TIRANA, Oct 29 /ATSH/ – North Macedonia President Stevo Pendarovski acknowledged in an interview with Albanian public broadcaster that he didn’t expect the European leaders at the European Council to make a negative decision on the bid of North Macedonia and Albania to open the EU accession talks earlier this month.
However, Pendarovski stated that Western Balkans has no alternative but to remain on the path towards the EU integration.
“Right now, the Republic of France has a specific national interest they are trying to defend. Their President is doing this as he is paid to do this job and we should look at the reasons of the President of France and his state and make efforts to best understand these reasons and tackle them. So it is obvious that our two countries were victims of internal political dynamics in France and the European Union itself”, North Macedonia President told a political talk show on Albanian RTV.
Pendarovski noted that both Albania and North Macedonia should perhaps embark on a joint effort to convince friends and the rest of EU member states that the two countries really deserve to open the accession talks.
“This is because we are not seeking to become full-fledged EU members today, or a week later. Instead we are seeking to start a very long process that would take years to complete,” he said.
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