site.btaEuropean Parliament Report on North Macedonia's Progress Makes Headline News in Skopje

North Macedonia's news media on Tuesday focus on the adoption by the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET) of a report on the country's progress toward EU accession.

Earlier in the day, the AFET adopted the report with 40 MEPs voting in favour, 19 against, and 10 abstaining. The Committee commended North Macedonia’s commitment to European integration and encouraged the country to continue its reform efforts despite political challenges and public frustration, the EP’s press centre said.

A sample of headlines in the Skopje media coverage: "Report on Macedonia Adopted with Broad Majority, Waitz Says He Is Proud, Country Belongs to EU", "Mickoski's Lobbying Paid Off, Amendment on Macedonian Language Blocked", "Macedonian Language Will Not Be Qualified as 'Modern'", "European Parliament to Debate 'Modern' Macedonian Language, Identity", "Waitz's Report Adopted in Brussels, Mickoski Let Down by His Allies".

Deutsche Welle writes that the adopted report on North Macedonia calls on the authorities in Skopje to introduce constitutional reforms and to strengthen the rule of law and the fight against corruption. The report praises North Macedonia's commitment to European integration but also criticizes the high level of corruption and low trust in the judiciary, the German media outlet explains. It specifies that the report contains two mentions of "Macedonian identity and language".

According to Deutsche Welle, in the second recital of the report the European Parliament calls on the European Council to provide public and unequivocal support to North Macedonia, expressing its intention to quickly and unconditionally adopt a positive decision on entering the next phase of accession negotiations, following the fulfillment of the conditions set in the conclusions of 18 July 2022, fully respecting "the Macedonian language and identity".

According to the publication, the question is whether this recital will survive the plenary vote at the European Parliament after European People Partys MEP Michael Gahler unveiled an amendment proposing to insert the word "modern" before "Macedonian identity and language".

The www.plusinfo.mk website quotes the country's Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski as saying on Sunday that he had received "alarming information about coordinated attempts in Brussels once again to attack the Macedonian language and identity".

Interviewed by the 360 Degrees special correspondent at the European Parliament, the Rapporteur on North Macedonia in the European Parliament Thomas Waitz said the negotiations had been "difficult and long" but the result was the formation of "a clear majority that speaks for itself". Asked whether he thought this would help upcoming steps such as constitutional changes needed to open negotiation chapters in North Macedonia's tangible negotiation process, Waitz replied that the vote "shows clear will and support from the European Parliament for the accession process but this is a merits-based process, so reforms and constitutional changes are needed, which may not be the last ones."