The American State Department commended the Elections in Macedonia as the first important step for the solution of the political crisis and has called on the new government to work constructively in the implementation of the reforms that are significant for a Euro-Atlantic integration.
We commend the citizens of Macedonia who exercised their right to vote in the 11 December parliamentary elections. We also welcome OSCE and the Organization for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, ODIHR. We welcome their preliminary conclusions that the elections were competitive and that fundamental freedoms were generally respected. The turnout was high, the elections proceeded in a calm and orderly manner with a few cases of procedural irregularities. We echo those two organizations’ concerns about the administrative preparations for the elections, and we urge the next government to continue to work to build capacity within the state electoral commission and to resolve the structural and legal issues with voter registers.
These elections, we believe, are an important first step to move Macedonia out of its political crisis. We encourage the parties who form the new government to work constructively with the opposition to enact reforms that will further the process of Euro-Atlantic integration, particularly with regard to rule of law. And I can assure the people of Macedonia that as they pursue this effort, they will find the United States a partner in it. – as was said by John Kirby
