Skopje, 7 April 2022 (MIA) – North Macedonia’s Parliament Speaker Talat Xhaferi met Thursday with Albania’s Minister of Justice, Ulsi Manja. Talks highlighted excellent bilateral relations between the two countries, bound by mutual and sincere friendship and cooperation that tends to further strengthen in the coming period as part of the EU integration, the Parliament said in a press release. Xhaferi stressed he expects a positive outcome by June this year in terms of the joint aspirations of the two countries to start negotiations with the European Union. “The Speaker and his guest stated that the two countries follow the joint and aligned policy of NATO and the EU, and they condemn the Russian military aggression against Ukraine with a joint appeal to calm the situation and cease hostilities, in order to reach a peaceful solution via a diplomatic route and to avoid major material damage and unintended casualties. Minister Manja expressed satisfaction and gratitude for the meeting with Xhaferi and expressed high respect for his role in building a relaxed political climate, both in the Parliament and in the country. He voiced confidence that friendly relations between the two neighboring countries will continue to develop in the coming years,” the press release reads. The Albanian Justice Minister is taking part in a conference in Skopje that brings together ministers from the Western Balkans with a focus on the fight against corruption. “Minister Manja expressed hope that in this regard, the countries in the region will show good results. The Albanian Minister agreed with the Speaker's statement that by June there will be a positive outcome in the context of EU membership aspirations and that the blockades will be overcome, which will be extremely important for both countries. The interlocutors agreed that the intensive political cooperation will continue in the coming period, expanding every field of mutual interest,” adds the press release. dk/nn/