Timcho Mucunski: It is indecent for an EU member state to be a refuge for convicted or prosecuted persons

North Macedonia's Foreign Minister Timcho Mucunski said on October 29, 2026 that it would be inappropriate for a European Union member state to serve as a refuge for people convicted of crimes or those currently facing legal proceedings. He made the comments during a joint press conference with Slovak counterpart Juraj Blanar.

“It is indecent for an EU member state to be a refuge for convicted persons and persons against whom proceedings are being conducted,” Mucunski said, stressing his concern while also echoing Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski's recent remarks and signalling a desire to avoid turning the issue into part of Bulgaria's domestic electoral campaigns.

Dialogue with Bulgaria must continue, minister says

Mucunski reiterated that as a candidate country North Macedonia expects EU member states to uphold the highest standards in the rule of law. He added that the bilateral dialogue with Bulgaria on the country’s EU accession process is ongoing and that Skopje maintains active communication with representatives of member states.

“There is a dialogue and it will continue. A few days ago in Montenegro I met with the French minister for European affairs, where among other things we discussed this topic. Today my colleague Juraj is here, and this was one of the topics we actively discussed, because, after all, all decisions connected to our European integration require consensus. Which means any solution that we work on with Bulgaria, which hypothetically would be in line with our positions, a sustainable solution, needs to have consensus from all member states. So there is dialogue with Bulgaria, dialogue with the European institutions on this matter, and dialogue with all European Union member states. We will continue to work on that issue, because with regard to the European path we have no alternative,” he said.

The minister noted that there is currently no planned meeting with his Bulgarian counterpart Velislava Petrova, but said December will bring several formats where they could meet, including the NATO foreign ministers' gathering. He said North Macedonia expects to host a format for foreign ministers from Southeast Europe cooperating with Ukraine in December and expressed his hope that this will provide an opportunity to speak directly with Petrova.

“We expect to host a format of foreign ministers for cooperation of the countries of Southeast Europe with Ukraine also in December, so I believe there will be an opportunity to meet with my colleague from Bulgaria and openly discuss the European path, but also to openly discuss certain issues that concern us as a neighbour and not only as a candidate country, but also as an equal NATO member, about situations that worry us in behaviour from there, but today I will stop here because it is not my aim that my statement becomes part of a political campaign in Bulgaria,” Mucunski added at the press conference with Blanar.

Photo: press material from the event