Venko Filipče: North Macedonia must not allow Serbian and Russian influence to push it away from the European path

North Macedonia must not allow Serbian and Russian influence to push it away from the European path, said last night the leader of the opposition Social Democratic Alliance of Macedonia, Venko Filipče.

At the conference "Seven Decades Later: From Schuman's Vision to Europe's New Geopolitical Challenges", Filipče emphasized that enlargement is today a clear geostrategic goal for the European Union itself.

According to him, skepticism towards enlargement has been overcome and there is now a clear political will for the integration of the Balkans into the EU, which is an opportunity that North Macedonia should seize.

He warned that talks about any alternatives to the European path are dangerous and harmful for North Macedonia, noting that the region is already progressing towards EU membership.

"I'm sorry to hear about alternatives today, it's unacceptable in our country. We shouldn't be thinking about that. What are we afraid of? What kind of member state will we be? Are Montenegrins afraid? No, they have now fulfilled their obligations and are moving forward," said the leader of Macedonia's largest opposition party.

He added that one cannot help but mention the Hungarian and Serbian influence on the government in Skopje and assessed that this may be part of the reason why North Macedonia is not continuing on its European path.

"We can't help but mention the business connections that lead to the highest perimeter of power, because that's a very dangerous thing that's happening now. And maybe part of the reason why we're not continuing the European path," Filipče said.

He pointed out that citizens no longer have confidence in the functionality of the system in North Macedonia, and that without European standards and European justice, it will be difficult to restore the trust of citizens, especially young people.

"People no longer have faith. Can faith in the judiciary be restored? It cannot be done without European justice. People no longer have faith. Will they restore faith in young people to stay in the country? Eighty percent of my students are learning German and want to leave," said Venko Filipče.