If you promote principles in Macedonia, then you should promote the same principles in all member states and candidate member states of the EU. We are going to be the first to support you because we believe in a successful European project, Macedonian Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki told Richard Howitt, the Rapporteur on Macedonia at the European Parliament, at their meeting in Brussels Wednesday, at which the main subject was the EP’s draft resolution on Macedonia’s progress in 2013.

According to the press release from the Macedonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Minister Poposki thanked Howitt for the European Parliament’s continued support for Macedonia’s EU integration. He also added that every Member of the European Parliament has the responsibility to promote European principles and that the breach of the European principles taints the credibility of the EU in the eyes of the Macedonian citizens.

“It is therefore important that the assessments and values voiced by the Members of the European parliament are on the same line with those that the EU promotes on its territory. An attitude toward a certain candidate member state different from the attitude toward the member states may harm the credibility of enlargement. The effect of the forthcoming European elections on the activities of a few sitting MEPs is evident. We share their concern over the status and ambitions of the most radical movements in Europe, all of which should be an additional motive for us to act reasonably as a European-oriented stakeholder,” Minister Poposki said.