Skopje, 12 October 2023 (MIA) – There is no sense in waiting on every paragraph, aspect or any other task to be fulfilled for us to say now you can become an EU member. It would be much better to involve our partners in areas in which they are already efficiently contributing and participating, thereby allowing them to enjoy the benefits of the EU. So we are talking about a gradual integration. Maybe 2030 is too early for some countries, and too late for others. But, the important thing is to have an idea of where we are going, to continue and to accelerate, the Austrian Ambassador to North Macedonia, Martin Pammer, told Racin.mk in an interview.

In the interview, Ambassador Pammer revealed more details about the non-paper which he handed to Deputy Prime Minister in charge of European affairs, Bojan Marichikj, last week. The non-paper, which has also been delivered to the highest representative and institutions of the EU, proposes an acceleration of the EU accession process of the Western Balkans, i.e., a gradual accession.

“In simpler terms, it means enabling our Western Balkan partners, i.e., North Macedonia, to participate with greater inclusion in several programs and forums of the EU, where it can participate and where this makes sense. This practically means improving the Euro-integration process,” said Pammer.

The Ambassador stressed that “until now the process was based on the fulfillment of conditions from chapter to chapter, which was fairly slow with minor results from the citizens’ point of view.”

“Now we want to accelerate that process. Why? Because now we are talking about a completely different geostrategic situation in Europe, but also above all because our partners in the region, i.e., the Republic of North Macedonia, deserve to be a part of the EU,” stressed Pammer.

The Ambassador agreed that the document which proposes an acceleration of North Macedonia’s Euro-integration process is linked to the announcements over a new EU enlargement in 2030.

“It is necessary to set a date in order to get a certain perspective because the process is already too long, and from a strategic point of view it is necessary to accelerate it. There is no sense in waiting on every paragraph, aspect or any other task to be fulfilled for us to say now you can become an EU member. It would be much better to involve our partners in areas in which they are already efficiently contributing and participating, thereby allowing them to enjoy the benefits of the EU. So we are talking about a gradual integration. Maybe 2030 is too early for some countries, and too late for others. But, the important thing is to have an idea of where we are going, to continue and to accelerate,” said Ambassador Pammer.

According to the Ambassador the process must not be postponed, and this, he said, refers both to the country and the EU.

“We are well aware that the postponement of the process would mean problems for every country of the region. In terms of North Macedonia, the constitutional amendments are a core issue. From a broader perspective, this is a domestic issue that needs to be concluded before the elections next year. It is much better for this to be concluded now, instead of being postponed,” the Austrian Ambassador, Martin Pammer, told Racin.mk.

Photo: Racin.mk