The United States is working to ensure that its new government North Macedonia respect her Prespa Agreement, stressed US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James O’Brien.
During a hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the US diplomat argued that contacts with US lawmakers are useful in keeping North Macedonia committed to the deal.
“North Macedonia has been suffering because of disputes with its neighbors, which constantly change the (accession) requirements. Part of our work is to diplomatically prepare a way for (North Macedonia) to maintain the agreement it has with Greece. And I think that the meeting that we had and others helped to keep things at this point, so that Greece becomes a friend and not an obstacle to the accession process of North Macedonia. The same for Albania,” he stressed, according to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency.
Mitsotakis’ message
Prime Minister Christian Mickoski and President Gordana Siljanovska said they would officially use the constitutional name, but would use the name “Macedonia” in statements as an act arising from the right to self-determination and self-determination.
For his part, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis clarified at the NATO Summit in Washington that one of the most important aspects of the Prespa Agreement is the erga omnes use of the constitutional name. This obliges governments to use North Macedonia both abroad and within the country.
The US ambassador to Skopje, Angela Agler, also stated that there is no room for renegotiating the agreements with Greece and Bulgaria. As she characteristically noted, “These agreements have been made. No renegotiation of Prespa, no renegotiation of progress towards the EU. That is very clear.”