Brussels, 05/12/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 4 December, Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn called on the Macedonian opposition to return to parliament.
“I urge all the country's politicians to hold political debate in the parliament. In particular, I would very much like to see the opposition return to the parliament”, he said at the end of a meeting with Fatmir Basimi, the European affairs minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). The opposition has been boycotting the parliament for over six months. Hahn stated that he would do his utmost to contribute towards normalisation. He also announced that he would visit FYROM in January to meet political leaders from the different sides.
Hahn also stated that “one of the key priorities” was to contribute to stimulating the economy in the country because “this means improving the well-being, and better living conditions”. “This is linked to the issue of the rule of law, transparency and the fight against corruption”, he said.
Questioned about the blockage at the European Council of Ministers on opening the negotiations with FYROM - an opening that the European Commission has been recommending for the six years - Hahn said that his “priority” was to unblock the situation in the different countries on which he is working, “not only on FYROM”.
In order to open FYROM's accession negotiations, unanimity is needed at the Council. Hahn did not mention the issue of the name “Macedonia” between Greece and FYROM, which is one of the reasons for the blockage at the Council. (CG)