On Tuesday 19 November, the European Union announced that it had signed a new security and defence partnership with North Macedonia.
This partnership aims to strengthen national capacities, improve regional cooperation and support stability in the Western Balkans. It includes a section on sharing expertise, training and better coordination to meet common security challenges.
The agreement reflects the EU’s commitment to the regional security and European integration of the country, which is officially a candidate for membership. This new partnership is also taking place against the backdrop of geopolitical tensions with Russia and the ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine.
The signing of this security and defence partnership should ensure “increased collaboration in key areas, including crisis management, support to Ukraine, countering hybrid threats, cyber security, capability building and training, counter-terrorism and external aspects of integrated border management”.
More broadly, this decision is part of the process of bringing North Macedonia into line with the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy, which is a sine qua non of membership, as the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, pointed out when the European Commission presented its report on enlargement (see EUROPE 13515/2). (Original version in French by Isalia Stieffatre)