Future Republic of North Macedonia accepted to join NATO
Greece has long time objected to the name of "Macedonia" for its north neighbor country, but accepted the new title in 2018.
Articol de Sergiu Şteţ, 07 Februarie 2019, 23:06
NATO Member States signed, on Wednesday, in Brussels, Accession Protocol for acceptance of the future Republic of North Macedonia as the 30th member of the military Alliance. Signing ceremony took place in the presence of Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov.
What seemed to be an impossible task was finally achieved, Minister Dimitrov said. Greece has long time objected to the name of "Macedonia" for its north neighbor country, but accepted the new title in 2018.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg acknowledged the work that the two countries' leaders have submitted for this agreement. "This is a historic occasion. Greek and Macedonian Prime Ministers, Alexis Tsipras and Zoran Zaev, demonstrated a grand strategic vision and courage when they signed the agreement last year, and by committing themselves to resolving this long disagreement, Athens and Skopje make a vital contribution to security and regional stability", NATO Secretary General said.
Skopje already makes important contributions to NATO’s training mission in Afghanistan and the Alliance’s KFOR peace keeping mission in Kosovo. Following the signing of the Accession Protocol, Skopje can now take part in NATO activities as an invitee. The accession process now moves to the capitals of the 29 Allies where the Protocol will be ratified according to national procedures. The country will become a member of NATO as soon as all Allies have ratified the Accession Protocol, NATO Press Office states.
Source:RRA.NATO.Translated by Miruna Matei
