SKOPJE (Macedonia), February 18 (SeeNews) – The European Commission said on Wednesday that the EU has expressed its "serious concern" over political developments in Macedonia, and urged political actors to engage in constructive dialogue within parliament, following the wire-tapping scandal in the Balkan country.
EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn, following discussions on Wednesday with Macedonian government and opposition politicians, expressed deep concern at the reported surveillance of thousands of citizens and called for an investigation into the wiretapping allegations, the European Commission said in a statement.
Zoran Zaev, leader of the opposition Social Democrats, recently accused Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski of ordering massive wire-tapping of more than 20,000 people, including journalists, opposition and religious leaders.
Earlier, Gruevski had accused Zaev of plotting a coup and threatening to publish compromising phone conversations in an attempt to force him to resign. Zaev was not arrested but his passport was seized.
On his first visit to Skopje, Hahn also expressed his full backing for the media to report on issues of public interest.