Tuesday, 3 November 2020
VIRTUAL MEETING BETWEEN PRESIDENT XHAFERI AND MEPs SCHIEDER, KYUCHYUK AND WALSMANN
The President of the Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia Talat Xhaferi had a virtual consultation meeting today with MEPs Andreas Schieder, Marion Walsmann and Ilhan Kyuchyuk as facilitators for the Jean Monnet Dialogue process. The meeting was of a wider format and included the coordinators of the parliamentary groups and representatives of the political parties represented in the Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia: Nikola Micevski, Jovan Mitreski, Arber Ademi, Surija Rashidi and Kastriot Rexhepi. The Secretary General of the Assembly, Cvetanka Ivanova was also present at the meeting.
The objective of the consultation meeting was to provide an update on the implementation of commitments made during the 3rd Jean Monnet Dialogue of the Assembly with the European Parliament in February 2020, as well as on the overall political climate and the composition of parliamentary forces after the elections on 15 July 2020.
President Xhaferi thanked the MEPs for their words of congratulations on his re-election and the impartial conduct of the general elections held under the challenging circumstances of COVID-19. He reaffirmed that the Assembly, in this term, too, remains committed to maintaining the momentum and the spirit of the Jean Monnet Dialogue, especially now that the climate is much more positive. The coordination meetings are held in full composition, all coordinators have the opportunity to be directly informed and contribute to the functionality of the legislature. The President expressed satisfaction with the positive Report of the European Commission, in the part for the 
Assembly, and confirmed that there is room for improvement and there is a consensus to work in that direction, but at the same time explained the need for the urgent procedures applied in the previous period. He was referring to the changes needed to gain full membership in NATO and the opening of the possibility of accession negotiations with the European Commission. He informed that the extraordinary COVID-19 pandemic imposed adopting extraordinary decisions by the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia, given that the Assembly was dissolved at that time, and added that the issue of alternative ways of working was immediately opened at the first session in order to maintain the functionality and constitutional competence, bearing in mind that, as President Sassoli said: "Democracy cannot be suspended in such a dramatic crisis", and in that regard, President Xhaferi expressed his gratitude to him and to the European Parliament for the unreserved assistance and for remaining available to share good practices. For now, President Xhaferi added, the Assembly continues to work with physical presence, as long as conditions allow.
Regarding the 4th Jean Monnet Dialogue, which cannot be organized at the moment due to the impossibility of physical presence, the MEPs confirmed that the European Parliament is ready to continue facilitating the process because the conclusions of the 3rd JMD left an important legacy for the new parliamentary composition, that is, the Rules of Procedure whose reforms in the key aspects were agreed upon by all participants.
President Xhaferi and all those present at the meeting expressed readiness to continue with the reforms and find acceptable solutions to all possible rules of procedure that could hinder the normal conduct of the legislative process.