Zoran Zaev asked opposition leader Hristijan Mickoski for a meeting by the end of the week, where the two would discuss the coming presidential elections.

My duty is to meet with the leader of the opposition for the guarantees we offer to ensure fair and regular democratic elections and which are the possible reservations we have to remove in order that “North Macedonia” would have a crystal clear electoral process, which is an obligation for us all, Zaev said.

He refused the opposition VMRO-DPMNE request to hold early general elections at the same time with the presidential elections – general elections have a greater degree of guarantees for the opposition as Zaev would have to resign 100 days before the vote and some of his key ministers would have to be replaced with opposition candidates.

Presidential elections don’t activate such guarantees, and shortly after the date of the elections was set, Zaev continued to abuse the police and state prosecutors to perpetrate political persecution against VMRO-DPMNE, arresting opposition officials and sending them to a prison ran by an Albanian terrorist gang where two former ministers were badly beaten.