News
1/27/2022 02:42
Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs Bojan Maricik today had a video address in the Ambassadorial Round table entitled "Accession of the Western Balkans to the EU: long, (un)finished story - sustainability of the Macedonian foreign policy course ", in which he gave his view on the European integration path of our country and stressed the importance and the role of the Secretariat for European Affairs within the country's accession process to the Union.
In the video statement, Deputy Prime Minister Maricik said that the Republic of North Macedonia has made significant progress in implementing reforms in the last five years, which is noted in the EU progress reports, and expressed the expectation that in the forthcoming period during French presidency that the issue from the European perspective of the Western Balkans will remain among the priorities, but this time with a realistic outcome:
start of negotiations with North Macedonia, and of course with Albania.
- It is important for us that the decision to start negotiations be made as soon as possible, because the result of the decision will have a positive impact on the political processes, it will give additional impetus to the reform agenda, the results, and generally optimism in the society and citizens, who, of course, legitimately show doubt in the achievement of our goal, membership in the Union because we have been locked in a waiting room for a long time. That is why we are convinced that the sooner the negotiations start, the better it will be for us and the EU, Maricik said.
In his address to President Pendarovski and the ambassadors, Deputy Prime Minister Maricik presented the priorities he will focus on in the upcoming period. He pointed out that he will commit personally to the implementation of the Agenda Europe at home and the wider aspect of the National Program for the Adoption of the EU Acquis (NPAA) and in that way the trajectory of our EU membership will be drawn.
- I will do my best for the full absorption of all European funds allocated to us, as well as for the implementation of all bilateral assistance agreements that the country has at its disposal, we will continue to strengthen the IPA structure because we understand the importance of any assistance from the Union, but it is also important for us that the good staff stays in the institution and that IPA structure is sufficiently motivated, instead of migrating to the private or consulting sector, but to stay in the state institutions and help us have better utilization and better results in the implementation of European Union assistance, Maricik said.
Maricik also announced the consolidation of the EU coordination mechanism and the establishment of negotiating structures in the short term to ensure a focus on the implementation and organisation of institutions in accordance with the negotiation process, thus exerting positive "pressure" on the institutions.