Monday, 8 July 2013
MEETING OF THE PRESIDENT VELJANOSKI WITH THE DELEGATION OF THE COMMITTEE FOR EUROPEAN ISSUES OF THE PARLIAMENT OF THE NETHERLANDS
The President of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia, Mr. Trajko Veljanoski, expressed his pleasure from the visit of the Delegation of the Committee for European Issues of the Parliament of the Netherlands, expressing appreciation for the support that the Republic of Macedonia continuously receives from a friend such as the Netherlands in relation to its Euro-Atlantic integration.
The President Veljanoski informed the Delegation on the current political developments in the Republic of Macedonia, the enormous commitment of the Republic of Macedonia to EU and NATO membership, the great interest of citizens for integration of the state, as well as many reforms that the Republic of Macedonia has made and implemented in the past few years.
He underlined that despite the years long candidate status and the fact that a date for opening accession negotiations for EU membership has not been received, along with the fact that NATO membership has been blocked, the Republic of Macedonia, without discouragement, will continue to conduct the necessary reforms and obligations, above all in the interest of its citizens, as well as to be competitive in the areas of economy and politics.
The Members of the Delegation of the Parliament of the Netherlands pointed out that they rarely travel abroad, but that the interest for visiting the Republic of Macedonia was huge. They also expressed their conviction that they did not make a mistake in their assessment of which nation to choose for their visit.
The President Veljanoski and the MPs from the Parliament of Netherlands exchanged views in relation to the importance of the rule of law, freedom of expression, and issues related to media.
The President Veljanoski informed his guests on the developments from the end of the last year, the local elections and the results, as well as the normalized political situation and the expected recommendations and references from the established Committee, that will contribute in prevention from similar events.