Skopje, 30 July 2021 (MIA) – North Macedonia’s Defense Minister Radmila Shekerinska on Friday held a phone call with U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Colin Kahl. Shekerinska and Kahl concurred that North Macedonia, as a NATO member, has an important role in security in the region. Exceptional progress has been made and today, the country is a full-fledged Alliance member which this year will achieve full military integration into NATO structures. According to the Ministry of Defense, Shekerinska stressed that North Macedonia is fully committed to the values of the Alliance, and a clear example of this is the participation of its Army members in NATO-led missions. She pointed out that the Army’s capacities are also capacities of NATO – the Krivolak military training ground, which is continuously developing with U.S. support, this year hosted the ‘Decisive Strike’ military exercise and was praised by the allies for the possibilities it offers for real training and development of interoperability between the member states. The Defense Minister said the stable growth of the defense budget, seeing through the modernization process, as well as maintaining the intensive training and exercise process remain a priority. She added that the Ministry has taken major steps forward in building integrity and transparency, noting that the defense is the most transparent institution in the country for two years in a row now, and this year it has the score of 100 percent in terms of fulfillment of the criteria. U.S. Under Secretary Kahl voiced support for the reform process and the process of modernization of the Army, adding that the United States continues to be the country’s sincere and loyal ally and partner in the development of defense.