The citizens of both countries "deserved it", said on Tuesday, July 19, the chair of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, at a joint press conference with the Prime Ministers of Albania and North Macedonia, Edi Rama and Dimitar Kavachovski.

Kavachowski emphasized that his country is ready to join the EU and would like to "become a positive example of faster integration into the European Union", similar to how it integrated into NATO.

The Albanian Prime Minister thanked von der Leyen, as well as the ex-Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel.

Both German politicians "fought tirelessly" for the Balkans, Rama explained.

North Macedonia received EU candidate status in 2005, Albania in 2014.

Negotiations on accession to the EU have been ongoing for a long time, the parties are discussing 35 different sets of topics from environmental law to the fight against corruption.

A few days ago, the authorities of North Macedonia agreed to introduce an amendment to the country's constitution to remove Bulgaria's objections to its membership in the EU.

At the end of June, the Bulgarian parliament approved the start of negotiations between the European Union and North Macedonia, thereby lifting the blockade imposed by the government in Sofia in 2020, while simultaneously blocking the negotiations on Albania's accession to the EU.

Sofia's decision contains a number of conditions, among which are the protection of the rights of the Bulgarian minority in North Macedonia through constitutional amendments, as well as the obligation of Skopje to maintain good neighborly relations with Bulgaria.

For sensitive topics,

write to us here.

SAFE