The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, today attended the meeting with the Ambassadors of the EU member-states and the Ambassadors of the candidate-countries for EU membership, a meeting which is traditionally organized by the current EU presidency, in this case, by the Republic of Hungary. During the meeting, opinions and information were exchanged on the latest developments in Macedonia and in the EU, as well as on the open issues and the challenges the candidate-countries are facing.

President Ivanov, who reflected on his recent visit to Hungary, echoed the promises of the Hungarian Presidency, to set the issue of opening negotiations with the Republic of Macedonia for full-fledged membership within the EU on the agenda of the next European Council meeting.

The Hungarian Ambassador to the Republic of Macedonia, Ferenz Kekesi, the host of today’s official lunch, reiterated Republic of Hungary’s support, as the current chair of the EU, the issue of setting a date for opening Macedonia’s negotiations with the EU to be discussed at the European Council.

“The expectations from the Hungarian Presidency are great, and we will do our best. For positive results we need the member-states, Brussels and, of course, Macedonia. I do hope that we will succeed in this endeavor. Our Prime Minister is really committed to this and will do his utmost”, Ambassador Kekesi said.

The lunch organized by the Hungarian Embassy in the Republic of Macedonia for the EU member-state Ambassadors to Skopje and for the Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov, is an event organized within the Hungarian Cultural Days. Hungarian specialties were offered on the menu, prepared by Hungarian Chefs.
 

Претседателот на Република Македонија и Врховен командант на вооружените сили д-р Ѓорге Иванов придружуван од Началникот на Генералштабот на АРМ, Генерал-потполковник Мирослав Стојановски и Заменик - министерот за одбрана Емил Димитриев, оствари средба со старешините и питомците на Воената академија „Михаило Апостолски“. По обиколката на просториите во кои се одвива наставата и одржаното предавање, Претседателот Иванов оцени дека Воената академија прераснува во регионален центар за едукација, задоволувајќи ги сите стандарди на една високообразовна установа, но и сите НАТО стандарди.

Во контекст на актуелното прашање за избор на нов Началник на Генералштабот на АРМ, Претседателот нагласи дека во тек се сериозни консултации околу изборот, постапката ќе биде транспарентна, а на функцијата ќе биде именуван кандидатот што ќе ги иполнува критериумите на НАТО.

„Сите разговори со генералите беа во функција да се создаде профилот на идниот Началник. Значи, не разговаравме за личности, туку за критериуми кои Началникот на ГШ на АРМ треба да ги исполнува, вклучително и критериумите на НАТО, кои ние како земја кандидат за членство во НАТО имаме обврска да ги исполнуваме. Сè ќе биде транспарентно, ќе продолжат консултациите и со Министерот за одбрана и со сегашниот началник и ќе настојуваме тој процес да се одвива како што доликува,“ рече претседателот Иванов.

Претседателот Ѓорге Иванов исто така изјави дека очекува да се исполнат ветувањата на унгарското претседателство, и одредувањето датум за почеток на преговорите за членство на Република Македонија да се најдат на агендата на ЕУ.

„Јас секогаш сум реалист. Очекувам ветувањата да бидат исполнети. Тоа што го вети унгарскиот премиер Орбан, го кажа и на конференцијата во Брисел. Тие настојуваат Македонија да ги почне преговорите бидејќи ги исполнува сите услови,“ посочи шефот на државата одговорајќи на новинарско прашање дали е можно Македонија да добие датум за преговори со ЕУ во јуни за време на унгарското претседателство и по најавата за расправа во германскиот Бундестаг за македонската евроинтеграција.

На прашање дали Македонија се врти кон исток следствено посетата на шефот на руската дипломатија Сергеј Лавров и најавата за кинески инвестиции во Вардарска долина, д-р Иванов посочи дека таквите поделби денес веќе не се основани, а државата мора да ги следи современите текови.

„Ние сме се определиле за нашите стратешки цели - ЕУ и НАТО, но не можеме да ги запоставуваме односите кои ги градиме со другите земји. Мора да градиме политика на отвореност кон сите и да го бараме нашиот интерес. Нашите производители имаат интерес од пазари, нашите граѓани имаат потреба да комуницираат со светот,“ изјави Претседателот Иванов по денешната посета на Воената академија „Михаило Апостолски“, каде како врховен командант на вооружените сили присуствуваше и на заеднички ручек со питомците на академијата. Следејќи ги традициите, на менито секако беше војничкиот грав.
 

President of Republic of Macedonia Dr. Gjorge Iavnov received a letter from the former President of France and President of the CHIRAC Foundation. The integral part of the letter is included below:

Mister President,

Please alow me to express my warm gratitude to you for signing the Apeal of Cotonou, which the President of the Republic of Benin and myself have initiated, in the presence of seven other Chief’s of states, organizations and governments, on 12 October 2009.

Thanks to your support, among others, I hope we will succeed in overcoming the challenge and unite against the evil imposed with the trade of fake medicines and their commercialization.

I will allow myself to regularily inform you on the activities undertaken in frames of this Apeal, and especially on the future signing of the MEDICRIME, prepared by the Council of Europe and approved by the Committee of Ministers on 8 December 2010.

With my reaffirmed gratitude, please accept, Mr. President, assurances of my highest consideration. 

Cordially Yours,
Jacques Chirac
 

Claims on alleged Macedonia-Greece name agreement to be made public after elections are pure, rather harmful speculations, President Gjorge Ivanov told reporters on Tuesday. He called the political parties and the public to refrain from spreading such information.

"Such speculations are harmful for our position in the ongoing UN-led negotiating process on settling the (name) dispute. The process needs to be finalized where it started, and the political parties and the public should avoid spreading speculations which could harm our position," Ivanov said during his visit to the Jegunovce municipality.

Asked ih he would expect wider consensus after the erlection, the President reaffirmed the existence of an informal national consensus in the country on the name row with Greece.

"No matter which party is in power, everybody should know what our interest is, namely that the negotiations must not tackle the identity issues but only the difference over the name as stipulated by the UN Resolution," Ivanov said. He shared his beliefs that follwing the elections the dynamics of the process will accelerate and that the mediator Nimetz will continue the meetings with the Macedonian and the Greek representative.

Macedonian President expects to hear Russian position on the name row at tomorrow’s meeting with the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov.

“Russia is a member of the Security Council, has acknowledged our constitutional name, using it in all bilateral relations. That has never been an issue for them,” said Dr. Ivanov, highlighting that the announced visit of Minister Lavrov correlates to the observance of 150th anniversary since the opening of the first Russian Consulate in Macedonia.

Regarding well known retorics of political parties in view of elections and the heated air, Ivanov called on all political parties to practice political decency during the upcoming election process, highlighting that all different sides would have to again meet and discuss after the elections are completed.

“After 20 years of democracy is is about time we all learn the political game, use words and phrases that are now offensive, and avoid contaminating the public sphere with retorics aimed only at attracting people’s confidence,” said President Ivanov.
 

President Dr. Gjorge Ivanov in frames of today’s working visit to the Municipality of Jegunovce near Tetovo, met with the Mayor Toni Kocevski and the Municipality Councilors. They raised topics related to situation in the municipality, opportunities for investments and development, as well as the prospects for usage of the regions’ capacities. 

Local authorities informed President Ivanov about the challanges Jagunovce faces, the importance and the condition of the two regional highways crossing therough the municipality, as well as the need for regulation of Vardar riverbed which will prevent future floods.

In frames of this visit, President Ivanov also met Mr. Vladimir Shedrovicki, General Director of one of the biggest factories in the country “Jugohrom Feroaloys”, which since 2010 is owned by the Russian-Ukranian company “Camelot Group”, employing at the moment 800 people. He acknowledged new owners’ efforts for additional investments and expansion of the production capacities which will allow new employments, as well as the initiative for stipending young people’s advanced education in the areas of metallurgy and technology. All of this efforts, as well as the commitment to environment protection, open new perspectives for the citizens of this part of the country. President Ivanov expressed his hopes that “Jugohrom” will once again reach the level of the past as the biggest industrial capacity in the area of metallurgy in Macedonia.

President Ivanov visited the Library “Svetlina – Drita” in Preljubiste, as well as the bilingual integrated school for primary and secondary education in the same village, which according to him, represents a good example of how young generations can be thought in the language of the neighbour, get to know each other better, thus contributing to the higher societal integration.

The bilingual integrated education project is implemented with an assistance of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the NGO “Nansen Dialogues Center”. The President met Professor Stayner Brin, Director of the Nansen Balkan Network and Sasho Stojkovski, the Executive Director of the Nansen Dialogue Center, Skopje. He also had the opportunity to attend a special performance that the pupils have prepared for this occasion.
 

The support for the start of the negotiations over Macedonia's full-fledged EU membership, which Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban declared in Brussels on Thursday, fulfills the promises given by Hungarian authorities in the course of the President’s visit to Budapest earlier in the week. According to President Ivanov this action implies moving the status quo situation over the enlargement process and the relations with Macedonia.

"Altering of the status quo in the name issue requires leadership and vision. We see this leadership through Orban's statements, since they fulfill everything they promised during our discussions. Our Hungarian friends will repeat what PM Orban said at every future Council meeting", President Ivanov told journalists after the end of the 14th Eurasian Economic Forum in Istanbul.

Hungarian PM Orban asked at yesterday's Western Balkans Conference that Macedonia begins EU accession negotiations despite the unresolved name row.

"Pertaining to Macedonia, this is one of the most difficult problems, if I may say a pure absurd. Even as chairman of the EU Council I have to think how to address the country, think whether I can say Macedonia or use FYROM, which is absurd. If one country meets the conditions and tasks set, it should be given the chance to start negotiations and afterward reach an agreement with the member-state. It is unfortunate that we do not open the negotiations due to a political conflict. We need to start negotiations with Macedonia", said Orban.

Prior to his departure from Istanbul, President Ivanov met with Ecumenical Patriarch Batholomew. He qualified the meeting as useful and constructive. The topics discussed, as President Ivanov indicated, were related to current issues, whereas the Ecumenical Patriarch used the opportunity to send greetings for the forthcoming Easter holidays to all Macedonian Orthodox followers.

President Ivanov assessed the Eurasian Economic Forum participation as a success, with results to be seen in the coming period.

"Just like last year, we had the opportunity to meet top ranking businessmen from the region. Such fora represent an opportunity to discuss Macedonia’s priorities and meet people who are interested in investing, since Macedonia's priority above all is economic development. All the meeting of this kind support Macedonia’s economic development – attracting new investors, keeping updated with new developments, participating in newly opened issues, as this forum brings together countries from Europe and Asia, opening topics of interest for our region", underlined President Ivanov.

Regarding his appointment as a Doctor Honoris Causa at the Istanbul University, the chief of state underlined it is not only a personal acknowledgment, but also recognition to Macedonia.

“This gesture confirms all our engagements in building better and stronger relations between our two countries,” said President Ivanov after completion of the visit to Turkey.