President Gordana Siljanovska Davkova addressed the event “The European Union as a Challenge and the Challenges of the EU: Europe 74 years since the Schuman Declaration” which was organized by the European Movement in the Republic of North Macedonia and the representative office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Skopje, which took place today, on the occasion of May 9 – Europe Day.
President Siljanovska Davkova said in her address that we have always been a part of Europe, historically, geographically and culturally, and that we are not talking about European integration, but about reunification, pointing out that the founders of the European Union were true statesmen, guided by the idea of peace, who believed in peace solutions.
“I have already said that we perceive ourselves as Europeans, and it is logical that if you perceive yourself as European, you should be treated as European, too. I see the treatment primarily through the prism, not of EU rhetoric, but of EU logic, in terms of the rule of law, competitive economy, independent judiciary, professional and competent administration, democratic political culture, something that unites”, President Siljanovska Davkova said.
The President pointed out that the screening process showed that in terms of harmonization we are at the top of the Western Balkans, but implementation remains our important challenge.
“We have to start with essential and serious reform, we have no way out because the criterion is not only homogenization, harmonization, but also implementation. I think that the EU should also respond accordingly, because if you are a candidate since 2005, and today is 2024, I am afraid that someday that halt will resemble that of Mr. Godot, and I do not want to believe in such a thing. I know that we were perceived and still are like an Achilles’ heel, but I think that there are solutions for that as well and an appropriate response is needed”, President Siljanovska Davkova said in her address.
She expressed her expectation that the new authorities in the Parliament will understand that the Lisbon Treaty is an agreement for the parliaments, that the Parliament must open up in the European integration process and that European integration cannot be worked out by the Government alone.
“I suggested and I still suggest that among the negotiators there should be experts, not only politicians, in order to create an institutional memory. Is there continuity if both negotiators are politicians?”, the President asked in her address.
President Siljanovska Davkova indicated that the National Council for European Integration must be activated, as a unifying heterogeneous body, and representatives of the European Commission should be invited to the Commission for European Affairs.
She expressed her hope that the EU will not forget the logic and philosophy of enlargement, because this proves that it is irreplaceable, and such a condition creates, for all of us who are waiting in line to enter the European Union, also a democratic condition.
The President said that we need to think regionally, cooperate regionally and support each other regionally, following the example of the Scandinavian countries, adding that the veto is not a European and peace instrument, although it was once a powerful weapon of small states. She said that on the way to the EU, with the help of those inside, we should step together and support each other.
