Wednesday, 11 September, 2019
MEETING BETWEEN PRESIDENT XHAFERI AND THE NEWLY APPOINTED AMBASSADOR OF THE KINGDOM OF THE NETHERLANDS TO THE REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA, H.E. DIRK JAN COP
At today's first meeting between the President of the Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia and the newly appointed Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the Republic of North Macedonia, H.E. Dirk Jan Kop, President Xhaferi wished the guest a successful mandate and expressed his gratitude and satisfaction with the co-operation with the previous ambassador.
The interlocutors exchanged information on the current co-operation between the two countries, especially in the area of Euro-integration, as well as the position of the Kingdom of the Netherlands regarding our commitment and efforts to get a date for negotiations with the EU in October next month.
President Xhaferi emphasized that we had completed all that was crucial and requested by the EU institutions, that is, “we closed major issues and made a serious contribution to regional stability and co-operation, and in this respect we expect this to be recognized and verified by the European Council in October”. He reaffirmed that the Assembly would continue to function as an open and democratic institution in the forthcoming period, the co-operation with the opposition would continue, and that he, as President of the Legislature, would remain neutral in future, in terms of political relations between the government and the opposition, for which there is strong support.
The Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands H.E. Dirk Jan Kop thanked for the opportunity to meet with President Xhaferi and for the warm and friendly reception in our country, expressing hope that relations between the two countries will deepen and strengthen at all levels in the upcoming period. He stressed that, as Ambassador, during his term, he will seek to help intensify parliamentary co-operation, as well as economic co-operation with the Republic of North Macedonia. Regarding the support of the Netherlands for our country to get a date for start of negotiations, the ambassador underlined that “The Netherlands always appreciates individual efforts of the candidate countries, rather than the geo-strategic issues and policies, and in this respect our position is very favourable to you and I am optimistic about that."
At the end of the meeting, the two interlocutors agreed that the co-operation and communication between the Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands will continue in the following period with intensive dynamics.