North Macedonia becomes 30th member of NATO
"The Republic of North Macedonia is officially the new, 30th NATO member," the government in Skopje said in a statement, Deutsche Welle reported. "We have fulfilled the dream of generations."
From NATO headquarters, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg declared: "North Macedonia is now part of the NATO family.”
It was a family of 30 nations and almost 1 billion people "based on the certainty that, no matter what challenges we face, we are all stronger and safer together,” Stoltenberg added.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said a long journey had finally come to an end.
"North Macedona's NATO accession increases security and stability across the Western Balkans and is a sign of NATO's open-door policy, which contributes towards freedom, democracy and human rights," he said.