Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Timco Mucunski, says that there is active communication with the European Union regarding a solution to the announced measures for our transporters, as well as export tariffs for the steel industry, reports Telegraph Macedonia.

By doing so, as he stated, it is shown that in the event of their implementation, we will pay a price that will be four to six times higher than the funds we would receive from the Growth Plan.

Mucunski told “Sitel” tonight that he hopes for a result because the EU has shown that it is aware that there is a problem and that it is working to find a solution.

According to Mucunski, if the goals for regional integration are sincere, the EU will not allow measures to be implemented that will have such a negative impact on the economy.

“It is not only the problem with transporters, we have another challenge, the possible application of tariffs by the EU to the countries of the region for steel exports. This does not apply only to us, but to all candidate countries and countries in the Western Balkans region. Since September, we have been actively communicating with the European Union on these two key issues. Among other things, we are telling the EU that, with the utmost respect for the Growth Plan, which I consider very positive and very significant, if this measure is applied to our transporters and if the measure on tariffs in the steel industry is applied, we will pay a price that will be four to six times higher than the funds that we would receive from the Growth Plan.

“The same EU that complains about unprecedented tariffs has decided to put not only us, but the entire region, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo in a tariff group with Russia, Belarus, North Korea, Cyprus, and we have been telling senior officials for months that a solution must be found,” said Mucunski.

He says that this issue has been raised several times at the highest level, as was the case during the visit of EC President Ursula von der Leyen by Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski./Telegraph/