President Stevo Pendarovski met Thursday with the Austrian National Council President Wolfgang Sobotka, who is paying a day-long official visit to Macedonia.

At the meeting, the interlocutors exchanged views on the overall bilateral relations between Macedonia and Austria, where it was assessed that the two countries foster excellent bilateral relations in several areas of mutual interest.

President Pendarovski voiced expectation for further intensification of the cooperation between the parliaments of the two countries, as an important aspect in strengthening the interstate cooperation.

At the meeting, President Pendarovski stressed the importance of strong, unreserved and principled Austrian support for the European perspective of Macedonia and the region. In this context, President Pendarovski expressed the expectation that soon after the adoption of the new enlargement methodology, a date will be set for the start of accession negotiations with EU, which is in the interest of the stability of the region and the European Union.