EU to Start Pre-accession Talks With Macedonia in March – Olli Rehn

"If progress continues, it will be my intention to propose, during the Slovenian Presidency, a set of benchmarks to fulfil for the launch of accession negotiations," Rehn said after talks with Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski.

Slovenia, a small Alpine country, holds the European Union's rotating presidency in the first six months of this year.

In the Commission's 2007 progress report on Macedonia, Rehn pointed out the political tensions in the country, widespread corruption and high unemployment as the main obstacles to EU entry.

”The European Union welcomed the results that Macedonia has achieved so far. We are determined to continue with fulfilling these reforms. The start of the negotiations with the republic of Macedonia and liberalisation of the visa regime will have a serious, positive impact not only on Macedonia but on the whole region,” Prime Minister Gruevski said.

“Macedonia is well advanced in, and has further moved towards establishing a functioning market economy. It should be able to cope with competitive pressures and market forces within the Union in the medium term, provided that it vigorously implements its comprehensive reform programme in order to reduce significant structural weaknesses,” the Commission said in its 2007 progress report on Macedonia.

The southeast European country of two million people signed a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU in 2001 and was granted EU candidate status in December 2005.

In September 2007 the European Union signed visa facilitation and readmission agreements with Albania, Bosnia, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.