European Commission President von der Leyen visits North Macedonia

The tour was an occasion for President von der Leyen to reiterate the EU's support for the region's EU accession and to emphasise how the EU was delivering on the Growth Plan. 

“We remain fully behind North Macedonia on its EU path. You can count on us. The next and only step before the opening of the negotiations is clear. You need to make the agreed constitutional change. The ball is in your court. The EU is ready. In the meantime, we’re moving the country closer to us. That’s what the Growth Plan is all about! We’re opening an AI factory antenna in Skopje. We’re including you in Europe’s Single Payment Area. And we’re disbursing 16 million euros thanks to the reforms you have made”, the President posted on X after her meetings in Skopje. 

During her visit to the region, the President welcomed North Macedonia joining, together with Albania and Montenegro, the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA). Companies and citizens now can send money to/from the EU at greatly reduced costs. “Transaction fees in the Western Balkans used to be up to six times higher than in our Union. Joining SEPA will save your companies roughly 500 million euros per year. This is real money on your balance sheets. Money that you can invest where it matters most”, she said in Tirana.  

The President also announced that North Macedonia will host one of the new AI Factories Antennas, connecting the country to Europe’s world-class artificial intelligence infrastructure. “As I want the future of AI to be made in Europe, I want the Western Balkans at its core”, she said.