TIRANA, Nov. 16 (Albanian Daily News) -- A senior NATO official said on Thursday that the alliance has no favorite among Albania, Croatia and Macedonia who aspire to be invited to join the club next year, news reaching here from Skopje reported.
"No decision has been reached yet by the allies on who is goingto receive the membership invitation. We are still working on it," Martin Erdman, NATO Assistant Secretary General, said in Skopje after meeting Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski.
Erdman is leading a 20-member NATO delegation to Macedonia to make a regular assessment with regard to the progress the country has made on its road to the alliance.
He pointed out that to join NATO is a continuous process, and that the progress in the three countries is still being reviewed. He also urged Macedonia to speed up political reforms, saying the next few months are crucial for Macedonia's NATO aspiration.
"Whether the reform process is sustainable, whether there's dialogue and cooperation among the political parties and whether the political stability can last are the key requirements that Macedonia needs to meet before the decision regarding its NATO membership invitation is reached." Erdman said.
Albania, Croatia and Macedonia all hope to receive invitation to join NATO at the alliance's next spring summit in Bucharest, Romania. The three southeast European countries signed the Adriatic Charter with the United States in May 2003, to facilitate their entry into the alliance. (Xinhua)
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