Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and leader of a nationalist party, Krassimir Karakachanov, has thrown cold water on support for the Republic of North Macedonia’s hopes of EU accession. Statements by Karakachanov, leader of the nationalist VMRO party, came in response to reported comments by the President of North Macedonia, Stevo Pendarovski, about historical figure Gotse […]
Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov expects France to support North Macedonia for a date to start EU accession talks. “I honestly can’t believe that one of the greatest leaders of Europe would make such a strategic mistake. You can’t expect Europeization of the Balkans without encouraging positive trends. I think we’ll have France’s support,” Dimitrov told […]
Opening EU accession talks with Albania and North Macedonia would be the wisest decision by the EU, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said in his address at the 74th session of the UN General Assembly. “Providing a positive response to Albania and North Macedonia’s ambition to open accession talks will not merely be a reward […]
German daily newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) reports that North Macedonia will receive a “full green light” for the start of accession negotiations, while the Bundestag will give a “dark green” light to Albania. According to the newspaper, the decision of the Bundestag of North Macedonia will grant the start of negotiations without additional conditions, […]
Western Balkan leaders unanimously agree that North Macedonia deserves to open EU accession negotiations and that any other decision will be very negative for the region, government press office said. “In regard to the question of the future of the Balkans, I have a positive answer: The Balkan region is moving in the right direction, […]
It seems that Athens wants to make the cases of North Macedonia and Albania a package with respect to accession policies, Greece’s former foreign minister and now Syriza MP Georgios Katrougalos said in an interview with ANA-MPA’s radio station Praktoreio FM. “But in Albania we also have other issues, we need the protection of our […]
Prime Minister Zoran Zaev attended a dinner hosted by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini for Western Balkans heads of state and government at the EU Mission in the United Nations in New York on Sunday. PM Zaev said a few weeks are left before the EU Council summit, when […]
High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini met Sunday in New York with prime ministers and ministers from the six countries of the Western Balkans. The meeting at the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly discussed the region’s European perspective and the progress achieved. Interlocutors expressed their support […]
The United States is hopeful that North Macedonia will get the opening of the accession negotiations following the European Council meeting on Oct. 16, new U.S. Special Envoy to the Western Balkans Matthew Palmer said in an interview with Voice of America. “We believe that the government in North Macedonia has cleared that bar many […]
North Macedonia has already done its share, and now EU leaders should do their share, President of the European Council Donald Tusk said at the joint press conference with PM Zoran Zaev. “Skopje is the best possible place where I would like to appeal to the leaders of the European Union: Now you do your […]
President Stevo Pendarovski met Tuesday with the President of the European Council Donald Tusk, who pays a visit to North Macedonia and exchanged views on overall situation in the country and the region as well as the country’s EU membership aspiration. Pendarovski said that North Macedonia has made tough decisions on many sensitive issues over […]
North Macedonia and Albania deserve to open EU membership negotiations, outgoing EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn said in an interview with the Montenegrin daily Vijesti. Hahn said North Macedonia has made significant progress, and the most important is the signing of the Prespa Agreement and the resolution of the dispute with Greece. “The Prespa Agreement […]
Prime Ministers of the Visegrad Group adopted a declaration for the Western Balkans during a summit with their Western Balkan counterparts in Prague on Thursday. The Declaration confirms the Visegrad Group unequivocal support for the accession of the Western Balkans in the European Union, saying the Union’s unification will not be complete until the region […]
After ten European Commission recommendations that we are ready to start accession negotiations, we expect a positive decision, Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov said at a strategic conference in Bled, Slovenia, which concluded its works. Dimitrov said accelerated European integration of northern Macedonia and the region into the EU is necessary. The chief of diplomacy of […]
US strongly support North Macedonia in realizing its strategic goals – full-fledged NATO membership and start of negotiations with the European Union. This was stated by Matthew Palmer, US Special Envoy for the Balkans, at a meeting with Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov and Defense Minister Radmila Sekerinska at the Strategic Forum being held in Bled, […]
By Federica Mogherini We have a clear interest in bringing the entire Balkans inside the European Union and we all know that this is a long process, a complicated one, always interesting and lively, that will take time. It will take a lot of problem solving, a lot of political commitment on all sides, and […]
I’m optimistic about a compromise on the public prosecution law, which is going to be passed after all political parties have reached a consensus, said Deputy Prime Minister Bujar Osmani. “I believe that differences between the main political parties of the Macedonian bloc aren’t insurmountable,” the Deputy PM in charge of EU affairs said in […]
North Macedonia could receive a date for the start of negotiations in the fall, while this scenario is less realistic for Albania, said former MEP Eduard Kukan. “North Macedonia has been meeting the criteria for years, but the Union has been postponing the opening of accession negotiations, which is absolutely embarrassing and demotivating,” says Kukan […]
European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn, in an interview with Austrian daily Standard, says that it’s no secret that EU members view North Macedonia more favorably than Albania when it comes to opening accession talks. “We are still working on getting both states to negotiate,” Hahn told the paper. “But it is no […]
EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn arrived to North Macedonia on an official visit. Today, Hahn and Prime Minister Zoran Zaev held a joint press conference where they discussed the implementation of reforms, current events in the country, North Macedonia’s date for accession negotiations in October, etc. -The Republic of North Macedonia deserves the expected green […]
