Brussels Edition: Welcome to the Balkans

Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg’s daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union.

The EU’s planned expansion into the Balkans is facing yet another obstacle. At today’s virtual meeting of European affairs ministers, Bulgaria is set to oppose the start of accession negotiations with North Macedonia unless the former Yugoslav republic recognizes the Bulgarian roots of its language and confirms it has no territorial aspirations. But as is so often the case in the Balkans, there’s more to it than that. It involves not just short-term political considerations, but also claims to the heritage of long-dead folk heroes, conflicting identity narratives and arguments that normally fall within the remit of philologists rather than ministers. EU governments are about to be reminded of the scale of the challenge posed by the bloc’s enlargement plans. Welcome to the Balkans.