Skopje, 28 September 2021 (MIA) – Indeed, the future of North Macedonia is in EU and we want you by our side. The European Commission, and myself, are firmly standing by this commitment and you have made outstanding progress and I want to be very clear now it is time the EU to deliver, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told a joint news conference in Skopje alongside Prime Minister Zoran Zaev. Von der Leyen voiced full support for the formal opening of negotiations with the country as soon as possible. “I fully support the formal opening of the accession negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania, and I want them opened as soon as possible. I call on you not to lose faith, you’ve gone such a long way, you’ve made so much progress. Now, let’s go this extra mile, it will really pay off. Let’s work hard so that we reach that goal, stressed the EU Commission President. Von der Leyen welcomed the reforms the country has been implementing, especially those in relation to rule of law and fight against corruption and crime, saying she was confident that it will be rewarded. The EU and North Macedonia, according to her, have joined forces, especially in the fight against COVID-19. Von der Leyen called for mass vaccination of the population, saying it is the only way out of the pandemic. She also commended North Macedonia for being the first country in the region that has joined the EU Covid certificate, stressing it is very important in strengthening tourism. Von der Leyen recalled that the bloc so far has delivered 325,000 vaccines to North Macedonia, adding that the country should expect to be supplied with additional doses of the vaccines. Speaking alongside von der Leyen, PM Zaev said that during the meeting with the EU top official he voiced hopes that the EU leaders will reaffirm their commitment to welcome the region into the bloc. Zaev noted that the blockade of the process is not in the spirit of this commitment and any extension of the blockade has been encouraging retrograde forces to act against accession to the EU. “The EU’s values are also the values of the candidate countries in the Western Balkans, which have been brought into question because of the blockade. We made all necessary steps and we expect Bulgaria to unblock the process and approve the negotiating framework,” he said. The country, the PM said, has always demonstrated readiness and constructive contribution, however, identity issues cannot be up for negotiations. PM Zaev and President von der Leyen signed a memorandum of support regarding the first tranche of EUR 2.6 million for North Macedonia out of EUR 15 million as financial support for education and youth employment. Von der Leyen is due to meet with President Stevo Pendarovski and attend a dinner hosted by the head of state with Speaker Talat Xhaferi and other high officials in attendance. Skopje is von der Leyen’s second stop of her tour of the Western Balkans, which is aimed at reaffirming the EU’s commitment to the region. Earlier today, she was in Tirana and is scheduled to visit all six Western Balkan countries by Sept. 30. There’s no change in the European Commission’s position, it was clarified Tuesday following confusion over a statement by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen allegedly hinting at decoupling of North Macedonia and Albania for the opening of talks with the EU, MIA’s Brussels correspondent reports. When asked at a news conference earlier in Tirana about the decoupling of Albania and North Macedonia, von der Leyen said Albania has met all conditions to hold the first intergovernmental conference (IGC) and that efforts were made to overcome the hurdles. The response left some reporters baffled as to whether the European Commission might have changed the position and as to whether the EU institution might accept to push Albania ahead if Bulgaria keeps blocking North Macedonia. EU spokespeople clarified the statement at today’s regular press briefing. “EU commission president is pushing for the start of intergovernmental conferences for both Albania and North Macedonia before the end of the year,” stated spokeswoman Dana Spinant. The EU Commission President is visiting the region ahead of the EU-Western Balkans Summit, scheduled on October 6 in Slovenia. The EU insists the event won’t be “an enlargement summit”, but it will offer an opportunity for discussions regarding EU’s relations with the region. A day after von der Leyen’s Skopje visit, EU Enlargement Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi will be in Skopje. Last week, he visited Bulgaria, where he had talks with top officials over Bulgaria’s blockade to North Macedonia’s opening of EU negotiations.