Protesters hold a poster reading `Resignation!` during a protest against Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov`s decision to pardon politicians allegedly involved in a wiretapping scandal, at the main square in Skopje, Macedonia, 15 April 2016. EPA/BGNES
A forthcoming meeting of Macedonian political leaders in Vienna will aim to ensure the further implementation of last year’s Przino agreement to resolve the political crisis in the country rather than reaching a new deal, a European Commission official has said.
“The goal of the meeting is to discuss ways to solve the crisis and to make sure that the leaders will continue to implement the Przino Agreement and the reform priorites in order to demonstrate willingness to bring the country back to the Euro-Atlantic path,” the Macedonian news agency quoted Commission spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic as saying in Brussels on Monday.
The meeting of the leaders of Macedonia’s four largest political parties – VMRO-DPMNE, SDSM, DUI and DPA – is scheduled to take place in the Austrian capital on April 22 at the initiative of EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn and Members of the European Parliament Ivo Vajgl, Richard Howitt and Eduard Kukan, according to MIA.
The governing conservative party in Macedonia, VMRO-DPMNE, has said it would accept Hahn’s invitation to the meeting, while the main opposition Social Democrats (SDSM) have said they would decide whether to attend “in the coming days”, according to euractiv.com.
Macedonia’s political crisis has deepened with street protests having entered their second week on Monday after President Gjorge Ivanov pardoned dozens of politicians who were facing criminal proceedings for alleged involvement in a wiretapping scandal. The pardons, issued before an early election planned for June 5, have prompted daily opposition protests since last week.