European Council

Mariya Gabriel is one of twelve candidates for the post of Vice-President of the European People's Party, 24 Hours reported.

She is highly trusted by European leaders and is expected to become one of the ten Vice-Presidents. In addition, her Austrian counterpart, Johannes Hahn is also running for the post.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Thursday essentially offered his support to North Macedonia Premier Zoran Zaev and his country's effort to unstick its stalled bid for European Union accession talks but emphasized that Skopje would have to honor the terms of the Prespes name deal. 

In talks with North Macedonia Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Thursday underlined the importance of the so-called Prespes accord being honored if the Balkan country is to achieve its aim of starting accession talks with the European Union. 

Zoran Zaev told a Russia-North Macedonia economic forum in Skopje on Thursday that the event and the reactivation of an inter-governmental commission on trade with Russia do not mean that his country is seeking an alternative to Euro-Atlantic integration.

The use of the death penalty in Belarus does not allow the country to be a member of the European Council. This was stated yesterday by Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen after a meeting in Vienna with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, TASS reported.

EU foreign ministers agreed on economic sanctions over Turkish drilling operations near Cyprus, Reuters reported. However, the indication of specific names is left to a later stage.

Macron's 'Non' triggered a deluge of analyses and op-eds explaining how the French position would undermine the successes of North Macedonia and Albania, that it dealt huge damage to EU credibility in the Western Balkans and cast a shadow over the region's European perspective, supposedly set in stone in Thessaloniki 16 years ago.

Stevo Pendarovski, who is attending the Paris Peace Forum, will have a meeting later on Tuesday with Emmanuel Macron, whose opposition last month at the European Council dashed North Macedonia's hopes of a start date for EU accession negotiations.

By the end of the day, the UK must nominate its new EU commissioner. This was announced by a spokesman for the President-elect of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias on Friday reassured his North Macedonia counterpart Nikola Dimitrov of Greece's support for the Balkan country's prospects for joining the European Union while also underlining the need for the Prespes name deal to be honored to the letter.