Pendarovski: Albanians maintain enthusiasm for Northern Macedonia's EU membership

Former Northern Macedonia President Stevo Pendarovski has warned that the country could end up in a situation similar to the long-standing impasse it experienced after vetoing the NATO Summit in Bucharest, facing another decade lost in anticipation of European integration.

In an interview for Deutsche Welle, Pendarovski said the current inaction and refusal to meet the conditions the European Union requires will lead to a situation of stagnation similar to the decade-long impasse due to the dispute with Greece. The company will wake up and say: Wait, will we wait 1015 years until you sign what Europe wants?

But he noted that there is no longer any social enthusiasm for European integration.

“According to the latest Eurobarometer survey, trust in the EU has dropped to 54%. And that figure is held up only thanks to Albanians. If you ask only ethnic Macedonians, support is only around 30% -- a level we find only in Serbia --” -- Pendarovski stressed.

According to him, after decades of disappointment and economic hardship, citizens are <x0-entanned” in the face of the political class's empty rhetoric. “I'm not saying this will bring any security crisis, but it will be a signal that both Macedonians and Albanians will start leaving Macedonia forever in even bigger numbers,” he warned./Periscopi/