Skopje, 30 June 2024 (MIA) - There’s not a renegotiation of Prespa, there’s not a renegotiation of movement towards the European Union. Those agreements have been made, United States Ambassador Angela Aggeler told Radio Free Europe in an interview, when asked about Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski’s statements about his readiness for new negotiations with Bulgaria.

“Let me be very clear. The Prespa Agreement was absolutely historic for this country. I recognize that it was extraordinarily difficult for many people in this country to accept the change of name. But it was an international agreement that the Government at the time and many others within the international community agreed to. We were certainly a part of that process, and we applaud it. This is something that helped North Macedonia move forward certainly right into NATO and has also provided many opportunities for it to make progress towards the European Union. We were very pleased to see that the new Prime Minister and his ministers said ‘North’ during their swearing-in. That's critically important and a fundamental part of the Agreement, and we are watching very closely now to see how that is respected. But, as I have said before and as we have said, that within respect for the Prespa Agreement, which is critical, there is certain leeway, and the priority for us here in Skopje at the U.S. Embassy, and for Washington, is to now move forward on many of those very important priorities that this country should be talking about. I feel that there is a certain amount of distraction and scorekeeping of who says what when, and the important part is to respect international agreements, which the Prime Minister has said he will and then let’s move on and have these critically important conversations,” Aggeler said.

In the interview, Aggeler said they feel the elections were free and democratic.

“Democracy is a very fragile thing, and we have seen this country come through a period of campaigning and elections that was challenging for the people and the candidates in this country. The results, however, were very definitive. We feel very strongly that these were free and fair elections, regardless of what party any particular citizen was supporting. So seeing that process, that democratic process move forward is a positive for the people of this country. They said very clearly to their leadership that they wanted to see change. The incoming Government, the new Government has made it very, very clear during their campaign period what they believe those necessary changes were, and so now, it is the responsibility of every citizen in this country, and for all of us, to take them at their word and match actions with the statements that were made during the campaign. They talked about addressing corruption, growing the economy, energy and infrastructure, the importance of education and healthcare for the citizens of this country. And what we will be watching closely, as I know all of you will, is how those promises translate into actions and results for the citizens of North Macedonia,” Aggeler said.

Photo: MIA Archive