Skopje, 23 July 2021 (MIA) – The case of North Macedonia is a serious test for the European perspective of the region and of the Union’s beliefs as a community of values, which celebrates linguistic and cultural diversity in the continent. The stakes are high and I call on the EU to treat North Macedonia and its people with the dignity we deserve and apply accession criteria and European values to the situation, Deputy PM for European Affairs Nikola Dimitrov told the informal GAC ministerial meeting, taking place in Brdo Castle near Kranj in Slovenia on Friday. Discussion focused at the meeting, the Secretariat for European Affairs said in a press release, on strengthening the Union’s resilience to crises. In that regard, Deputy PM Dimitrov underlined the importance of the EU and the Western Balkans establishing a coordinated approach for managing mutual challenges. “The virus is blind to borders, member states or candidate countries. Therefore, this region, surrounded by EU members must handle mutual crisis, such as this pandemic, together with the Union,” Dimitrov said. In that regard, he stressed that the Western Balkans have been included in several of EU’s mechanism for managing the health crisis, as well as economic recovery. “A crisis is a decisive moment. Such a decisive moment for restoring the European dream in the Western Balkans awaits us during the Slovenian Presidency. We share success, as well as failure,” Dimitrov concluded.