President Gordana Siljanovska Davkova received today the UK Special Envoy for the Western Balkans, Stuart Peach.
The meeting was held in the spirit of the long-standing friendship between the two countries, with a focus on bilateral relations, cooperation within NATO and the process of integration into the European Union.
Underlining the country’s clear strategic goal of joining the European family, the President emphasized the commitment to consistently fulfilling the European criteria. Stressing that the EU integration should be based on a constructive approach and mutual goodwill, she pointed out that the accession process is burdened with continuous demands and challenges, which hinder our candidacy and burden the people.
In this regard, the President stressed that the bilateralization of the enlargement process represents a harmful precedent for all candidate countries and that our identity issues have already been defined and negotiating them is contrary to fundamental European principles and values.
President Siljanovska Davkova emphasized the significant role of the United Kingdom in ensuring the security and stability of the region and thanked for the continued support of the Macedonian aspirations for accession to the European Union.
The Special Envoy Peach emphasized the role of our country as an important partner in the NATO Alliance. In the context of the situation in Europe and the region, he expressed concern about the rise of nationalist rhetoric at the regional level and emphasized the need for reconciliation and dialogue in conditions of turbulent times and war on European soil.
At the meeting, views were exchanged on key security issues in the region and Europe, as well as on the impacts of geopolitical trends in international relations on our region.
