Calavera: EU Council Decision for Delayed Start Rather Positive

The EU Council’s decision on delayed start of Macedonia’s EU accession talks is ‘rather positive’, as the European Commission is to start the preparations to that effect by the end of July, which means the country will be ready for negations, Director for Western Balkans Genoveva Ruiz Calavera at the EC tells media. “We are launching the preparations now, so the country will be ready for negotiations, without wasting a day for preliminary activities,” Calavera says. On 26 June, the EU members gave green light to opening Macedonia’s accession talks in June 2019 if the country made ‘tangible, sustainable’ progress in reforms of the judiciary, security services, and public administration, as well as cracking down on corruption.