Skopje, 19 July 2022 (MIA) – Deputy PM for European Affairs Bojan Marichikj attended Tuesday the first Intergovernmental Conference between North Macedonia and the EU, sending congratulations to the citizens for the start of negotiations, which will secure a different, better future for the citizens. “Everything we have done so far, all our efforts we have put into the process of European integration and unblocking it, was done to give a better life to our people, the same as all other European people,” Deputy PM Marichikj wrote in a Facebook post. Marichikj said the first Intergovernmental Conference opens negotiations with the EU, making it a formal part of the accession process into the great European family, and there’s only one ending – full-fledged membership into the EU, the Secretariat for European Affairs said in a press release. “We are facing a period of great challenges, and we’ll have to work harder and commit to the reforms in order to justify the trust the EU showed us and realize our citizens’ expectations,” Marichikj added. According to him, this is the second most important event for North Macedonia after the NATO membership, fulfilling another strategic goal for North Macedonia, marking the path our society should take. The government delegation led by Prime Minister Dimitar Kovachevski attended the first intergovernmental conference between North Macedonia and the EU, where the general political opinions of both sides were presented. The EU presents its general position, followed by the general position of the candidate country. After the conference ends, a meeting will take place to open the screening process, including European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi and Deputy PM Marichikj. dk/ik/