The Minister for Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, met today with his Macedonian counterpart, Timco Mucunski, the new Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Trade, to review the whole bilateral agenda, three decades after diplomatic relations between the two countries began.
Minister Mucunski's trip to Spain, the first European country he has visited bilaterally since his appointment in June, boosts relations that have involved mutual high-level meetings over the last two years. Minister Albares travelled to Skopje twice last year, on a bilateral visit and to attend the OSCE ministerial meeting.
During the meeting, the ministers reviewed the bilateral agenda, the strengthening of economic ties and the promotion of the teaching of Spanish language and culture in North Macedonia. The war of aggression against Ukraine and the participation of both countries in NATO, the OSCE and the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) forum were some of the topics discussed.
EU accession
North Macedonia's accession to the European Union was also on the table, although this dossier is a specific competence of the Macedonian Minister for European Affairs.
Spain, as Minister Albares recalled, supports Macedonia's commitment to its reform agenda, and this was reflected in the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding for greater collaboration in the EU accession process, signed during the bilateral visit of Minister José Manuel Albares to Skopje in 2023.
Indeed, one of the priorities during the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU last year was to promote the accession process for the Balkans, and we intend to continue offering our full support. In fact, the enlargement of the Union will be one of the key issues in the institutional cycle now beginning with the renewal of EU institutions.
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