Relationship dossier
France
North Macedonia
Relationship assessment
A cooperative partnership shaped by France’s support for European integration and its 2019 delay of accession talks.
France toward North Macedonia
+15France has maintained a strategic partnership with North Macedonia and supported its European integration. In 2019, however, France blocked the opening of EU accession talks, before the EU adopted a revised approach and negotiations began in 2020.
North Macedonia toward France
+20North Macedonia has participated in the bilateral strategic partnership with France and pursued closer cooperation with France through its European integration process. The scope of North Macedonia’s additional direct government cooperation with France is less clear.
Overall relationship
+20The relationship has a cooperative bilateral framework and a shared basis for engagement through North Macedonia’s European integration. France’s 2019 blocking of accession talks was a significant friction point, but the EU later opened negotiations in 2020 after adopting a revised approach.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
France and North Macedonia have a cooperative bilateral framework, including a strategic partnership, and France has supported North Macedonia’s European integration. Relations also faced a notable setback when France blocked the opening of EU accession talks in 2019, before the EU adopted a revised approach and negotiations began in 2020.
Areas of tension
- France’s 2019 decision to block the opening of North Macedonia’s EU accession talks.
Key developments
France and North Macedonia established a strategic partnership.
France blocked the opening of EU accession talks with North Macedonia.
The EU opened accession negotiations with North Macedonia after adopting a revised approach.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of bilateral cooperation under the strategic partnership are unclear.
- The extent of recent defense and economic cooperation is uncertain.