The citizens of North Macedonia believe that Bulgaria is the main threat to the country, and at the same time they are convinced that Belgrade is Skopje's greatest friend.
This is clear according to the results of the EUROMETAR 2023 study by Eurotink - Center for European Strategies, reported a BGNES reporter.
Bulgaria is a threat, Serbia is a friend
When asked whether they think there is a country or an international organization that poses a threat to North Macedonia, 48% answered "yes", against 46% "no". The largest percentage of respondents who see a threat believe that it is currently Bulgaria - with as many as 79%, followed by Russia with 6.3%, Albania with 2.7% and Serbia with 2.4%.
When asked "which country or international organization is the country's greatest friend", the majority, 39.6%, answered Serbia, followed by the USA with 13.7%, Turkey with 10% and the EU with 8.4%.
The EU is unfair to the PCM
The attitude of the European Union towards Macedonia is unfair, arrogant and blackmailing, according to 55.8% of the respondents.
27.5% of respondents say that relations with the EU are honest, friendly and correct.
However, for 60.8 percent of those surveyed, the EU is the best alternative for the country, which is an increase of 2% compared to 2022, when 58% gave the same answer. On the other hand, 35.6% of respondents believe that the RSM should look for its own development model outside the EU (33% in 2022).
At today's presentation of the results of the conducted survey, Dimitar Nikolovski, executive director of Eurotink - Center for European Strategies, said that despite growing skepticism regarding the country's entry into the EU, 53% of respondents agree that membership of the bloc is a good thing for Skopje, compared to 49% in 2022, while 30% are of the opposite opinion.
It is symptomatic that 30% of the respondents believe that the country will never enter the EU, against 12% who are sure that this will happen in 5 to 9 years.
Wrong direction
To the question "Generally, in what direction are things moving in North Macedonia", 54.4% answered with "completely wrong direction", while only 12.6% "very good direction".
The EUROMETAR 2023 survey was conducted in September among a representative sample of 1,003 respondents. /BGNES
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