Macedonian president Branko Crvenkovski made an official visit to Bulgaria on March 5 2008, meeting with Bulgarian counterpart Georgi Purvanov in the city of Sandanski in bid to boost his country's ambition to win an invitation to join Nato, but also to discuss the rights of the Bulgarian minority in Macedonia and energy-related matters, Focus news agency reported.

“This year is very important to us because we expect to be invited to become a Nato member state at Nato's April 2008 summit in Bucharest. We have also decided to close the European Union membership negotiations during the next year and to settle the visa regime issues. In order to achieve these goals, we need the support of our friends and Bulgaria is such a friend,” Crvenkovski said.

As far as the rights of the Bulgarian minority in Macedonia were concerned, he said that it was the obligation of the state to guarantee they were protected. “Every citizen of the Republic of Macedonia can freely proclaim their ethnicity. This applies to everyone, to the Albanians, Serbs, Turks, Vlachs, Roma. It applies to the Bulgarians as well,” the Macedonian president said.

Energy issues were also on the agenda of the talks, with the two presidents declaring their willingness to co-operate in the field of economy and energy. Bulgaria has agreed several large-scale energy deals recently, and they are carried out, its neighbours, including Macedonia, would benefit from them, Purvanov said. Bulgaria was ready to link Macedonia to the South Stream gas pipeline and finish the Petrich-Stroumitsa gas pipeline.     

Regarding Macedonia's thorny name issue, which has long soured its relations with Greece, Crvenkovski said he was hopeful that the 1995 interim agreement between Skopje and Athens would be observed. “The interim agreement says Greece should not stand in Macedonia's way to membership in international organisations,” Crvenkovski said.

He took a stand on the Kosovo issue as well, saying that the issue of the border between Macedonia and Kosovo should not be tied to the recognition of Kosovo's independence.

Crvenkovski's visit to Bulgaria ended with laying wreaths at Yane Sandanski's monument in the city of Melnik, Focus news agency said. There the two heads of state were met by about 200 protesting supporters of Bulgaria's Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation (VMRO), carrying posters saying “Hands off Bulgarian history”, “Without rights for Bulgarians in Macedonia there will be no Nato”, “No to the terror of Bulgarians in Macedonia. The protesters waved Bulgaria's national flag and VMRO's flag as well.