Skopje, 1 November 2024 (MIA) - European Union Ambassador Michalis Rokas said Friday that North Macedonia needs to adopt the constitutional changes and include Bulgarians in the Constitution, which the country has agreed to make, in order to advance the process of accession negotiations.

Ambassador Rokas told a joint press conference with Minister of European Affairs Orhan Murtezani that the EU Report on North Macedonia is structured in a different way and that is why the Prespa Agreement and the Bulgaria Friendship Treaty are now placed on its front page.

"This is done for easier reading of the report, which is now shorter. All 120 recommendations are mentioned upfront, including this part. There is no other reason, it is only done so that everyone is focused on the essential elements of our recommendations. Of course, it goes without saying that goodneighborly relations and regional cooperation remain as essential elements of the enlargement process," Rokas told reporters when asked if the agreements' placement on the first page meant that the country has not been sufficiently committed to goodneighborly relations.

Regarding the EU's position on the delayed implementation of the constitutional changes, Ambassador said that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen sent a clear message during her visit to Skopje last week.

"I quote, 'We have a very clear goal in sight, and this is to open the 'Fundamentals' cluster as soon as possible. We are almost there, we know it's about the constitutional change that your country committed to implement. Now we need joint effort, cooperation and dialogue. I hope that all political forces in the country will come together to take this decisive step forward and I am convinced, like you (PM Mickoski), that we can overcome the obstacles that are still there'. This is all I can say on this," noted Rokas.

He referred to parts of the Report, saying that North Macedonia needs to continue to implement EU-related reforms, especially within the Fundamentals cluster, namely in judiciary, countering corruption and organized crime.

"There is limited progress in judiciary and improvement compared to last year. Regretfully, there is no progress in the fight against corruption, but positive elements have been recorded in the areas of agriculture, rural development, fisheries, transport and regional policies," said Rokas.

He also said the assessment on the internal market is a mix of more and less progress, while highlighting the country's full alignment with the Union's common foreign and security policy.

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