"Macedonia will celebrate NATO's birthday, 4 April, next year as a candidate country with an invitation for membership in the Alliance," Macedonian Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki said yesterday. "Macedonia celebrates this day today shoulder to shoulder with NATO, as a stable and quality partner. We are convinced that next year Macedonia will celebrate this day of NATO as a candidate country that has received an invitation for membership," Milososki said following the reception that he organized for the ambassadors of the NATO member countries in Macedonia, the dailies report.

Macedonia is on a good path to become a full member of NATO soon, said Slovenian Ambassador Marjan Siftar, whose embassy is the NATO Contact Embassy in Macedonia. Ambassador Siftar said that many international assessments, as well as the fact that the country is "a certain partner in a number of international missions", confirm that Macedonia is close to NATO.