Skopje, 14 September 2022 (MIA) - Leoš Javůrek, who leads the Working Party on Enlargement and Countries Negotiating Accession to the EU (COELA), called Wednesday the opening of North Macedonia's accession negotiations with the EU the start of a new era. This is the first working visit of COELA to the country, which comes as a result of the opening of EU accession negotiations with North Macedonia in July 2022. "The first visit is a symbolic act and also a practical opportunity for us to talk to you and learn about your preparations and most importantly to tell you we will be with you every step of the way," Javůrek said at a joint session the National EU Integration Council and the Parliament's Committee on European Affairs. When it comes to enlargement, according to him, the Council is in charge of making decisions and COELA members are in charge of preparing these decisions, which is why the members should be fully informed and be engaged with the partners in order to get the full picture. It is part of our mission, Javůrek said noting the members are glad to be in Skopje to mark the opening of a new path after years of waiting. He said that many issues should be discussed during the negotiations and many chapters should be opened, negotiated before being closed, including the environment and air pollution in Skopje. While monitoring, the group will decide whether the steps taken by the country are enough, thus forming the position of the Council. The EU member states, Javůrek stressed, are pleased that you are moving ahead on the way to accession and they are happy to offer your help and support in order for you to meet the goal. The Head of the EU Delegation to North Macedonia, Ambassador David Geer said a certain dynamic has been established since the opening of the negotiations. The calendar of events has been already defined, he said, and the European Commission tomorrow will launch the explanatory screening, due to be closed by November. The bilateral screening, set in November, will cover the whole array of European policies and legislation, organized on the basis of the new methodology in six clusters and 33 chapters from the acquis. This process requires mobilization of the state institutions and the whole society and Parliament will play a key role in the process, especially the cooperation between the European Affairs Committee and the National EU Integration Council. This means, Geer said, that all members of Parliament from all political parties should work together on the reform agenda in the interest of the citizens, because lack of cooperation hinders reforms and the country's progress on its European path, which will be complex and difficult, but you won't be alone, we will be with you every step of the way providing essential, technical, political and financial support, but the difficult decisions will be up to you. Opposition MP Aleksandar Nikoloski, chair of the National EU Integration Council, and ruling MP Arbr Ademi, chair of the Committee on European Affairs, vowed they are prepared for cooperation because EU membership is the country's strategic goal. "This is a process we've been all waiting for a long time and the ruling majority and the opposition have always had a consensus on the matter because the key ruling and opposition political parties have always supported EU membership," said Nikoloski telling COELA members that the National EU Integration Council is a unique inclusive body tasked with giving opinions, guidelines nd recommendations for the negotiations process with a consensus. The negotiations process, said Ademi, requires alignment by all political parties, what remains is an agreement to be achieved on in what format Parliament will join the process. "To us, it is important the process of constitutional changes to start soon. It is our task to open the Constitution to include three ethnic communities, Bulgarians, Croatians and Montenegrins, before opening the first cluster," he stated. COELA during its visit held meetings with Prime Minister Dimitar Kovachevski, Deputy Prime Minister and Chief Negotiator Bojan Marichikj, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bujar Osmani and representatives of ministries and other institutions involved in the so called ‘Cluster 1’ of EU accession negotiations (the ‘Fundamentals’). COELA also met with Parliament Speaker Talat Xhaferi and with representatives of civil society organisations. COELA is a body of the Council of the EU, composed of diplomats of all EU Member States, which is in charge of the enlargement process and relations with candidate countries that are negotiating their accession to the EU.