The European Commission (EC) finds the issuance of Bulgarian passports to Macedonians a domestic matter in which it does not interfere.
The EC was quizzed by MIA after Bulgarian President Rumen Radev referred to the Macedonian nationals holding Bulgarian passports and his expectations from the Census in North Macedonia.
While the Commission says no member-state should interfere in the domestic affairs of other countries – EU members or not – it has no position over Bulgaria’s mechanism to issue passports to Macedonians.
“The naturalization in question is not related to citizenships through investment schemes, and is therefore, as we have said before, a bilateral issue,” said the EC Spokesperson Service.
It adds that member-states have their internal regulations to grant citizenship to nationals of third countries if they meet certain integration criteria and prove an authentic link with the country.
