(ANSA) - SKOPJE, 28 MAR - Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski emphasized Monday the great benefits North Macedonia has derived from NATO membership, during a ceremony in Skopje on the third anniversary of the former Yugoslav country's entry into the Atlantic Alliance. "Joining NATO means leaving uncertainty and entering security," Kovacevski said. "It is essential to continue with NATO's open-door policy for European countries that have such an aspiration." In 1993, Skopje's parliament adopted a resolution which indicated membership of NATO and the European Union as priorities for the country's foreign policy. On March 27, 2020, the country joined the Atlantic Alliance, while since July 2022 Skopje has been negotiating EU membership, after a long blockade implemented by Bulgaria. (ANSA).