Muçunski: North Macedonia’s integration into the EU should be assessed on merit, not history

North Macedonia aims for its path toward the European Union and full membership to be determined by the country’s merits, without being burdened by the past or historical issues. This was stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of North Macedonia, Timço Muçunski, at a joint press conference following the Ministerial Meeting on Corridor 8, held in Sofia.

Responding to questions about expectations from today’s meeting with his Bulgarian counterpart, Velislava Petrova-Chamova, Muçunski said his country wants concrete results to serve as the basis for assessing its EU membership.

According to him, North Macedonia is fully aligned with the European Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy and, based on its experience and results to date, has demonstrated that it is a very good candidate for membership.

The minister also referred to assessments by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who, during her latest visit to Skopje, appreciated the country’s commitment to implementing the reform agenda, as he said. In this process, he also mentioned the support of EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos and her team.

Muçunski stressed that EU enlargement is a political decision reached by consensus among the member states. He added that North Macedonia would continue to act responsibly and proactively in seeking solutions.

“We will do our part. We will act responsibly and be proactive in finding solutions to the issues, but the solution never depends solely on our side,” Mucunski said.

He said that in its relations with neighboring countries and EU member states, North Macedonia would be guided by goodwill and respect for public international law.

“In all our relations with our neighbors and with all European Union member states, we will always act on the basis of goodwill and respect for public international law,” Mucunski stressed./Telegrafi/