On Thursday, President Stevo Pendarovski met with French Ambassador Christian Thimonier. At the meeting, they exchanged views on the overall bilateral ties between Macedonia and France, as well as information about the current situation in the two countries and about developments in the region. Pendarovski said he was satisfied with the development of the Skopje-Paris cooperation. According to the President, Macedonia sees in France an honest friend and ally when it comes to the achievement of the strategic goals. Regarding the EC Progress Report, the President said he expected the European Council to make a decision to start membership negotiations.