News
5/12/2016 16:25
On 10th and 11th of May 2016 in Bar, Montenegro was held the second Joint Committee between Macedonia and Montenegro which was attended by a delegation from several institutions in the country led by the State Secretary at the Secretariat for European Affairs, Ana Blazheska. The Joint Committee between the Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro is within the Cooperation Agreement between the Governments of the Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro in the process of European integration. The second Joint Committee between the Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro is another confirmation of the continuous cooperation and support on the European integration path for the Macedonian and Montenegrin institutions in fields of common interest.
Several topics were discussed at the Joint Committee. State Secretary Blazheska noted that the membership of the Western Balkans countries into the EU is not just a desire but rather fulfilment of the given criteria and comprehensive reforms in several areas from which priority should be given to the rule of law and respect of the human rights, reform of the judiciary and fight against corruption and many other reforms in areas covered by the High Level Accession Dialogue.
The importance of the Agenda for connectivity which is in the focus of the Western Balkans countries and it is a good opportunity to strengthen the cooperation between all countries. With the signing of the Joint Declaration on establishment of cooperation with the Western Balkans countries, in August 2015 in Vienna, all Western Balkan countries have committed to implementing soft measures for transport and energy. In order to fulfil these measures and improve the joint cooperation, it is very important to exchange experiences and joint approach towards challenges.
It was stated that one of the main objectives in the energy sector is to encourage competition, respecting the rules of non-discrimination, objectivity and transparency as well as integrating the energy markets of the country in regional and international energy markets.
The Joint Committee between the Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro has a great importance because through support of the Macedonian institutions which is continuously received and the exchange of experiences facilitates the mutual path to European integration.
The Joint Committee between the Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro was held with the assistance and support of the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ).