Mickoski: Serbia, N Macedonia share vision of region's joint EU future

SKOPJE - North Macedonian PM Hristijan Mickoski said on Monday in Skopje his meeting with Serbian PM Milos Vucevic - who is on an official visit to North Macedonia - had addressed improvement of bilateral economic and other ties, and added that Serbia and North Macedonia shared a vision of the region's joint EU future.

At a press conference with Vucevic, Mickoski said they had also touched upon cooperation in culture and education, agreeing that investing in young people was an investment in the future.

"We also talked about the challenges facing the region. It is important that we work together on stability of the whole region, and we agreed that dialogue is the only path to resolving disagreements," Mickoski said.

He said North Macedonia was finalising tender documentation for a natural gas interconnector to be built with Serbia.

Mickoski said they had also discussed building a high-speed rail line, which he said was a strategic priority for his government, and added that regional connectivity remained a priority for the two countries.

"We also raised the topic of holding joint sessions of the two governments, like we have done with our other neighbours. I think the relations between our two countries are on a high level and that we will deepen our ties further in the coming period, that we will build good-neighbourly relations with all our neighbours and that we will all become a part of the EU," Mickoski said.

Asked if 2027 was the deadline for finishing the gas interconnector with Serbia, Mickoski responded by saying "Why not?", and added that both governments had committed to make it a priority.