site.btaPresident Pendarovski: North Macedonia Could Join EU before 2030, If No Internal Obstructions

Without internal obstructions, such as the opposition in North Macedonia, it is possible for the country to enter the European Union even before 2030, said the President of the Republic of North Macedonia Stevo Pendarovski in Ohrid after participating in an international scientific conference at the International Seminar on Macedonian Language, Literature and Culture at the St. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje.

Pendarovski also reiterated his position that he does not see how changes in the constitution, which envisage including Bulgarians and six other nationalities into the basic law, will endanger North Macedonia. These changes are currently in parliamentary procedure but have not yet been voted on.

"Every reasonable person knows the arguments in favour and against. This is a very clear dilemma. We have seven nations in the constitution, is it a problem to add six more? How will this threaten the Republic of North Macedonia? It is another matter if you have political reasons, to wait for the next elections to come to power, and then to think about Europe and two thirds of the Constitution. This is not about strategic, but about narrow-minded thinking, which contradicts the strategic interests of the Republic of North Macedonia," Pendarovski said in Ohrid.

Regarding the words of French President Emmanuel Macron about " multi-speed Europe", which in North Macedonia has been among the most commented on in recent days, Pendarovski recalled that this was an old idea of Macron's "for reforms in the EU before or together with the expansion”.

"Meanwhile, there is not a single statement by President Macron that, until the EU is reshuffled, the countries of the Western Balkans should not enter the EU. As you know that France was a "sponsor" of the European negotiating framework that we adopted last year," Pendarovski said.