The Chair of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the EU Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze met with the Minister for European Affairs of North Macedonia, Orhan Murtezani.

Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze congratulated Orhan Murtezani on his appointment as Chief Negotiator with the European Union in the process of European integration of North Macedonia. She expressed hope that Ukraine and North Macedonia would strengthen their interaction on the path of European integration. Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze noted the importance of the delegation's visit to Ukraine. “You’re here not just for one day. This is very important because you will have the opportunity to see many things in person. And I hope that the arguments that you bring with you from Ukraine will be much stronger in communication with your society, because you’ll know what resonates with it,” said the Chair of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the EU.

Orhan Murtezani noted that he wanted to visit Ukraine personally because he represents the generation that witnessed the war in the Balkans and understands well what it means for a state to strive to move its way when someone from the outside is preventing it. Regarding European integration, Mr. Murtezani noted that bilateral issues with some EU members still hinder the strategic interests of the European Union. This may become an obstacle to opening membership negotiations. Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze agreed that the bilateralisation of European integration is detrimental to the overall development, security and welfare of the European Union. The Chair of the Committee noted that, unfortunately, only the full-scale aggression of Russia against Ukraine forced the European Union to act geopolitically, to renew the enlargement process, ]providing a perspective not only for Ukraine, but also for Moldova and Georgia, as well as giving a new impetus to relations with the countries of the Western Balkans. “The main thing now is not to lose this dynamic both within each candidate country and within the European Union. We must all effectively use this window of opportunity for the common good and common future,” emphasised the Chair of the Committee.

Orhan Murtezani reported that his country had successfully completed the screening of national legislation. He noted that the Parliament in North Macedonia is actively involved in European integration. Firstly, the country has a National Council for European Integration, which is always headed by the leader of the opposition. There is also a Commission on European Affairs, which works on harmonising the country’s legislation with EU law. Its function is legislative and practically apolitical.

Regarding the challenges on the path to European integration, Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze noted that a significant challenge in Ukraine is its weak institutional capacity. “There is a desire on the part of our partners to help us. They offer training, technical assistance, but when the projects of this technical assistance are completed, the institutional problem remains,” said the Chair of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the EU. She reported that during Poland’s presidency of the Council of the EU, Ukraine hopes to open negotiations on the Fundamentals cluster, as well as on the sixth cluster, which includes foreign policy and security. Screenings are also currently underway on the Internal Market cluster. “The government hopes to open negotiations on this cluster during the Polish presidency, but I don’t think we have enough time. Most likely, we will be able to open negotiations on this cluster during the Danish presidency of the EU,” said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze. She noted that this year the EU is chaired by states that support EU enlargement, so there is hope that countries moving towards membership will be able to achieve significant progress on this path. The Ukrainian Government also plans to complete all legislative screenings by the end of this year. Ukraine is moving quite intensively along its European integration track, said the Chair of the Committee on Ukraine's Integration into the EU.