Skopje, 12 September 2023 (MIA) – Interior Minister Oliver Spasovski and the Head of the OSCE Mission to Skopje, Ambassador Kilian Wahl attended Tuesday the handover ceremony of the vehicles donated by the OSCE Mission to Skopje to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The donation is realised within the project "Assisting the National Authorities of the Republic of North Macedonia to Decrease the Risk of Weapon Proliferation and Misuse of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW),” the Ministry of the Internal Affairs said in a press release.

Interior Minister Spasovski said that the overall objective of this project is to support Law Enforcement in developing a depoliticized, professional service capable of addressing Trans-National Threats and organized crime in line with international democratic principles and human rights standards.

“The risk of the weapons proliferation in the modern world, where organized crime has crossed national borders, represents one of the greatest security challenges, not only for our country at the local level, but this problem represents a serious global challenge in efforts to preserve global peace and security. Today's donation of vehicles worth €50,000, intended for the Sector for Weapons, is just another segment of this important project for us,” Spasovski said.

He thanked the OSCE Mission to Skopje for today's donation and for the successful cooperation and partnership so far in building the capacities of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the fight against the misuse and illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons.

“As part of OSCE's concrete commitment to support the country in this endeavour, I am pleased to hand over these vehicles. The needs of more complex firearms deactivation and destruction inspection facilities, as well as the firearms inspection facilities across the country, require adequate tools for the job. I look forward to seeing these vehicles in action as we strive to establish sustainable mechanisms for the destruction and deactivation of SALW in North Macedonia and make it a safer place for all citizens,” Ambassador Kilian Wahl said.

Photo: Ministry of Internal Affairs.