Skopje, 17 January 2025 (MIA) - Macedonia is ready for a swift beginning of accession talks for full-fledged EU membership. It can serve as a model for other countries in Southeast Europe, demonstrating that the path to the European integration is achievable, the Secretary General of the International Pan-European Union, Pavo Barišić, said at an international conference titled "Business Diplomacy: Economic Growth and International Cooperation” held on Friday in Skopje.

“There is no justification for a unilateral approach that denies the right of the Macedonian people to their language and identity and claims that the Macedonian nation was created artificially. By that logic, we could raise the question of which nation in Europe isn’t artificial? Such a perspective would create numerous disputes between Austria and Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, Sweden and Norway and that list can continue even deeper in the distant past. We should send a firm and clear message – Macedonia is ready for a swift beginning of accession talks for full-fledged EU membership. Macedonia can serve as a model for other countries in South-Eastern Europe, demonstrating that the path to European integration is achievable,” Barišić stressed.

The international conference held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade examines how business and diplomacy can aid each other and the importance of infrastructure to that end. In addition to Barišić, the conference was also addressed by Ambassador Andrej Lepavcov, president of the Macedonian Pan-European Union, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Timcho Mucunski, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport Aleksandar Nikoloski, as well as Member of European Parliament and Joint Parliamentary Committee EU-North Macedonia chair Karlo Ressler.  

Barišić stressed that two decades have passed since the country became a candidate member, noting that progress has been slowed by numerous obstacles.

“The country demonstrated that these obstacles can be overcome through good neighborly relations. The citizens of this country solved long-standing disputes with Greece and we believe they will do the same with Bulgaria as well. This conference is an excellent opportunity to reaffirm the necessity of strengthening and accelerating Macedonia’s EU membership negotiations,” the Secretary General said.

Barišić said the Pan-European Union believes it is incomprehensible and unacceptable that the country is still waiting to become a member of the European Union.

“At a time of growing global threats, Europe must act as a force and protect its legitimate interests that are fundamental to its independence, which is also why the EU must reform its institutions to achieve true democratic, effective and responsible governance,” Barišić said. 

In his address, MEP Karlo Ressler noted that within the EU institutions but also across the capitals of member states there is an increasingly clearer understanding of the political urgency to move the enlargement process forward.

“We are at a moment when, not only from a geopolitical aspect, but also in terms of the beginning of negotiations, we could achieve tangible progress on all fronts, with concrete discussions and proposals on the table. In that context, I think the creation of a government in Sofia can be at least a little useful and a step in the right direction. We need to remain focused on the bigger picture which states that the path to EU membership doesn’t only mean ticking off boxes and meeting technical, administrative and legal criteria. This includes many other things, we have a civilizational belonging to the EU, to the unification of Europe and the European idea. The Pan-European Union has been a testament to that idea for decades already and I hope that through economic diplomacy, cooperation and unshakeable commitment, which the Government of North Macedonia has demonstrated, it will be able to achieve its vision,” Ressler said. 

Photo/Video: MIA