The Netherlands to separate Albania from N. Macedonia regarding EU integration
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- “The Netherlands critically tracks progress in both countries and is of the opinion that the Council should evaluate each country on its own merits,” the statement said.
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TIRANA, Oct. 9 - The Netherlands remains critical of Albania's European Union progress and sticks to its proposal that "the European Council should evaluate Albania and Northern Macedonia on their own merits.”
The Netherlands' final position on the October 18 vote by the European Council was discussed at the Parliamentary Committee on European Affairs in the Netherlands on Tuesday.
North Macedonian media reported that the discussion resulted in the decision that "the Netherlands will give the green light to Macedonia and red to Albania.”
The Dutch Foreign Ministry clarified its position regarding the opening of negotiations.
In a press release, it stressed that candidate countries must meet strict conditions before taking another step in integration.
“The Netherlands critically tracks progress in both countries and is of the opinion that the Council should evaluate each country on its own merits,” the statement said.
According to the Netherlands, "more work needs to be done in the fight against corruption and organized crime" in Albania.
As for Northern Macedonia, the Dutch Foreign Ministry said it had made "encouraging progress".
Here they praised the Prespa Agreement on the country's name, which the Netherlands calls "an example for the region".
Northern Macedonia was praised by the Special Prosecution for its continued fight against corruption, but stressed that "the law guaranteeing the independence of the prosecution for future high-level corruption cases should be adopted.”
Meanwhile, the female MPs of the Albanian Assembly addressed the Netherlands in an open letter on Tuesday, asking it to join the rest of European Union member states in giving Albania the green light to open accession negotiations.
“By writing this letter, we hope that you will understand how critical this moment is for our nation, how much energy and motivation it would add to all efforts if we would get from you, as we have gotten from the German parliament, a recognition for what we have achieved so far and the conditions for going forward towards a common European future,” they concluded.
