Distinguished Secretary of State of the United States of America, Mr. Michael Pompeo,

Distinguished media representatives,

We are honoured with the fact that today North Macedonia is hosting the US Secretary of State, Mr. Michael Pompeo.

This visit is a strong signal for the continuous support that the USA are providing to our country, for our Euro-Atlantic integrations and it is a great opportunity for us to reaffirm that we continue to work together on further enhancement of our relations and cooperation.

The United States of America have been a proven friend and supporter of North Macedonia. Alongside the political support, as of the independence until today, we have also received great support through various projects and programs of the USAID for development of democracy, institutions and improvement of the life of our citizens. A great deal of volunteers from the Peace Corps has been giving immense contribution to the development of local communities throughout the country. The American people are friend to the Macedonian people and to all people who live in our country.

North Macedonia is a committed strategic partner to the USA. We have strong political and historic reasons to maintain and reinforce our friendship. Part of these reasons are our shared efforts and values for security, freedom and democratic prosperity in the region, as well as the common activities in the fight against terrorism and other threats for peace throughout the world. I pointed out to Mr. Pompeo that we are ready to intensify our participation in all global initiatives which confront disinformation and threats on democracy.
 

By becoming a full-fledged NATO member state, our contribution in that direction will receive a great stimuli and a new dimension. The NATO membership is our sovereign decision and there is a strong support that goes beyond political parties and a serious inter-ethnic consensus. The NATO membership is achievement of a historic goal. It is a great benefit, not only for our country, but also for the reinforcement of the security, freedom and democratic prosperity of the whole region.

So far, 22 countries have ratified the NATO Accession Protocol for North Macedonia and we are optimistically awaiting the full-fledged NATO membership very soon. I avail myself of this opportunity to extend my appreciation to the United States of America for their unambiguous, bi-partisan support for our NATO membership. We are waiting the good news in near future – that the Protocol is ratified in the USA.

In the meantime, we are fully ready to accept the obligations coming with the NATO membership. We have strong political will to make the army budget at least 2% of the GDP and no later than 2024. These assets will be used for modernization of our army, as well as for strengthening of our capacities and opportunities to give our contribution to NATO.

During our meeting I had the opportunity to inform Mr. Pompeo of our accomplishments in freeing this captured state. We had set new foundations and we reinforced the democratic values, institutions and legal state. The media freedom is significantly improved and we are developing an inclusive decision making process. We are building one society for all – a mosaic of diversity where our focus is placed on the economy that is providing chance for better life of all citizens.

North Macedonia is a unique country in the region because there are no open bilateral issues with any of our neighbours. The Agreements with Bulgaria and Greece were historic decisions and they were the key to accomplishing our strategic goals – NATO and EU membership.

We are hoping that in ten days we will hear the long-expected news from Brussels – opening of EU membership negotiations.

I believe that the good news from Brussels will have a positive impact over the whole region. This will send a message that the Western Balkan is an integral part of Europe. It will award the progress of the reforms and the resolution of the long-standing disputes. This would encourage all other countries to show political courage for overcoming the other disputes. The good news for start of negotiations with EU and for NATO membership also sends a strong message to the youth of our country: North Macedonia is changing towards better – one can live well here, and the development will be faster if the young people are engaged here, in their own country.

In the very end, I would like to underline that a stable Balkan region is in the interest of the EU in terms of geo-politics, security and economy. And on such note, this visit and the encouragement coming from the United States of America is of utmost importance to us.

Thank you.