Every big conflict is difficult on its own way, but every solution shares one characteristic – domestic political will, finding the right actors that are actually willing to change the status quo and in that sense the big lesson from the Prespa Agreement is that we don’t elect politicians to serve as expensive mirrors, but expect that the politicians will really look beyond what is currently the mood in the country hopefully with a view of the future, former defense minister Radmila Sekerinska told Thursday’s panel “Road to Prespa: Lessons Learnt and Prosperity” held as part of the Prespa Forum Dialogue in Struga.

“Today, no one says they will try to nullify the Prespa Agreement. I haven’t seen one, neither here in Macedonia, nor in Greece. And that’s the big proof for the success of the Prespa Agreement. Even those that have been the harsh critics are now silent,” said Sekerinska.

She noted that the Prespa Agreement has reminded us that it is the peacemakers who make peace, more often than the autocrats and the nationalists, and that even in spite of some public resistance initially, the public can see that there are benefits, especially today when security is back on the agenda.

“I don’t think that too many people think about what would have happened in Macedonia if we had not secured ourselves as a NATO member state. And this would have been impossible without the Prespa Agreement, former minister Sekerinska said, adding that for the Prespa Agreement to be alive and kicking, we do need the EU context.