Brussels, 02/02/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Saturday 31 January, the European Union reiterated to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) “the inalienable right for an independent and transparent investigation in case of any alleged wrongdoing, with full respect of the rights of the defendants in accordance with the law and international standards, including the principle of presumption of innocence”.
Four people, including social-democrat opposition leader Zoran Zaev and a former head of the secret services, Zoran Verusevski, have reportedly been accused of “espionage and violent threats aimed at government officials with the goal of undermining the constitutional order”, according to the European External Action Service (EEAS) - which has been informed of the details of the accusations by FYROM's foreign ministry.
“These are very serious accusations”, said the spokesperson for High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, who stated that it was “essential” for the investigation to be transparent and fair. The accusations come from FYROM's Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, in whose opinion Zaev demanded early elections and threatened to disclose compromising recordings for the members of the government.
The EEAS spokesperson, Maja Kocijancic, also underlined that the lack of balance in the coverage of the events by the media strengthened the EU's concerns. She added that the EU was concerned about the growing polarisation in the choice of magistrates.
“The EU also reiterates its concern about the deterioration in political dialogue in the country”, said Kocijancic, underscoring that political parties should refrain from actions which would further undermine the situation in this EU accession candidate country.
Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn is due to visit FYROM on 16 February. (CG)