October 17 (SeeNews) - Macedonia's parliament was dissolved on Monday, opening the way for an early general election scheduled for December 11, Macedonian state-run broadcaster MRT reported.
The decision was adopted in a 110-0 vote with no abstentions in the 123-seat parliament, MRT said.
Under the EU-brokered Przino agreement reached last year the main political parties in Macedonia agreed to hold early elections on April 24 in a bid to resolve a months-long political crisis that has been burdening the economy. Since then the vote has been postponed twice, as Macedonia needed more time to meet the international community's requirements for holding credible elections.
Macedonian main party leaders agreed last month to hold early elections on December 11.
On October 14, EU enlargement commissioner Johannes Hahn visited Skopje and said that the European Commission will continue to monitor closely the preparation and the conduct of the elections.
Hahn encouraged the political parties and state institutions to clearly separate state and party activities and to prevent voter intimidation, the Commission said in a press release. Johannes Hahn noted some encouraging signs of improvement, but called for balanced media reporting before, during and after the elections.
"The Commission remains committed and available to assist all parties in overcoming the political crisis, but the political leaders themselves have the responsibility to bring the country back onto the EU path," the EU's executive body said.