North Macedonia’s FM pushes Western Balkans onto NATO summit agenda

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of North Macedonia, Timcho Mucunski, took part Wednesday and Thursday in the informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers, held in Antalya, Turkey, CE Report quotes MIA.

The meeting took place ahead of the NATO summit, due in The Hague, representing a crucial aspect of the consultative process between the allies to define key elements and priorities in relation to the issues included in the June summit’s agenda, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade said Thursday.

“As part of the discussions, the ministers underlined their positions on the priorities used by the NATO member countries to establish joint positions: strengthening of the deterrence and defence capacities, boosting defence investments, continuing the support for Ukraine and enhancing cooperation with the strategic partners and organizations of the Alliance,” said the press release.

Presenting the positions of our country, Minister Mucunski noted the importance of strengthening solidarity, unity and coordinated actions in addressing joint threats and challenges. He underlined the country’s contribution as a stable and constructive ally that invests in continuing efforts to modernize its own capacities and contributing to regional and collective security.

In this context, the Minister pointed out the interest to addressing the importance of the Western Balkans at The Hague summit, being a region of strategic importance for NATO and the EU, saying the region must remain high on the agenda of the two organizations in order to maintain stability and secure further prosperity as part of European and Euro-Atlantic structures.

The informal meeting is part of the preparations ahead of the summit of NATO leaders, who will define coming key step to reinforce NATO as a response to common security challenges, said the press release.