FYROM’s PM Zaev insists he is “Macedonian and speaks Macedonian language”

FYROM’s Prime Minister Zoran Zaev on Monday responded to Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister Krassimir Karakachanov's threat to block FYROM’s path to the EU and NATO, by insisting he does speak the “Macedonian language.”

“It’s a fact that the Prespes Agreement contains a reference to a ‘Macedonian language,’ it’s a fact that this belongs to the Southern Slavic languages. Yes, it is part of the Prespes Agreement, as is the fact that we shall be named the Republic of North Macedonia,” he said.

Responding to Karachanov’s remarks that FYROM had continued to “play tricks … falsify history and to force a “Macedonian identity and language” not only within FYROM but also on Bulgarian territory,” Zaev did not back down insisting he is "Macedonian."

Zaev also went on to say that no one has the right to question a person's nationality, as national identity is a European value that everyone should respect, adding that the Prespes Agreement with Greece will go ahead and regardless of Karachanov’s comments, Bulgaria is a friend of the “Macedonian” people.