Accession candidate Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

Accession candidate former Yugoslav Republic (FYR) of Macedonia

The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia applied for EU membership in March 2004. At its meeting on 15/16 December 2005 the European Council granted it candidate country status. The Council took this decision notably in the light of the progress the country had made in implementing the Ohrid Framework Agreement and the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA).

The Stabilisation and Association Process

In its Progress Report of 14 October 2009 the European Commission proposed the opening of accession negotiations. A starting date for these negotiations, however, must be set by a unanimous Council decision.

The former Yugoslav Republic (FYR) of Macedonia - 2009 Progress Report (pdf)

In recommending this step, the Commission emphasizes that FYR Macedonia has by and large addressed the key priorities spelled out in the Accession Partnership of February 2008. It notes that the country now adequately fulfils the political criteria set by the European Council in Copenhagen in 1993 as well as those defined within the Stabilization and Association Process framework.

As an accession candidate FYR Macedonia receives funding under the new Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) established for the 2007 to 2013 financial perspective. Over the period 2007 to 2013 the country will receive assistance in the order of 623 million euro, with nearly 91.7 million euro being provided in 2010.

The IPA also enables FYR Macedonia to benefit from EU led so called twinning projects. Through the long-term secondment of experts from public institutions in EU member states, these projects support public administration capacity-building in candidate countries.