Following disputed elections, Macedonia requires clear guidance from the EU if it is to alleviate its growing political crisis

In the aftermath of elections in April 2014, several political parties in Macedonia, including the main opposition party, the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM), have refused to take up their parliamentary seats amid accusations of electoral fraud. Goran Janev writes that while the record of the ruling VMRO-DPMNE party in government has raised legitimate democratic questions, the strategy being pursued by the opposition is unlikely to be successful. He argues that what the country really needs is clearer guidance from external actors, most notably those within the EU.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: Macedonian parliamentary and presidential elections, 2014 http://www.europeansources.info/record/macedonian-parliamentary-and-presidential-elections-2014/

ESO: Background information: Key findings of the 2014 Progress Report on the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia http://www.europeansources.info/record/memo-key-findings-of-the-2014-progress-report-on-the-former-yugoslav-republic-of-macedonia/

ESO: Background information: Greece tells Macedonia it must 'accept European values' http://www.europeansources.info/record/greece-tells-macedonia-it-must-accept-european-values/

ESO: Background information: Macedonian opposition: EU ignores democratic backslide http://www.europeansources.info/record/macedonian-opposition-eu-ignores-democratic-backslide/

---