Mickoski: Customs introduced by the United States are expected, we will try to sign a free trade agreement

The 33 % customs duties introduced by the United States are expected. It was clear after President Donald Trump’s inauguration and he said. No country in Europe was ready for it and no one was preparing before. When the problem is here, it is sat at the table and talks, Prime Minister Christian Mickoski said tonight.

He stressed that he had proposed to sign a free trade agreement with the United States and added that in our customs tariff for some product groups we have customs duties higher than 60 percent.

-Still in January, with the then deputy assistant secretary of state, Alexander Cassanof we discussed the signing of a bilateral agreement under the strategic dialogue between the two countries in the field of economics and trade. Even then we started knowing that such processes would follow. I think that was the right path we started to walk. Then, as part of this whole process, it was proposed to sign a free trade agreement with the United States and no customs duties. I ordered our competent institutions to see if we can sign such an agreement under the applicable agreements and I proposed the same to US Secretary of State Howard Latvo. Foreign Minister Timco Mucunski, as well as another senior White House official responsible for the Balkans, had a conversation on this topic in Brussels. From all sides this is welcomed as a great idea- said Mickoski in an interview with Alfa TV.

If possible and if we do, he emphasized, it would be an exceptional step forward to confirm and seal the strategic partnership.

The 20 percent of US customs duties to the EU said it would have secondary effects on our economy, as the country of origin is not important, but where the money is going.

-I expect the dialogue between the EU and the United States, which will develop in the coming period, result in an agreement and find a way to find a solution or exit from this situation. That is a greater danger because we have essentially exported goods worth about 110 million euros, and imported 180 million euros and we are in deficit. This year in January we have a surplus and we have exported about 21 million euros and we have imported 12 million euros. As a product we mostly export buses produced by a foreign investor in Skopje. They are from here, and the country selling them is Belgium, because there is the company’s headquarters- Mickoski explained.