SkopjeDiem Macedonia in English
At a press-conference on Tuesday, European Commission Spokesperson Ana Pisonero said the hope was that North Macedonia and Albania would be able to open negotiations on the Fundamental Rights cluster as soon as possible.
As she added, the decision on when the next intergovernmental conferences (ICGs) would be convened is now in the hands of EU members. Regarding the double elections, the EU is closely following the process.
“From our side, we fully support clearly the EU accession perspective for North Macedonia and, again, we expect that we will be able to open accession negotiations as soon as possible,” the Spokesperson stated, reiterating the obligation for the constitutional changes.
Tuesday also saw the Council of the EU give its final green light to setting up a Reform and Growth Facility for the Western Balkans, a new instrument to support EU-related reforms and economic growth in the region.
“The facility is the financial pillar of the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. It will cover the period from 2024 to 2027 and is expected to provide up to €2 billion in grants and €4 billion in loans to the EU’s six Western Balkan partners in the coming years,” it said, inter alia, in the press-release.
