In a press release from Zoran Zaev, issued after his meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, he repeated his claim that Merkel promised him a September date to open EU accession talks with Macedonia.

Chancellor Merkel informed that the Bundestag will make its decision on opening EU accession talks with the “Republic of North Macedonia” in September, in accordance with the established procedures which regard EU expansion. During the meeting, the Chancellor pointed out that “North Macedonia” delivered on what was expected from it, and that Berlin looks very favorably on that, Zaev said through a press release.

The press release from the office of Chancellor Merkel, on the other hand, did not contain a similar pledge. It merely stated that Macedonia resolved the name issue with Greece and renamed itself.

Zaev’s team insists that the German Foreign Ministry, led by officials from his sister party SPD, has endorsed the opening of accession talks and that all that remains in the Bundestag is a merely procedural matter.

During the meeting of the delegations of the two Governments in Berlin, it was confired that Germany, as other EU member states, have acknowledged the results from the reforms noted in the European Commission progress report, and look favorably on the EC recommendation to open EU accession talks. We are strongly assured that this year we will begin our EU accession talks and we will join Serbia and Montenegro, Zaev’s Government said in its press release.