Macedonia Ready to Start EU Accession Talks, EP Says

Members of the European Parliament have urged member states to start EU accession negotiations with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia before July in a resolution on the country's 2012 progress report.

In a debate on 22 May, MEP Richard Howitt, who wrote the recommendation,  called for progress on the issue. The British member of the S&D group said: "Indeed I fear it is only progress on the name issue, which can now keep hopes alive in June."

However, in another resolution MEPs have expressed regret that Bosnia and Herzegovina was still far from meeting the necessary conditions for a prospective membership and that it was falling behind other countries in the region.

Both the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina were identified as potential candidates for EU membership in June 2003, but only the former was granted candidate status in 2005.

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