Distinguished representatives of the Assembly,

Distinguished ministers in the Government,

Distinguished high representatives of the Army,

Distinguished representatives of the religious communities,

Distinguished representatives of the public institutions of the Republic,

Distinguished guests from the Diplomatic Corps and military attachés,

Honoured guests of the civil, political and religious communities,

Distinguished representatives of the media,

Honoured guests,

Dear citizens,

 

Today, we firmly state that our homeland is on its right path towards progress and untroubled development. We did it! From the Balkan side-track, on which we had stood for decades, we turned onto the highway towards Europe. We may all feel pride that we are living this new time, the era of building a democratic society of equal citizens striving to conquer the European values. In the forthcoming period we will be direct participants of the historically most significant period as of the country’s independence, a period in which we will decide for our own future, but also for the speed at which we will reach the finish line.

Distinguished citizens: the future is no longer our destiny. We took the destiny in our own hands and we determined our future. In doing so, we accept the responsibility to accomplish the historical goal. As of today we are starting with the following, complex phase of building our country according to the European standards. No one will block us from outside. With the decisions adopted by our Parliament and the Parliament of the Republic of Greece, as well as with the invitation from the NATO member-states, we are already participating in the work of the most powerful world alliance. And we can be safe and completely assured that when the ratification process in all parliaments of our allies will be completed, our country, which will soon bear the geographically precise name North Macedonia, will officially become the 30th full-fledged NATO member-state with a right to vote. In that way, we will become a safe country. We are our own masters.

On that occasion, today, here, on this plateau, we are raising the NATO flag, which, together with the European and our own, determine our, but also the future of the succeeding generations. This is not just symbolical. This is the reality. This is the new page in our history.

I would like to congratulate to you, to all the citizens of every corner of our country. This is your success. You bear the greatest merit because you made a bold step forward and claimed the future that our people deserve. The great majority of citizens were adamantly in favour of NATO membership. You, distinguished citizens, as of the first day of independence, recognized the role of NATO as the greatest guarantor for overcoming the danger of destabilization and dissolution of the country. This hazard has been left in the past, only with your strong support. We are already together on the same table with our 29 NATO allies.

I avail myself of this occasion to pay my respect and distinct gratitude for the substantial contribution provided by the soldiers and peacekeepers that lost their lives in the peacekeeping missions organized by NATO in which our country took part. Furthermore, I express my appreciation to the late president of the country, Boris Trajkovski, who together with his associates, lost their lives to make our country honoured, integrated and secure. President Trajkovski and his associates, we must not forget, completed one of the most significant tasks in difficult and conflicted period, when, with their work and courage, resolutely brought the Republic of Macedonia nearer to the NATO Alliance and opened wide the doors of cooperation.

In another peacekeeping mission, in a helicopter accident, in the vicinity of Skopje, 11 soldiers of the Army, also peacekeepers that were on their way back from the Althea mission. Their lives are founded in these historical moments.

Moreover, we owe great appreciation to the first president and commander-in-chief of the Army, Kiro Gligorov, who, even before our country’s independence, with his strong commitment to peace, made his determination for Euro-Atlantic integrations as the most significant option for the future of the country and its citizens. The Agreement for peaceful withdrawal of the Yugoslav army and the tactfulness of President Gligorov serves as a great inspiration and a Macedonian example for resolution of conflict situations and avoiding the hazards of war.

I would also like to acknowledge the great deal of efforts invested by President Branko Crvenkovski.

Furthermore, I extend my gratitude and respect to the United Nations and the mediator, Mr. Matthew Nimets, great professional who was committed to the negotiation process even when it seemed as if there are no prospects for acceptable solution.

Distinguished citizens, honoured guests,

We owe great appreciation to the highest legislation institution, the Assembly of the Republic and its MPs from this composition, but also from all other compositions who have adopted all necessary decisions and enabled us to come closer to the NATO and the EU. I convey my gratitude to the Governments and all institutions in the system and numerous persons from the public, experts, civic organizations, businesses, media and journalists who, in the past decades, were effortlessly committed to the achievement of this most significant strategic determination of our country, soon to be called North Macedonia.

Additionally, I thank the Army, the soldiers and the officers and NCOs who, for the past 25 years, have been successful participants in NATO’s missions and earned excellent marks for their endeavours.

I would like to use this opportunity to demonstrate my special gratitude and to congratulate the members of the Greek Parliament who did not yield before the pressures and adopted the bold and historic decision, as the MPs from our Macedonian Parliament, which establishes trust, permanent friendship and fruitful cooperation between the two neighbours.

A great work was done by the two Foreign Ministers, Nikos Kotzias and Nikola Dimitrov, respectively, as well as their associates who used their sense and commitment to provide significant contribution to finding a mutually acceptable solution without which this result would have not been attainable – both Parliaments to accept the Prespa Agreement – for which we owe them public recognition and gratitude. 

I especially thank the Prime Minister of the Republic of Greece, my friend, Alexis Tsipras, for his vision and courage for us to boldly find a solution to a problem, which was considered by many irresolvable; a solution that will serve as an example and will encourage many compromises and agreements between the Balkan neighbours. This will erase the bad memories of the Balkan which are still vivid in the minds of many Europeans. This is a great historic act affirming this part of the Balkan that was marginalized as a deep European province.

Additionally, I thank the European Union, the United States of America and the international community who, in this whole period, provided strong support to the negotiation process in order to find a mutually acceptable solution. I am convinced that, in the future activities, our allies will remain committed to the support that they are offering for the internal and external integration of our country.

Dear citizens,

You know that our aspirations for NATO membership were not covert and secret. On the contrary, they were very well known and clearly expressed as of the first day of our independence, and soon after, by our direct participation in the NATO peace-keeping missions and was further reflected in the overall reforms, modernization and trainings of the Army in compliance with the standards harmonized with NATO Alliance. Using our peaceful policy we will prove that the NATO membership is the best solution for the stability of the country, but also for the stability of the whole region. We want to remain friends not only with our neighbours who are NATO and EU members, but also with all other countries with which we have had excellent relations when it comes to our neighbours and the great powers. North Macedonia will have no other choice but to build good political, cultural and economic relations. The Balkan has no other choice except cooperation and development. Building friendships will remain high on the agenda of the foreign policy which has always risen from the stability and good relations in the country itself.

I avail myself of this opportunity to underline that, despite the fact that this is a historically important event, we stand firmly on the ground, and there is no place for euphoria. We have serious work ahead of us with regards to the implementation of reforms. In order to be successful and to accelerate the historical processes we must, in the forthcoming years, no matter whether this will take six, eight or ten years – it depends on us only – use the same persistence as with the Prespa Agreement, to commit fully to the European Union membership. This involves resolving the relations in our own home, in our family, in our homeland.

There are ongoing system changes, which will be intensified, regarding the functioning of the institutions and the society.

Our legislative system must provide justice equally for everyone, no matter the ethnic origin, financial status or political representation. Zero tolerance for corruption. The institutions will no longer sustain those who misuse the trust with their work, for personal interests and privileges. The corrupted will face responsibility.

Bribe, personal interests and privileges will not be the method of doing business in our country. Everyone must follow the rules, despite the numbers on their bank account and their friends. All of us are equal, those who come from political parties and those who have nothing to do with the political parties. All of us have the same rights and same responsibilities.

The effects of these reforms will be immediately visible. The people voted in favour of them and more importantly, they deserve these effects!

Now, when we are reaching our national strategic interests, we can look into the future we all desire for our children. We will continue investing our efforts in becoming a member of the European Union which will give us access not only to the world trade partnership, but will open the doors for our children – for them to have possibilities and to attain experiences which our parents could not even envisage, nor provide them for us.

Therefore, all politicians, all parties, we all must sincerely and without hypocrisy, make the determination of the majority of citizens the most important national interest – on all social and economic levels, in all parliamentary declarations and decisions of the numerous, already adopted, European laws, constitutional changes in accordance with the Euro-Atlantic integrations and to become a member of the European Union. We do not have a better choice or a better solution. Let us not fool ourselves, we have never had, nor has any relevant official in the country offered different solution. Never has our EU membership been more evident as it is today. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to make this shared determination sacred and exalted, above all of us; we must not allow any obstacles due to our political rivalries, competitions and fights for power. All of us who live the new Macedonian and civil dream, have one road ahead of us and this is a shared road – it is called THE FREE ROAD, THE EUROPEAN ROAD – this is the road taken by our neighbours, our friends from the region, this is the path of cooperation, solidarity, respect for differences, the road to freedom – the road of the European values.

My reconciliation proposal was and still is in that direction. In order to regain the trust we will place moratorium on the disputes that prevent or estrange our greatest national interests from the strategic goals which are undisputed. We can and we should compete and criticize each other for our ideas which should lead to the same objective. But we must not allow the battles for power to prevent and postpone our goals. In the following decade we will face many challenges and we must show wisdom and sense, knowledge and persistence. The commencement of the negotiations, the opening and closing of the Brussels chapters which bring serious homework, will bring work for the Government, for the members of the Parliament and for the President of the country, for many of our experts who will negotiate with the EU, but also for each citizen individually. Here, I do not expect that Europe will be tolerant and I have no hopes that Brussels will yield for some of the issues. On the contrary, I think that we will face strong monitoring, sometimes even, splitting hairs, but I know that, with our readiness and resolution, we will succeed in completing our obligations and the tasks we undertook, not for Brussels, but for ourselves. The fulfilment of the tasks from the European chapters which are as important as the directives must be done successfully; the citizens of the Republic of North Macedonia will be the direct beneficiaries.

Distinguished citizens,

Our work, our cooperation with the neighbours from the region and our cooperation with the European Union, change the image that the Western-European citizens have had for our country and the Balkan for decades. This image, if we are honest, was not a good one. The Balkan, in the minds of the average European, was something very distant and complicated, as an encircled hollow without any values and undignified enough to be part of the club. We all know that the reality is not like that, but our cultural values and specifics cannot reach the wider European public if that is not done right. We have a lot to give to Europe and we have already contributed significantly to the European multiculturalism, the economic cooperation, science, art and sports. However, from now one, we must do that more organized, better, together; we must not leave our values, acknowledged scientist and artists, business people alone, without support from the country to walk that difficult and burdensome road to success on international level. We must free Europe from the fear of the Balkan; we must prove that this fear is not justified. We must remind Europe to our first alliance, 78 years ago, when we started together the Antifascist war. This victory over fascism brought the first Macedonian state, the Federal Republic of Macedonia, in 1944 with the decision made by ASNOM. If it was not for this great victory, for which our people has given 20,000 casualties, today it would not have been possible for us to have an independent state, either Federal, People’s, Socialist or North Macedonia.

Therefore, we have the right to say that not only the future North Macedonia needs Europe, but Europe also needs North Macedonia. Europe needs the whole Balkan. We will achieve this only by accepting the European values and standards while changing our awareness and our insight that we belong to Europe, but also the facts that the West shares for us. The EU membership is not our end goal – but the Europeanization of our country. This is much longer process than the process of attaining membership. The future generations will preserve our specifics, the specifics of our Macedonian cultural heritage and all Macedonian identity features, as well as the features of the representatives of the other people who live here. But at the same time, the future generations will be Europeans, without complexes and inferiority. We do not believe the stories for dissolution of the European Union. On the contrary, we believe the facts that the world needs Europe and that Europe is the leader of the world global solidarity. And we will invest our capacities to keep Europe strong. We see our future, without any alternatives, within the allied European countries. This is our future, but it is the future of the whole European continents. We belong there geographically, historically, politically, culturally and according to all other criteria. And we will confirm this with our NATO membership, and in the near future, with our EU membership, by completing all reforms at home, but also those that will come in the European family. We have no other plans.

Distinguished citizens,

My people, dear Macedonians, Albanians, Turks, Vlachs, Serbs, Roma, Bosniaks…

All of you!

I invite all of you, no matter the national, religious, party and ideological representation; I call upon you, to be united and to cooperate, in order to achieve the historical objective, to become equal citizens of Europe. Great work awaits us. We will complete it together, successfully, for ourselves and for our future generations.

Long live European Republic of North Macedonia!

Long live Europe!

Long live NATO!

Long live the citizens!

Thank you.