The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, met today with Ambassador Samuel Zbogar, Head of the EU Delegation to the Republic of Macedonia.

At the meeting, Ambassador Zbogar handed President Ivanov with the 2016 Progress Report on Macedonia and informed him on the key assessments contained in the Report drafted by the European Commission.

The Macedonian President at the meeting pointed out the necessity to change the status quo in the context of opening of accession negotiations with the European Union.

"The permanent political crisis in the Republic of Macedonia is largely due to the too long status quo in the integration. I believe that the early parliamentary elections will be a possibility to exit the crisis, but only if the European integration is unblocked after the election. Any further delay in this process will seriously affect the reform pace, the level of political culture in the country and the culture of dialogue and compromise. I am convinced the Union will correct the current wrong approach towards Macedonia", President Ivanov said at the meeting.
The Macedonian President and Ambassador Zbogar exchanged views on the upcoming elections in the Republic of Macedonia and agreed that it is important the electoral process to be conducted in fair, democratic and constructive atmosphere.