Skopje, 22 October 2021 (MIA) – Decoupling of North Macedonia and Albania doesn’t depend on us, it is the EU’s decision. Formally, the process takes into consideration individual merits. However, it has always been thought that the countries both should go on, Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani said Friday. He stated he has never advocated for decoupling, warning that process could take a different turn. “There was a different situation in 2019, when it had been mulled whether North Macedonia should continue and Albania to be left behind because it hadn’t met the conditions. There were some who had advocated for North Macedonia to be decoupled. I have always said that these processes could be cyclic, to take a different turn,” FM Osmani said when asked at a joint press conference with OSCE Secretary General Helga Schmid. It is crucial for the region’s EU integration processes, he said, if Albania and North Macedonia stick together and start negotiating with the EU by the end of the year. “The opening [of negotiations] is important because the European Commission has reaffirmed the two countries met the conditions. If one of the countries is not allowed to proceed due to issues unrelated to the EU, it will send a bad message. It will add another bloc to the credibility of EU integration in the country and in the region,” stressed Minister Osmani.