On Monday 18 July, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini said she thought that after years of political crisis in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), there was now a fresh start to relations between the EU and this western Balkan country.
"I'm pleased to see that today there is a new beginning, new optimism and a strong commitment that enables us to refocus all our energy on the reforms (...) and on the prospect of EU integration", Mogherini told press at the end of the 13th Stabilisation and Association Council. "I'm sure that it will finally be possible to make the country's accession process advance if we continue to focus on concrete results", she added. "We're ready to use the second chance that is given us and to ensure that the accession negotiations take off", Nikola Dimitrov, the Macedonian minister for foreign affairs, announced.
However, to make progress on the European path the country will have to move forward with its reforms. European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn hailed the new government's commitment to implementing the political agreement and to undertaking urgent reforms. The government of FYROM has adopted a 3-6-9 plan with progress to be made in 3, 6 and 9 months. The joint statement published at the end of the Council highlighted the need to establish the responsibility for the telephone tapping and attack on the parliament on 27 April. The statement also highlighted the need to ensure judicial independence, freedom of the media, freedom of expression, respect for human rights and reform of the public administration. Hahn nevertheless warned against excessive haste in undertaking reforms, stating that the quality of the reforms was important. Dimitrov recognised that it was important to implement the required reforms in an open, inclusive and transparent way – although the deputy prime minister for European affairs, Bujar Osmani, acknowledged that the inclusive nature of the reforms was difficult because the country's society is polarised.
FYROM must also improve its neighbourhood relations. Mogherini and Hahn hailed the agreement between Skopje and Sofia on a treaty of friendship, following years of tension. Mogherini and the FYROM ministers hoped for progress on the name 'Macedonia', which currently complicates relations between Greece and FYROM. "We need to lay the foundations in order to unblock the issue of EU accession", Dimitrov said, adding that there could be no solution "if one or other of the parties is called 'defeated'".
The Macedonian ministers also said that if they did their share of the work they expected the EU to do the same. "If the Republic of Macedonia manages to have open and credible elections, if it resolves its problems, then the citizens will expect the EU to make an unconditional recommendation for opening the negotiations", Osmani said, adding that his country's objective was to open these negotiations "as quickly as possible". (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)