Interview with Italian Ambassador Romeo: Macedonia has all the means to start negotiations with the EU

Italian Ambassador to Skopje, Carlo Romeo, says that North Macedonia and Albania actually were ready for a date for accession talks with the EU in June 2018, but that the EU ministers at the Luxembourg meeting had to come to a compromise. In an interview with Nezavisen Vesnik/Independent Daily newspaper, he emphasizes that he has no doubt that our country will get a “clear and definitive” decision for an accession talks date in October. According to the ambassador, a good agreement between the majority and the opposition on the future of the SPO and the cases for which investigations have begun, could have a positive impact on the EU’s assessment in October.

Mr. Ambassador, the Macedonian public has been left in great confusion since the ministerial meeting in Luxembourg. Is the real reason for delaying the decision due to technical reasons (the infamous session of the Bundestag), or is it somehow a reflection of the enlargement fatigue in the European public?

The “confusion” of the Macedonian public opinion, as well as the degree of disappointment, are understandable. And because of the German parliamentary abstention, the Council in Luxembourg had to come to a compromise, to the point of balance of attitudes among numerous member states, including Italy at the forefront among those who were ready to immediately start negotiations for accession of North Macedonia and Albania (both countries have been prepared as early as June 2018) and those few EU countries that continue to show doubts (often due to internal political reasons). However, there is also a positive and encouraging sign that I would like to emphasize: the conclusions of the Council are explicit, in a complex context, because by the end of October a “clear and definitive decision” should be made, while North Macedonia has all the means to get a “clear” and “definitive” decision to open accession negotiations.

Italy was one of the signatories to the statement of 13 countries requesting a date for Macedonia and Albania. What is your information – why did these countries fail to convince the countries of Western Europe?

Italy, along with Slovenia and Poland, was the one that promoted the so-called Declaration of the EU member states in favor of accession negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania, to which other countries joined as well. Let me add that on this subject there is no “geographical” division between the EU countries, nor a “failure” of the 13 countries. In fact, as I have already said, it was all left on last year’s views, with a majority of countries (including Italy) in favor, and fewer other countries that have doubts that we hope will be overcome by the end of October, thus achieving that greater unity within the EU itself.
As the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Moavero Milanesi said, Italy’s position is that the launch of negotiations is a “physiology” in which one enters with countries that want to be candidates, such as North Macedonia and Albania. Italy believes that there is no need to broaden the “waiting rooms” before the start of accession talks.

Italy is probably the key neighbor of Albania, although the two countries are divided by the sea. Will the Italian government remain in the position, which so far has been expressed many times, that the two countries, Macedonia and Albania, must receive a date for negotiations as a group?

The Italian position has always been clear and transparent: we are in favor of North Macedonia’s and Albania’s European integration through the start of negotiations with the EU as soon as possible. This is a stance based on our strong bilateral relations with both countries, on the important common history, but it is also about a position that looks after the stability of both countries and, ultimately, the whole Balkan region, on its path to democratic reforms, social and economic development, as well as the improvement of the living standard of the citizens. In such a perspective, negotiations with the EU represent the best guarantee for all this to be implemented.
After all this, Italy shares the position of the European Commission, along with many other member states. In fact, the conclusions of the Luxembourg Council are identical for both North Macedonia and Albania.

Is the European Union slowly giving up on one of its main policies – enlargement? Montenegro has been negotiating for seven years, Serbia has been negotiating for five. The end of these processes is impossible to determine. Croatia, for instance, completed negotiations in six years, and much earlier, Slovakia in just two years. Are the demands of the EU becoming more difficult, or are the countries of the Western Balkans so underprepared?

Enlargement remains a fundamental EU policy. As Italian Council of Ministers President Giuseppe Conte has said on June 19 in Parliament on the eve of the European Council, it is “a process that Italy traditionally supports because we believe it is an important incentive for promoting peace and stability, prosperity and security and in our neighborhood, and of geostrategic interest for the entire continent.” For this reason: “The most important thing is to preserve the credibility of the enlargement process and to maintain support for Serbia and Montenegro’s further progress in the accession negotiations and by acting in order to get a positive decision by the end of October to start the accession talks with Albania and North Macedonia “.

One of the key issues in the EU enlargement process is whether candidate countries need to meet absolutely everything before they become members, or EU membership should be a model which will be used to complete what societies could not complete during the negotiations because of their lower capacity.

The enlargement process is the best guarantee for the democratic progress of candidate countries and their adaptation to the values ​​on which the EU itself is based. At the same time, it is also a measuring tool of the EU’s credibility in a given region, for example, The Western Balkans, which historically and culturally belongs to Europe, and to which the EU has given important promises.
Certainly, as Minister Moavero Milanesi stressed, during the accession negotiations it is necessary to be extremely strict, rigorous and to stick to the basic points that make up the basis of the EU accession consultations in a way that will lead to the acquiring of all necessary elements, above all when it comes to reforms necessary for finally becoming a member state of the European Union.

If Macedonia cannot get a date for negotiations after the Prespa Agreement, how can it affect Serbia and Kosovo in finding a solution to their dispute?

The Prespa Agreement is a historic agreement that was welcomed with standing ovations by the entire world. Thanks to this agreement, but also to the political courage for it to be finalized, North Macedonia has become a positive model in the region, as well as in Europe. That is why, starting the accession talks with Skopje and Tirana as soon as possible would send – as Prime Minister Conte reminded – a signal for “Europe’s close attention to the whole region, renewing the sphere towards the European perspective of both countries”, in that way contributing to avoiding deviations in terms of integration steps but also in terms of the prospect of greater Balkan stability.

Italian prosecutors came to Skopje to share their experience in the fight against organized crime and corruption. What kind of help is it about? Only by sharing experience (advice) or other institutional assistance?

Legal and police cooperation between Italy and North Macedonia is already at a great level. Last February, with the visit of President of the Italian National Anti-Corruption Authority (ANAC) Raffaele Cantone and, a week ago, to Italian police director Franco Gabrielli and the National Anti-mafia Prosecutor Federico Cafiero De Raho, we have created all the best conditions for further strengthening our close ties in the field of the fight against organized crime, international terrorism and corruption, and through the recent signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation between Skopje’s Public Prosecutor’s Office and Italy’s Antimafia and Antiterrorism Directorate General; also, it was followed by a memorandum of cooperation between the Italian National Anti-Corruption Agency and the Macedonian State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (SCPC). It is about specific forms of close cooperation that, thanks to its own valuable experience, Italy offers North Macedonia in the fields of crucial importance.

Ambassador Romeo, is there a general model that could be applied in the fight against corruption, or does it depend on each country individually?

In general, corruption phenomena are not typical for a single country, which means that it is always important to take the local context into account. At the same time, today corruption is increasingly marked by supranational characteristics. Therefore, international cooperation to fight such a phenomenon is essential. Within the aforementioned visit to Skopje by the predecessor of the Italian National Anti-Corruption Authority (ANAC), Raffaele Cantone, the Embassy, ​​together with the OSCE Mission, organized a conference presenting ANAC and its work, the “Italian Model” that became successful thanks to the fact that it is based on prosecution, but also on the prevention of corrective phenomena. And, of course, based on an independent judiciary, without which it would really be difficult to fight against corruption.

The future of the Special Public Prosecutor’s Office is uncertain because of the refusal of the opposition to continue its work. How important is the existence of the SPO for the fight against corruption and crime of high political structures?

The fight against corruption is of fundamental character and, among other things, the Macedonian government has been using the motto “zero corruption” since the beginning of its mandate. It is very important to monitor the investigations of the SPO, ensuring justice to those responsible for corruption. How? It is a decision that should be adopted by the Parliament, a symbol of democracy and a representative of the will of the citizens. Therefore, I strongly wish for the improvement of the dialogue on this topic between the majority and the opposition and, as it is done in other important sectors (for instance, in the case of the new law on corruption and conflict of interests), find a good compromise which, however, it will not be detrimental to justice and to civil and criminal responsibilities.

Will the non-implementation of the Law on the Law on Public Procurement influence the EU decision to set a date for accession talks?

Bringing to the end of the investigations and bringing those responsible for corruption to justice is a fundamental necessity for the country itself, beyond accession negotiations with the EU. Justice and respecting the law and public goods is the responsibility that Macedonian citizens expect. Underlining that neither the European Commission nor the Luxembourg Council have created new conditions for North Macedonia, I believe that a good agreement between the majority and the opposition on the future of the SPO and the cases for which investigations have begun could have a positive impact on the assessment that is already positive for the country and its will to continue to walk along the path of reform, whose goal is to reach the core values ​​of the EU.

Ljupco Popovski