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Xinhua (26 July 2017)

Macedonia's Prime Minister Zoran Zaev on Wednesday unveiled at a press conference here details about the agreement on good-neighborly relations with Bulgaria.

Following the claims and suspicions raised by the members of Macedonian opposition, Zaev highlighted that the agreement with Bulgaria was in adherence with Macedonia's national interests.

Zaev said the agreement would be transparent for the public while he noted that it would serve as a basis for good neighboring relations between the two countries, in order for them to work closely with each other.

"The agreement offers great opportunities for cooperation and settling, not creating problems," Zaev said. "Bulgaria is our friend and neighbor, which unconditionally supports Macedonia's accession to the European Union and NATO."

He added that the agreement would be signed in Macedonian language and in Bulgarian.

Late Tuesday, the Macedonian government gave the green light to Zaev to sign the agreement for friendship and good neighboring relations with Bulgaria.

According to a government announcement, the agreement would be accessed by everyone while noting that it addressed the pending issues with Bulgaria, in particular, on the issue of language and history.

After Zaev made public the details of the friendship treaty with Bulgaria, lawmakers of the largest opposition party here, VMRO-DPMNE, asked the Parliament to hold a "public, open and urgent" session in view of the announced signing of the friendship treaty with Bulgaria.

"The Parliament should review the agreement and reach conclusions on whether it should or shouldn't be signed," MP Ilija Dimovski told a news conference Wednesday.

According to opposition MPs, the treaty is detrimental to Macedonia and could deteriorate relations between the two neighboring countries. 

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2017-07/27/c_136475344.htm