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Romanian government "firm political support" for the European and Euro-Atlantic path of the Republic of Macedonia
Premier Viorica Dancila met on Saturday with her Macedonian counterpart Zoran Zaev, assuring him on this occasion of the Romanian government's "firm political support" for the European and Euro-Atlantic path of the Republic of Macedonia, the government said in a release.
The two officials met in the context of their participation in the seventh Summit of the China - Central and Eastern European Countries cooperation format ('16+1') organized in Sofia.
"During the meeting, the two Prime Ministers tackled subjects of common interest, such as the stage of bilateral cooperation, the European and Euro-Atlantic integration of the Republic of Macedonia, as well as recent developments at regional level," the release states.
Viorica Dancila reaffirmed the government's "firm political support" for the European and Euro-Atlantic path of the Republic of Macedonia, as well as the willingness to provide technical assistance for Macedonia's EU and NATO accession bid. In this context, the Romanian Premier emphasized the importance the future Romanian Presidency of the Council of the EU (in the first half of 2019) will attach to the continuation of the EU enlargement policy and the development of political relations with the Western Balkan states.
"Premier Dancila offered congratulations on the recent conclusion of the bilateral agreement with Greece on Macedonia's constitutional name and voiced her opinion that this historic step will open new opportunities for Macedonia. Dancila also appreciated the dynamism wherewith the Macedonian government headed by Prime Minister Zaev has resumed the pro-European reform process and expressed her conviction that the concrete results will soon show, citing as an example the recent decision of the European Council that also had Romania's support, and which is a further encouragement for the continuation of the reforms," the release said.
At the same time, the two Prime Ministers agreed to continue efforts to increase the frequency of high-level and working-level political dialogue between Romania and the Republic of Macedonia. The opening of both sides was also emphasized to deepening sectoral cooperation and strengthening the bilateral economic relationship, which should capitalize on the existing significant potential, the release concludes.