General elections chance for Macedonia to end crisis: EU official

Macedonia's political class should be committed to holding reliable and credible elections on Dec. 11 as this is an opportunity for politicians to put an end to the extended political crisis here, Lukas Holub of the EU Delegation to Macedonia said Thursday.

He made the statement during the 13th joint consultative committee meeting organized by the Macedonian ministry of local self­-government and Committee of the Regions of the EU in Skopje, local media here reported.

According to Holub, the holding of fair elections on Dec. 11 would move Macedonia forward towards Euro-Atlantic integration.

Holub also reminded that the European Commission had once again recommended opening accession negotiations this year with Macedonia, however, it was conditioned on credible elections and the implementation of necessary reforms.

He said he hoped that after the elections they could cooperate with the new government on reforms and discuss ways to improve the situation. He hoped it would have good impact on the municipalities as well.

On the other hand, Macedonian minister of local self­-government Shiret Elezi said the government here would focus its capacity on continuing the reform process, which she said remained Macedonia's top priority.

She further pointed out that the ministry of local self­-government would focus on strengthening the local authority through fiscal decentralization and regional development.

In this regard, Holub stressed that the units of the local self-government had key role in the enlargement process and integration of the country into the EU. Endit