National Coordinator for NATO Stevo Pendarovski said that Macedonia has de facto became a member of NATO. This happened when the alliance's member states signed the accession protocol, he said. "Today, after a full 26 years since the declaration in the Macedonian parliament, we became a de facto member of NATO. This accomplished the greatest strategic goal which all the political elites and leaderships since (independence) September 8, 1991 held until now," he wrote on Twitter. Pendarovski is, together with Macedonia's Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov, in Brussels, where he attended the signing of the accession protocol for Macedonia's membership in NATO. This gave Macedonia the right to participate in NATO meetings without the right to vote, while it will become a full member once all 29 NATO states ratify the protocol in their parliaments.