Blanar Offers North Macedonia Visit by Representatives of Austerlitz Format

Skopje, 29 October (TASR) - Foreign and European Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD) on Thursday offered North Macedonia a visit by representatives of the Austerlitz Format (S3) countries (Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia), reports a TASR special correspondent from Skopje. "I'd like to offer a platform that we have at our disposal. It is the Austerlitz Format - a trio comprising Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Austria - which regularly conducts visits to these regions. During our presidency, we visited Albania, where we reviewed the process so that we could move forward," stated Blanar at a joint press conference with his North Macedonian counterpart Timco Mucunski. Slovakia's chief diplomat pointed out that, under Austria's leadership, the foreign ministers had recently visited Montenegro as part of the Austerlitz Format. "I'm proposing that we could also pay a visit to North Macedonia," he added. The Slovak foreign minister stated that this is a truly important message for all the countries of the Western Balkans in the EU accession process, and above all for Brussels. "We reject any double standards, any shortcuts and any distinction being made between the countries of the Eastern Partnership and the Western Balkans," he reiterated. am