Taking into consideration the complex domestic and regional constellation of relations within which the Macedonian social system exists, it is necessary to point out the role and the importance of the international factors' influence on the Republic of Macedonia. The two parallel processes of EU and NATO integration are certainly a priority, and, in the long term, they will be the most important factors in the country's political and economic development and its future position in the international scene. These two processes are the country's key concerns, and they are championed by the main supporters of the debate on Macedonia's young people's future. Hence, there is a need of more detailed research of the young people's opinions and expectations about Macedonia's Euro-Atlantic future. There is also a need for educating them about the important international role of the United Nations and its operations. Perceptions of the Process of Accession to the European Union The trend of high approval towards Macedonia's accession process to the European Union, which has garnered a large percentage of support among the general population within the last two years, is also obvious among the young population. Thus, a high 73.8% of the citizens aged 18 to 30 would vote for a referendum for Macedonia's membership to the European Union. However, although the young population's aspirations for EU membership cannot be disputed, this target group's lower percentage of support compared to Macedonia's general population should be noted. For instance, 87.2% of Macedonia's whole population would vote for EU membership if there was a referendum in the next week 31 , indicating approximately 14.5% higher inclination to EU membership than is found among the youth. Table 9 In addition to the expected decline of the trend for strong EU membership support noted in all EU candidate countries during the period after they were given candidate status, in the case of Macedonia's declining enthusiasm there are several concrete factors which are directly connected to the influence of the reform process and the problems that arise from it. The expected decline in Euro euphoria(which peaked in two most important moments, that is, the submission of its membership application and the proclamation of its candidate status) has been in some way underlined by two parallel processes that took place in the Republic of Macedonia and in the European Union. On the one hand, it is realistic to expect that the interest in the national election, the central social issue in the first half of 2006, should surpass the interest for the technical and administrative parts of the European integration process. In this manner, although the bid for EU membership was one of the more important issues during the campaign, it generated less interest than the election results. On the other hand, the situation in the European Union itself and its internal debate about the Union's enlargement process and absorption powers is of great importance. Bearing in mind this issue's wide media coverage, in which certain pessimistic views apropos the European future of Macedonia were also present, it is realistic to expect it had a certain impact on Macedonia's young people, who in general would be the most affected by any problems arising from the relations between the EU and Macedonia. Finally, the aforementioned tendencies shouldn't in any case be interpreted as a serious decline in support among the young population for Macedonia's membership to the EU. The degree of support remains significantly strong, and the fact that only 5.8% of the respondents were against EU membership is in favour of this thesis. Also, this strong support is predominant throughout all demographic categories without any significant fluctuations. This interpretation is further supported when the data is cross tabulated according to the financial situations of the respondents. Strong support at all economic levels is obvious, with the wealthier respondents having the most positive perceptions(77.8% of those with an excellent financial situation and 73.1% of those with a good financial situation). A bit more sceptical are the poorest respondents, of whom 12.1% would vote against membership to the EU. However, support in this category is nonetheless within the scope of the general average. Finally, if a comparison of perceptions is made between the youth in Macedonia and the youth in EU member countries, the higher percentage of support for EU membership among young Macedonians is noteworthy. Namely, 73.8% of Macedonian young people have a positive perception of EU membership, while only 63% of the young people in EU member countries feel the same way. 32 Table 10 EU Influence Perceptions on the Main Social Parameters If we look at the young people's attitudes regarding the influence of the European integration process on several important social issues, it is obvious that they perceive the European Union and the accession process as extremely important factors for solving certain problems in the Macedonian social and political platform. Enthusiasm for the economic component is extremely obvious, as eight out of ten young Macedonians believe the three main parameters for economic growth – economic development, direct foreign investments and technological development – will be greatly aided by the European integration process. If Macedonia's integration General population (research of the IDSCS, April 2006) Young population (YAS) If there is a referendum for the accession of the Republic of Macedonia to the European Union, how would you vote(% positive) 87,2% 73,8% Table 9 _____________________________________________________________ 31 Research conducted by the Institute for Democracy"Societas Civilis" – Skopje, for the needs of the Secretariat for European Issues, April 2006. 32 In“Youth takes the floor”-Young Europeans' concerns and expectations as to the development of the European Union(Background note based on relevant findings from Euro barometer data) Publication: December 2005, p. 2. Friedrich Ebert Stiftung 27