The President of the Republic of North Macedonia, Stevo Pendarovski, received today Miroslav Lajcak, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic and current Chairperson-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
The two interlocutors exchanged views on the overall bilateral relations between the Republic of North Macedonia and the Slovak Republic and expressed satisfaction with the development of the cooperation, which is marked with a continuous positive trend in several areas of mutual interest, which is based on sincere friendship, mutual respect and trust.
President Pendarovski stressed that North Macedonia highly appreciates the strong commitment and concrete support from Slovakia in setting a date for the start of the accession negotiations with the European Union, stressing that the integrated and secure region is one of the essential preconditions for a stable and prosperous Europe. In this context, the President welcomed the ratification of the Protocol, in the Slovak Parliament, for membership of the Republic of North Macedonia in NATO.
At the meeting, President Pendarovski underlined that North Macedonia in the past period has invested enormous efforts in meeting the European criteria. In this regard, he expressed gratitude for the support and assistance that the OSCE has given to our country in key social and political areas, especially in the judiciary, legislation, the electoral process, the promotion of inter-ethnic relations and the rule of law.
Both interlocutors expressed confidence that the European Union recognizes the progress of North Macedonia and that it will fulfill the promise – to open this year a new chapter in the relations with our country.
Minister Lajcak congratulated President Pendarovski’s assuming of office, wishing him success in his work, and expressed readiness for further deepening of the traditionally friendly relations between the two countries.
