OHRID FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT AND EURO-ATLANTIC INTEGRATION 20 YEARS LATER

Abstract

Macedonia became an independent state in 1991 and since its independence has declared
its Euro-Atlantic membership aspiration, adapting to the criteria and conditions that emerged
from this process. Ten years after its independence, an armed conflict erupted in 2001, which
ended with signing of the Ohrid Framework Agreement, which also became one of the basic
conditions and criteria for measuring the country’s progress in Euro-Atlantic integration. In
2005, the country received the status of a candidate for EU integration, in 2008 it was ready
to join NATO, but due to the name dispute with Greece, that happened only after the signing
of the Prespa Agreement. On March 27, 2020, Macedonia became a member of NATO, and
the day before the European Council approved the decision of the Council to open accession
negotiations. The purpose of this paper is to see how the OFA’s principles have contributed to
the country’s progress in the Euro-Atlantic process.