Follow up to T10-0157/2025

Follow-up to the European Parliament non-legislative resolution on 2023 and 2024 Commission reports on North Macedonia

Rapporteur: Thomas WAITZ (Greens/AT)

Reference number: 2025/2021(INI) / A10-0118/2025 / P10_TA(2025)0157

Date of adoption of the resolution: 9 July 2025

Competent Parliamentary Committee: Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET)

Brief analysis/ assessment of the resolution and requests made in it:

The report commends North Macedonia's sustained commitment to EU integration, despite delays and challenges. It acknowledges the successful completion of the screening process and calls for the swift adoption of required constitutional amendments, as set out in Council conclusions of July 2022, to advance in accession negotiations. While the EU praises North Macedonia’s alignment with its foreign policy, it expresses concern over its abstention from a key vote in the UN General Assembly on Ukraine. The report urges all political actors to maintain momentum in reforms, particularly those strengthening democratic institutions, the rule of law, and interethnic cohesion. The report highlights several internal issues affecting North Macedonia’s progress. These include persistent political polarisation, misuse of fast-track legislative procedures, low implementation of public administration reforms, and increasing malign foreign influence through media and disinformation. The report calls on North Macedonia to intensify its efforts to strengthen the rule of law, the judiciary, the fight against corruption, reform its public administration and improve the transparency and concentration of media ownership. The report calls for the strengthening of the Judicial Council and the Council of Prosecutors and for the allocation of necessary funds, while ensuring their independence. It also strongly urges political actors to cease interfering in judicial institutions. While improvements in media freedom, civil society engagement, and rights of persons belonging to minorities are noted, there are strong calls for action against strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), hate speech, and threats to journalists. The report also stresses the need to protect fundamental rights, particularly regarding gender equality, LGBTIQ+ persons, Roma inclusion, and the rights of persons with disabilities. The report highlights the dangers posed by political polarisation and foreign interference-especially from Russia and China-calling for cross-party cooperation, electoral reform, and measures to counter disinformation and malign influence. The report further underscores the need for resilient media reform and a depoliticised, merit-based public administration.

The report supports North Macedonia’s Reform Agenda under the EU Growth Facility, noting progress in digitalisation, youth employment, and SEPA membership, while urging deeper structural reforms. It highlights the urgent need to improve air and water quality, adopt climate legislation, and protect biodiversity. The report also praises the country’s regional cooperation and Euro-Atlantic commitment, encouraging stronger alignment with EU foreign and defence policy to counter malign foreign influence.

Response to requests and overview of action taken, or intended to be taken, by the Commission:

On paragraph 3 on safeguarding the predictability and credibility of the accession process, also with a view to maintaining popular support for accession in enlargement countries, the Commission remains committed, as set out in the revised enlargement methodology, to a more credible, predictable, dynamic process, which is also subject to stronger political steering. The criteria to join the EU remain clear and the process is merit-based.

On paragraph 5 on assisting North Macedonia to implement necessary steps before entering the next negotiation phase, the Commission recalls that its political objective remains to open accession negotiations on the fundamentals cluster, once North Macedonia has met the criteria agreed by the Council. The Commission underlines that the only way forward is to adopt the constitutional amendments. It is very important that Bulgaria and North Macedonia discuss these matters, foster broader cooperation, and re-establish confidence, mutual understanding and trust. The Commission and the European External Action Service (EEAS) have offered to provide support to facilitate discussions, if and when needed.

On paragraph 8, on the call for EU capacity to act to be enhanced through a reform of its decision-making, including through the introduction of qualified majority voting on the intermediate steps in the accession process, in particular at the start of negotiations and the opening and closing of individual negotiating clusters and chapters, the Commission notes that in line with the European Council’s call for an accelerated accession process, the enlargement process itself could be reviewed. The possibility of empowering the Council to decide by qualified majority could be explored for certain interim steps of the enlargement process. The Commission remains open to improving its processes in their entirety, including the decision-making procedures for all stages of the accession process, with a view to achieving better outcomes and enhancing the overall efficiency and effectiveness of the accession process.

On paragraph 32 on combating disinformation and hate speech calling for EU institutions to help the country mitigate malicious effects, for the Commission this remains a priority. Through various programmes under IPA III, the Commission supports initiatives to combat disinformation. In addition, the EEAS and specifically the EU Hybrid Fusion Cell analyses hybrid threats, and the EEAS stratcom Western Balkans Task Force (WBTF) monitors Kremlin-aligned narratives and other state-sponsored propaganda targeting Western Balkans partners and works with – among others – EUvsDisinfo, a platform that identifies and debunks disinformation, particularly of Russian origin. The Commission focuses its support on resilience-building through targeted capacity-building initiatives aimed at enhancing digital, media, and information literacy, strengthening independent media, and empowering civil society. The Commission aims at strengthening information integrity broadly to ensure a resilient information eco-system, in order to counter false or misleading content. The EU-North Macedonia Security and Defence Partnership also includes cooperation on cybersecurity.

On paragraph 76 on assisting North Macedonia in tackling critical infrastructure delays and providing support to speed up work on priority transport corridors, the Commission recalls that it counts on North Macedonia to complete the Corridor VIII railway project, which is of strategic importance, through meaningful cooperation with Bulgaria. The Commission trusts that outstanding issues can be addressed through dialogue and an overall constructive approach. The Commission hosted a meeting on 16 July in Brussels with North Macedonia and Bulgaria, during which both parties committed to continue works on Corridor VIII. The Commission will continue to facilitate the process., in close cooperation with relevant partners (including EBRD and EIB).