French Support for EU Talks Start for North Macedonia Unreserved

France’s support for a start of EU negotiations for Skopje and Tirana is unreserved. Ambassador Cyrille Baumgartner believes that the Skopje-Sofia dialogue represents a new approach in the negotiations, which both sides desire. “Our stand is the same and hasn’t changed, with that being opening of negotiations. All European intuitions share the same stand,” he notes. Regarding the possibility of proactive engagement by France, Baumgartner says it is not his country that determines the agenda, that is, Skopje and Sofia do that. The Ambassador’s stand is that the French Presidency, together with the European institutions, is ready, once the appropriate time comes, for concrete steps to be taken so that the “happy end that all of us desire” is reached. Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani’s assessment is that France’s support for the integration of the Western Balkans, with clearly set standards, is very important.  “All of us expect that this new dynamism will result in a positive solution for us, which is a start of negotiations, which will be supported by all EU members,” he notes.