Statement by President von der Leyen at the joint press conference with Prime Minister of North Macedonia Mickoski

Thank you very much, Prime Minister, dear Hristijan,

We had a very good meeting and an excellent exchange of views. It is very good to hear that you are so committed to your accession path towards the European Union. North Macedonia has come a long way. You have shown determination at every step. I want to praise North Macedonia and pay tribute to North Macedonia and its people. Now the work must continue. I also want to pay tribute to the fact that you are 100% aligned with our Common Foreign and Security Policy. I want to thank you and North Macedonia for your staunch support of Ukraine. There are many fields where there is an excellent cooperation, and I really want to thank you for all that. We have a very clear goal in sight. It is to open the fundamentals' cluster as soon as possible. We are almost there. We know it is about the constitutional change that your country committed to implement. And as you said, now we need joint effort, cooperation and dialogue. I hope that that all political forces in the country will come together to take this decisive step forward. I am convinced like you that we can overcome the obstacles that are still there.

Dear Hristijan, rest assured that enlargement will remain a top priority for the European Commission in the next five years. We have now all the necessary tools and instruments in place to make this happen. My first point is on the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. It is our common roadmap to bring the economies of the Western Balkans closer to ours and gradually integrate our economies. You know the approach. We open the door of our European Single Market in specific sectors, to companies, for example, from North Macedonia. In turn, you will implement reforms to have a level playing field. And these reforms are accompanied by additional investments by the European Union in Macedonia. It has been a year now since we started, and I must say the Western Balkans have delivered and have their reform agenda ready. So does North Macedonia. North Macedonia has done a great job. Your Reform Agenda is excellent. Now we should be able to start with a pre-financing of EUR 52 million by the end of the year. Overall, North Macedonia will receive more than EUR 750 million under the Growth Plan. The Growth Plan, and we discussed that, will deliver very concrete results for the people. For example, you are on a good track to become part of the Single Euro Payments Area as of next year. This means, for businesses and people, that transfers of money between North Macedonia and the European Union will be faster, more secure and free. It will benefit both your citizens and your businesses.

The second initiative I want to mention is our common Investment Plan for the Western Balkans. Four years on, it is delivering steadily. In North Macedonia the Plan has already mobilised EUR 1.7 billion of investment, and it will focus on the clean energy transition. As you know, in the European Union we have committed to be climate neutral by 2050. So, it is very important that our Western Balkan partners join us on this journey. And here in North Macedonia, renewables account for a quarter of power generation. So we are working on projects to boost the renewables capacity. We have the Oslomej and Bitola solar power plants for example, as well as the Bogdanci wind park. We are also investing in clean transport for better connectivity across the region and with Europe. This indeed includes the very important project of Railway Corridor VIII, connecting you with Albania to the West and with Bulgaria to the East. It also includes Corridor X, running from Greece to Budapest and crossing your entire country. These investments will turn North Macedonia into a key transport hub. This will have huge benefits for the citizens of North Macedonia.

My third point is on our fruitful cooperation on border protection. North Macedonia is the fifth country outside the European Union to host a Frontex joint operation team. For the past two years now, more than 100 European border guards have supported local authorities to carry out the checks and surveillance. For us it is so important, because one day, the borders of North Macedonia will become the external borders of the European Union. So we have to prepare now to get ready for that common future.

My last point is another very important aspect of our cooperation, which is the disaster response. This summer, North Macedonia like several European Member States was hit very hard by raging wildfires. We know that natural disasters are occurring more and more frequently, all over our continent. This is the harsh reality of climate change. But we are fighting it with our best assets, and that is European solidarity. We are extending to our Western Balkan partners the very same solidarity measures that we have inside the European Union. We activated for example the Civil Protection Mechanism twice for North Macedonia over the summer. We mobilised six aircraft and three helicopters, provided by the European Member States and Serbia. Because this is basically what it means to be a good neighbour, a partner and a future member of the European Union.

Dear Hristijan, as you know, I am visiting North Macedonia on a regular basis. I remember very well, three years ago, it was a special moment when we were celebrating the 30th anniversary of your country. And I met young people on that occasion. And it was heartwarming, we know that, how much they are aspiring and longing for their common future – the young people in the European Union, in the Western Balkans, in North Macedonia. I think the young people would never forgive us if we did not rise to the challenge. So we are committed to deliver in our generation and to ensure that North Macedonia is part of our European Union.