The report by MEP Thomas Weitz on North Macedonia's progress will be voted on today at the European Parliament meeting in Strasbourg, BGNES reported. The vote will take place after 1:00 p.m. Bulgarian time.

The debate on the report took place yesterday, July 8. Rapporteur Thomas Weitz emphasized that the report includes the condition for amending the Constitution, specifically the inclusion of Bulgarians in it. “We see a lot of foreign influence in North Macedonia. We must fight it, whether it is Serbian, Chinese, or Russian,” he said categorically.

MEPs will also vote on reports on Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Georgia.

The three largest political forces in the European Parliament—the EPP, S&D, and Renew Europe—have agreed to remove the terms “Macedonian identity” and “Macedonian language.” The majority in the plenary hall in Strasbourg is expected to support the amendments.

A draft resolution of the European Parliament, based on Thomas Weitz's report, directly highlights the goal of Serbia's geopolitical project “Serbian World” for domination in the Balkans. BGNES recalls that it is not only economic, but aims to change the state borders in the region and includes the Republic of Srpska, Montenegro, Kosovo, and North Macedonia.

Point 80 of the report states: "concern about the ‘Serbian World’ project and the fact that representatives of the North Macedonian government support and promote this concept; condemns participation in meetings aimed at establishing a sphere of influence that undermines the sovereignty of other states and stability in the region;"

Point 81 states: "the need to open the archives of the Yugoslav secret services (UDBA and KOS - from the time of the Yugoslav dictator Tito after 1945 - ed.), stored both in North Macedonia and Serbia, as well as the need for these archives to be opened at the regional level in order to overcome the totalitarian past in a transparent manner, with the aim of strengthening democracy, accountability, and institutions in the Western Balkans.

"North Macedonia remains the target of hostile foreign influence operations, including efforts to divide the country's social fabric and exploit anti-European sentiments, especially through tabloids and Serbian-language media, which act as regional amplifiers of Kremlin narratives and enjoy significant influence," the document further notes. It recalls that North Macedonia expelled 13 Russian diplomats between 2018 and 2023 for activities incompatible with their diplomatic status, suggesting the continued presence of covert influence networks. It specifies that China seeks to expand its influence through control of information, investment diplomacy, and coercive clauses in infrastructure loan agreements.

The report warns that Chinese diplomatic structures have financed paid content and comments in Macedonian media without clear disclosure. A 2023 analysis found that Russian state-affiliated actors used Serbian media proxies to spread anti-NATO narratives and claim that the EU was pressuring North Macedonia to “give up its identity.”

The draft resolution, published on the European Parliament's website, expresses concern that North Macedonia and other Western Balkan countries applying for EU membership are particularly affected by foreign interference and disinformation campaigns, including hybrid threats, strategic corruption, non-transparent financial flows, and coercive investment practices, especially those originating from Russia and China.

Concern is expressed about “the role of Hungary and Serbia in supporting the geopolitical goals of China and Russia, and in this context, the risk of dependence on China due to asymmetric loan agreements, as well as the loan from Hungary to North Macedonia, which appears to be of Chinese origin.” . | BGNES