Quote of the Day: How Little We know Bulgaria and Macedonia

"It hurt me most when I realized how little we know each other as communities while, on the other hand, our expectations have become very big. That is why until we agree on some issue it will be painful for us to make up with it."

This is what the Chairman of the Joint Historical Commission on the Macedonian side Dragi Georgiev told Deutsche Welle. He commented on the words of Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, who touched on issues of common history and other problems with Bulgaria in an interview published yesterday. The Macedonian side of the commission has been criticized by the Bulgarian for protracting and trying to hinder active discussions on important issues such as the figure of Gotse Delchev.

"In Bulgaria they were disappointed as they hoped that they would easily impose their own perceptions and views and they would be accepted. The Bulgarian veto was painfully experienced here, as it was thought that affinity would get the upper hand," Georgiev went on.

"This is the result of the fact that we know each other so very little. We need time to discuss, if we have to, and fight, of course, on a scientific level in order to get to know each other better and not to overblow expectations unreasonably, but to keep them at a reasonable level on a long-term basis. Thus, the disappointments will be smaller, and the time devoted to dialogue much greater - To break the ice, we need both time, dialogue and patience," he concluded.