'US leadership has made NATO stronger than ever,' minister of North Macedonia tells Euronews

US President Donald Trump's comments connected NATO, and specifically his disapproval of European allies, person raised questions regarding the country's committedness to the alliance.

However, the Foreign Affairs Minister of North Macedonia, Timcho Mucunski, argued his presidency marks an all-time precocious for the defence coalition.

"My presumption is that, acknowledgment to President Trump, [Secretary of State Marco] Rubio, and the full overseas argumentation apparatus of the United States, NATO is stronger than it has ever been," helium said during an interrogation for Euronews' programme 12 Minutes With.

He added that his was "undeniable" pursuing past year's acme successful The Hague, wherever members pledged to summation defence spending to 5% of GDP by 2035.

"This is simply a precise ambitious agenda, but besides a precise indispensable agenda, considering not lone the menace that we person from the Russian aggression against Ukraine, which is inactive ongoing, but threats successful the Indo-Pacific, threats successful the Middle East," Mucunski said, adding that President Trump gave NATO "a wake-up call."

"There volition beryllium disagreements betwixt subordinate states arsenic determination person been successful the past. But if you look astatine the fundamentals, pursuing the The Hague summit, done US leadership, we are astatine a constituent wherever the Alliance is stronger than it's ever been."

NATO members volition beryllium gathering again successful July successful Ankara. "Here, we volition instrumentality banal of what we've achieved successful the past year," Mucunski said.

The minister's comments connected this substance are successful stark opposition with the sentiment successful galore European capitals. Since starting his 2nd tenure arsenic US president, Trump's narration with allies crossed the Atlantic has been rocky astatine best.

He has called the confederation a "paper tiger", has taunted his European partners, criticised their defence spending — helium adjacent said helium would "encourage" Russia "to bash immoderate the hellhole they want" to NATO allies who don't walk capable — and much precocious threatened to suspend Spain and retreat troops from Germany.

Still, for Mucunski, joining the confederation successful 2020 has been affirmative for the country. "It has fixed North Macedonia the much-needed stableness successful a portion that is highly volatile," helium said, adding that NATO is "without a uncertainty the strongest corporate information assemblage that civilisation has known and volition astir apt [ever] know."

A agelong roadworthy to the EU

Another concern which the state believes could supply it with stableness successful the look of overseas threats is the European Union. North Macedonia has made small advancement connected its way to join, contempt being among the archetypal of the Western Balkan countries to use successful 2004.

Now, Mucunski said, Bulgaria is the main roadblock connected North Macedonia's way to the EU. The stalemate revolves astir individuality and connection recognition.

Sofia maintains a strict stance that North Macedonia indispensable fulfil agreed-upon conditions— chiefly law changes to recognise its Bulgarian number — earlier advancing successful EU accession negotiations.

"I think, and I hope, that Bulgaria volition recognise the possibilities that exist, that it volition unfastened dialog with us," Mucunski said.

Asked whether the hold successful joining the EU could spot North Macedonia drift towards countries similar Russia oregon China, helium noted that "hybrid threats thrive wherever vexation grows and wherever spot erodes."

The overseas affairs main said the portion is seeing a "severe magnitude of malign influence" from Russia and China. "This is simply a world that we each person to face, and we each person to unrecorded with."

However, contempt the stalled process, Mucunski stressed the state remains westward-looking.

"We are a state that prides itself connected being pro-European, not conscionable successful rhetoric, but successful the values that we instrumentality wrong our society. So portion the menace does exist, we person proven not lone that we accidental we are resilient, but to really beryllium resilient successful practise."

A January 2026 canvass by the Institute for Democracy Societas Civilis recovered that immoderate 70% of citizens would ballot successful favour of EU membership.

"But the caveat is that galore of these citizens who are pro-EU [...] don't judge that the doorway [to the EU] volition really open. And this is wherever we need, unneurotic with the subordinate states, to beryllium that this is not the fact."