Parliament Ratifies Long-Awaited Bulgaria-North Macedonia Railway Link

Bulgaria’s parliament has approved an agreement with North Macedonia to build and operate a cross-border railway tunnel connecting the two countries. Lawmakers passed the deal in both the first and second readings during a single parliamentary session.

The agreement, signed on 6 November, marks the culmination of years of Bulgarian efforts to link Sofia and Skopje by rail. According to the explanatory memorandum accompanying the draft law, the project is a key step toward integrating the two countries’ rail networks and completing the missing segment of Pan-European Transport Corridor VIII.

Outgoing Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Grozdan Karadjov noted that the unfinished stretch on Bulgarian soil measures 2.4 kilometers, running from Gyueshevo station to Deve Bair. The construction of this long-delayed section will resume more than eight decades after initial work first began.