North Macedonia Sets Date for Snap Election After EU Talks Fail

(Bloomberg) -- North Macedonia’s political parties agreed to hold a snap election on April 12 as Prime Minister Zoran Zaev seeks support after the European Union rejected giving a start date for accession talks.

French President Emmanuel Macron thwarted an EU push to offer North Macedonia and Albania dates for starting negotiations last week, prompting Zaev to denounce the delay as “a historic mistake.” He called for a snap election, seeking a new four-year term to continue the EU integration process.

At a meeting with President Stevo Pendarovski Sunday, political leaders agreed to form a caretaker government, which will start work around Jan. 3, Zaev told reporters in Skopje. Pendarovski said joining the EU will remain a priority for any government that takes power after the election.

“I believe on April 12 that citizens will take a wise decision, to trace the path on which we, politicians, will lead our country and our people,” Zaev said.

Zaev will discuss with his party and ruling coalition who will replace him in the interim government, he said.

The delay to talks was a blow to Zaev, who pushed through a historic deal with Greece last year to rename his country so Athens would lift its objection to North Macedonia joining both the EU and the North Atlantic Treaty organization.

The former Yugoslav republic was approved to become the 30th member of the military alliance earlier this year, but it still needs to ratify the decision in its parliament.

To contact the reporter on this story: Slav Okov in Sofia at sokov@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Irina Vilcu at isavu@bloomberg.net, Michael Winfrey, Andrea Dudik

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