National guards prepare to raise the NATO flag in front of the Parliament building in Skopje, North Macedonia, Feb. 11, 2020. The Parliament of North Macedonia on Tuesday ratified the NATO Accession Protocol with all 114 MPs present voting in favor. (Photo by Darko Duridanski/Xinhua)
SKOPJE, Feb. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Parliament of North Macedonia on Tuesday ratified the NATO Accession Protocol with all 114 MPs present voting in favor.
The delayed action law will enter into force after Spain completes the procedure for ratifying the accession protocol which makes North Macedonia the 30th member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
The formal session for the adoption of the law in the Parliament was attended by senior officials of North Macedonia, members of Parliament from neighboring countries, NATO officials and diplomatic corps.
"Our aspiration to join the EU and NATO has been constant for almost 30 years," said Oliver Spasovski, the caretaker prime minister, moments before the vote for ratification, referring to the accession as "a secure future for our country".
North Macedonia was invited to become NATO member in July 2018 after resolving the long-standing name issue with Greece. The NATO Accession Protocol was signed in February 2019. So far, 28 of NATO's 29 member states have ratified the protocol.
