North Macedonia expects NATO membership, EU talks date by year-end

FILE PHOTO: Newly elected President of North Macedonia Stevo Pendarovski attends his inauguration ceremony in Skopje, North Macedonia, May 12, 2019. REUTERS/Ognen Teofilovski/File Photo

LJUBLJANA (Reuters) - North Macedonia expects to become a member of NATO by the end of this year and hopes to get a date for the start of European Union (EU) accession talks in October, President Stevo Pendarovski said on Monday.

NATO members signed an accord in February allowing the ex-Yugoslav republic to become the 30th member of the U.S.-led military alliance, after a deal with Greece ended a long dispute over its name. The ratification process normally takes a year.