European Parliament Rapporteur on Macedonia Richard Howitt says the Smiljkovci murders must not hinder Macedonia's EU accession, urging for the murderers to be found and punished by law, regardless of their identity and ethnic background.

"A tragic incident, in such circumstances, can have a destabilizing effect and lead to fresh violence. However, it is important that politicians and law enforcement institutions play their role", the British MEP told Deutsche Welle.

He adds that such violence is not characteristic only for Macedonia, but also in other European states.

With regards to the possibility of the incident reflecting on the country's European integration, Howitt says, "Of course there are people who will want to use this event and say it is not a good moment for the country to join the EU, thus hindering the process. However, we will not allow the abuse of this situation and use of those arguments".

German MEP Bernd Posselt believes it is necessary to have constructive activities leading to mutual trust.

"This is very important. We are very pleased by the statements of the Macedonian President and PM, as well as the Kosovo PM regarding the events. I believe it is necessary to develop an ambiance of trust, since escalation of the situation would only help extremists in creating problems", says Posselt.

Slovenian MEP Tanja Fajon urges Macedonian citizens to remain calm and refrain from ethnic violence and incidents.

"This is very important, as much as it is important to find the perpetrators, but also act with wisdom and calm. I appeal to authorities in Skopje to do everything in their power to ensure the safe future for all citizens and bring peace back to the country", adds Fajon.

Another Slovenian MEP, Jelko Kacin says the horrible crime has shocked not only in Macedonia, but also the Western Balkans and the EU.

"The perpetrators are not Albanians, Macedonians, Roma, they are people with name and surname. Such grisly crime has a name and surname, and that is why those responsible for this crime should be identified, arrested and brought before the court", emphasizes Kacin.

He says the situation in Macedonia is full of emotions, which have accumulated over the years.

"The Macedonian leadership should do its part of the job in order to overcome such a situation. According to me, a breakthrough in the Euro-Atlantic integration process would be most appropriate. Macedonia currently needs NATO membership, which would bring security guarantees, but also eliminate much of that frustration and trauma, myths and fears", Kacin told Deutsche Welle.