaria) with the Republic of Bulgaria hold significant implications for North Macedonia’s EU accession process. The objective of the project is establishing a National dialogue platform and analysing the obligations and opportunities for the Government of North Macedonia deriving from the Final Agreement for the settlement of the differences as described in the United Nations Security Council Resolutions 817 (1993) and 845 (1993), the termination of the Interim Accord of 1995, and the establishment of a Strategic Partnership between the parties (Prespa Agreement) between North Macedonia and Greece and the Treaty of friendship, good-neighbourliness and cooperation between the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia (Treaty with Bulgaria) on the EU accession process of North Macedonia and develop recommendations for its implementation, including participation and consultation with non-state actors (think tanks, academia, business associations).
Planned Activities:
- Conducting initial research to determine IDSCS partners in Greece and Bulgaria
- Informing relevant state and non-state stakeholders in the participating countries about the project and establishing the core team of experts with concrete timelines for conducting the activities.
- Analysing the impact of the bilateral agreements on the EU accession process of North Macedonia and identifying established structures for their implementation
- Conducting workshops in the Skopje, Athens and Sofia
- Drafting a policy document with incorporated inputs from the three workshops in Skopje, Athens and Sofia and formulate recommendations for the government of North Macedonia for the implementation of the obligation from the Prespa Agreement with Greece and the Treaty with Bulgaria.
Duration: 05.02.2024 to 15.12.2024
Budget: 24.873 EUR
Donor: Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internatonale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)