N. Macedonia, Albania should start EU membership talks without new conditions: EU chief EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen says that North Macedonia and Albania should be allowed to start membership talks even as Brussels reviews the accession process, after their bids were stymied last year by objections chiefly from France. She also warns the UK that it cannot hope to get frictionless trade with the EU post-Brexit without ensuring freedom of movement for Europeans. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES