The goal is North Macedonia to be part of next EU enlargement, says Marichikj
Skopje, 17 August 2022 (MIA) – European integration doesn’t only depend on us, and it’s not good to bid with dates because we cannot predict exactly when it will happen. It is our goal that North Macedonia be part of the next EU enlargement, and that is achievable if we work intensively on the implementation of EU standards, and if we conduct negotiations properly with the engagement of the institutions and the whole society, said Deputy PM for European integration, Bojan Marichikj.
“If you look at the EC reports, North Macedonia seen by clusters stands better or equally well in most of the clusters with the countries that have been negotiating for ten years now. This means that we haven’t wasted time in the waiting room, and we have worked intensively on aligning both the regulations and the practice, on their implementation.
“Of course, we have a lot of work to do, the work is far from finished, but we need to set ambitious goals, so that we can achieve them within a realistic deadline. In the most optimistic terms, this framework for pre-accession assistance ends in 2027, and we should work and fight for the next pre-accession framework to apply to as few countries as possible, i.e. to be a member state,” Marichikj said when asked about Prime Minister Kovachevski’s optimism for faster integration following the example with NATO.
He mentioned a previous timetable, prepared together with Brussels, according to which the screening would begin on September 15, and last until the end of 2023. Intensive communication with Brussels is underway, as well as preparations in the training center of the Secretariat for European Affairs.
“Together with officials from Brussels we plan after the summer holidays to immediately start training our administration and those who will participate in the first cluster – Fundamentals, to start explaining the methodology and the screening process. It will be the ongoing work of the training center until the end of the negotiations,” said Marichikj.
