Brussels, 10/03/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 10 March, MEPs called on the political parties of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) to keep all their commitments as soon as possible that are linked to the political agreement of 2 June and 15 July 2015. FYROM should do this in a way that is comprehensive, constructive and sustainable, and in a spirit of negotiation.
Embracing the proposed resolution by Ivo Vajgl (ALDE, Slovenia) on the 2015 report on FYROM (404 votes in favour, 76 against and 29 abstentions), MEPs underline that an agreement between all the parties in FYROM is essential in order to implement all the elements of this agreement, which would put the country back on the Euro-Atlantic path. MEPs call on FYROM's political parties to start a constructive political dialogue and to continue their efforts to restore public trust in institutions, so as to preserve political stability and accelerate the reform programme. According to the MEPs, the urgent priority reforms include freedom of the media and of assembly, the public administration, the rule of law and fundamental rights, the judiciary, and the fight against corruption. The MEPs also highlight the need to strengthen good neighbourly relations.
The elections on 5 June will be an important test for the country's democratic process, the European Parliament states, stressing that all the political parties should make efforts to create favourable conditions for organising credible early elections. The MEPs add that it is of the utmost importance to hold free and legal elections in full respect of international standards and in line with the OSCE recommendations.
According to the European Parliament, the recommendation to open accession negotiations should depend on the comprehensive implementation of the political agreement and significant progress in implementing the priority reforms. The Council should look into this issue as soon as it can after the early parliamentary elections, as indicated by the European Commission, the MEPs state. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)