SKOPJE – Bilateral meetings between the representatives of the four largest political parties with mediators from the European Union and the United States have come to a finish.
None of the representatives were too optimistic and no one wants to predict when to expect some progress. The Vice President of the SDSM Radmila Sekerinska, in a press statement today said they expressed some of their initiatives, but never had the chance to compare them with those from other parties.
When asked whether they discussed the election date, Sekerinska said they still had not yet reached that far because everyone, especially the international community, know that conditions have to be met before a date for elections can be discussed.
“We believe Macedonia can hold elections in a relatively short period of time, which will be fair and democratic. The elections could even be in April and May, but there was no political will”, Sekerinska said.
Artan Grubi from the DUI party said that the fact they have all sat down together is progress. He added that they had discussed the voters’ list and the media, and when there is a specific agreement, everyone will be notified.
Ambassador Aivo Orav said he hoped there would be a meeting again soon, but did not answer the question whether he was optimistic.
Representatives of the VMRO-DPMNE and the DPA, Nikola Todorov and Imer Aliu, did not want to comment about today’s meeting.