Today the President of the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia, Zoran Zaev, held a press conference where he extended an invitation for a leadership meeting to take place on 19th at 14:00 hours in the Parliamentary Club.

Attached to this press release you will find the integral address of Prime Minister Zaev: 

Time is expendable resource and there is not much left until October when we expect the European Union to announce that we can start negotiating on the chapters for our country’s accession to the Union.

We expect this postponed event as recognition of all our shared accomplishments that have placed us close to the door of the European Union. 

Although the European Commission Progress Report is excellent, we should not stop working and we must do everything in our power to provide even more arguments for the positive decision in October. We owe this to the citizens; this is our shared commitment before the citizens. 

As I have been doing so far, when big decisions were made, this time I again appeal to take this step together. 

There is a short period before us, when all leaders should confirm what they declare to be their own and party strategic priority, for the benefit of the shared interests of all citizens of our country. 

I extend an invitation for a leadership meeting to the President of VMRO-DPMNE, Hristijan Mickovski, to the President of DUI, Ali Ahmeti, and to the President of Alijansa za Albancite, Zijadin Sela.

I expect that on this meeting we will all focus on creating conditions for the last step towards the start of negotiations. Furthermore, I expect that this meeting will result in proposals for an action plan and working groups which would consist of members of all parliamentary groups and that we will consult with the smaller parliamentary groups.

I would like to propose the following topics for the leadership meetings which are of high priority: 

• Uniting around a principled agreement for a new Election Code. To start on time, without deadlines and pressures and to set a goal: to provide legislation acceptable to all, implementing the ODIHR recommendations until the next elections while at the same time, discussing a new election model; 
• To complete the Law on Public Prosecution with the highest degree of consensus. The talks have lasted for too long; it is time to make an agreement for the benefit of the legal state and the rule of law. In that line, it is of key importance to secure the public prosecution system of the state, the future of the Special Public Prosecution Office and to advance the legal state and rule of law; 
• To achieve consensus and to undertake the obligation that we will conduct a successful census; this census must be strictly professional statistical operation conducted by the State Statistical Office as an authorized implementer of the statistical research. The successful census will open all perspectives for realistic projection of economic, but also, overall policies in the country. 

I believe that the sincere and honest commitment on these topics will complete the reforms regarding the European integrations which in the autumn this year will help us to present ourselves as a country that has closed all issues that prevented us from receiving the promised date for start of negotiations. Moreover, we must not give anyone the argument to vote against or to remain abstained. On the contrary, we must provide arguments that even though we have an excellent progress report, we will continue our work; we must provide additional arguments for the most positive decision that is expected by all citizens.  

Last but not least, on the contrary, this is of utmost importance: we will show that in important moments we put our political differences aside in order to show that we are united when it comes to the strategic interests of our people and our country.