European Commission: No attempts to adopt constitutional changes; historical commission with Bulgaria shows no tangible results
The Commission notes stalled constitutional amendments, limited results from the historical commission with Bulgaria, and continuing concerns over corruption and neighbourly relations.
The European Commission's new progress report for North Macedonia records that no attempts were made to adopt the constitutional amendments requested in the Council Conclusions of 18 July 2022. The document stresses that the commitment to begin and complete those changes — aimed at including in the Constitution citizens who live within the state's borders and belong to other peoples such as Bulgarians — remains unfulfilled.
Brussels flags stalled neighbourly ties and weak results from historical commission
The report underlines that implementation of bilateral agreements "in good faith", including the Treaty of Friendship, Good-Neighborliness and Cooperation and its Protocol with Bulgaria, remains essential. It calls for significantly increased efforts to restore an atmosphere of dialogue and mutual respect.
According to the commission, the joint multidisciplinary expert commission on historical and educational issues met four times between September 2025 and March 2026 but produced no tangible results. The report also warns that some government members and senior officials occasionally ignore the Prespa Agreement and refrain from using the country's constitutional name — behaviour the Commission sees as a risk to good neighbourly relations with Greece.
On the judiciary, the report places the system "between certain and moderate levels of preparation" and notes some progress. By contrast, it finds no progress in the fight against corruption: corruption remains widespread and a serious cause for concern in Brussels.
Democratic institutions are said to function generally in a stable manner, but sustained political polarisation continues to delay the adoption of important reform laws. The commission's assessment therefore links further EU accession progress to concrete implementation of bilateral commitments, renewed cross-border dialogue and determined action on corruption.
The report's findings cover institutional performance, bilateral relations with neighbours and specific benchmarks for constitutional change, underlining that without clearer, sustained steps on these fronts the path to opening accession chapters will be impeded.
Photo: press material from the event
