Skopje, 4 June 2024 (MIA) — The European Union is based on compromises and there is currently no veto on North Macedonia's accession process with the EU, German Ambassador Petra Drexler said Tuesday at an event marking Europe Day organized by the  European Movement in North Macedonia in partnership with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

According to Ambassador Drexler, reforms are the basis for EU membership.

"Member states agree that the start of negotiations should be made possible," she said. "The German perspective is to strengthen Europe both externally and internally, so we need to find a way to find a European solution. Most decisions in the EU are made by qualified majority."

Speaking on behalf on Germany, the German ambassador said, the number of decisions made by qualified majority should be increased.

"However, our strength lies in striving to reach compromises. We cannot give up on making compromises. And the start and the end of negotiations are decisions that are made unanimously. Nothing has changed in this regard," Drexler said.

Slovak Ambassador Henrik Markus said Slovakia was a strong supporter of the region as demonstrated by a series of initiatives.

Ambassador Markus said the EU should not be waiting for North Macedonia to overcome all problems. Twenty years after the Thessaloniki summit, Markus said, people were still talking about how important enlargement was but not talking nearly enough about how to do it. He remarked that these were "unproductive attitudes, difficult to overcome."

"North Macedonia now has a new president, and soon a new government," Markus said. "I think they can, and will, use this opportunity to overcome this position and achieve something."

"It always surprises me how there has been no one to raise the flag and gather these friends of the EU enlargement with the Western Balkans to prevent some of the events that led to this position," Markus added, commenting on the country's stalled path to the EU.

Quoting Kofi Annan as saying that the time was right and the choice was clear, the Slovak ambassador encouraged politicians "to use this opportunity given to us and work together toward a united Europe." mr/