Ireland is a friend of Macedonia and strongly supports the recommendations of the European Commission for a launch of negotiations for EU membership, said Lucinda Creighton, Ireland's Minister of State for European Affairs after a meeting Thursday with Deputy PM for European Affairs, Teuta Arifi.

In light of the incoming Irish presidency with the EU, Creighton welcomed the High Level Accession Dialogue as a constructive form of engagement between the European Commission and Macedonia, expressing her expectations that the dialogue would be pursued in a constructive manner.

Considering the name dispute, she added that Ireland considered that it shouldn't meddle in bilateral issues between Greece and Macedonia, saying she expected the row to be solved as soon as possible.

"I welcome substantial progress on the domestic reform agenda achieved in the past years, and encourage the authorities to continue implementation of reforms, especially those related to the Ohrid Framework Agreement, freedom and plurality of the media, and electoral reform," the Irish Minister said stressing the importance of inclusivity and reconciliation and good  neighbourly relations.

Deputy PM Arifi stated that today's meeting served as a presentation of the results achieved during the High Level Accession Dialogue and in meeting tasks stemming from the EU roadmap. She said it was concluded that the process played a role in approximating Macedonia to the Union.

"I expect the support to the process to be resumed by all EU members, including Ireland as our friend. It is crucial the process to be open and to be successfully concluded by the end of the year," Arifi noted.

Answering a journalist question, Arifi said that the name row was not part of the High Level Accession Dialogue, which "has been mainly focused on issues in connection to political and economic criteria for EU membership."

"We will continue being open and constructive considering the name issue and contributing even more to building good neighbourly ties with countries in the immediate surrounding and the region," Arifi pledged.