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Leaders of Macedonian political parties agree on early parliamentary elections

The election will be held before the end of April next year

SKOPJE, June 2 /TASS/. The leaders of Macedonian political parties have agreed to hold early parliamentary elections in 2016, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy Johannes Hahn said in Skopje on Tuesday.

According to him, Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski and his opponents agreed to hold early parliamentary elections before the end of April next year. -0-fil

Local observers believe that Hahn’s statement could signal a possible end to the internal political standoff in Macedonia.

The internal political crisis in Macedonia developed against the background of attempts by social democrats to oust the legitimate authorities elected in early parliamentary elections in April 2014. The opposition led by Zoran Zaev, the leader of the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM), decided to boycott work in parliament. In January 2015, Zaev blackmailed Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski with materials, which allegedly discredited senior government officials, and urged the prime minister to step down.