Skopje, 7 April 2023 (MIA) – The conventional war in Ukraine is the biggest threat to NATO in the future, followed by hybrid attacks, then cyber attacks that occur every day, and we must come together in solidarity, said Robert Mikac from the Faculty of Political Science in Zagreb at the Defence Forum organized by the Ministry of Defence in Skopje.

He believes there are external and internal threats, which is why the forum held on Friday will focus on mutual action towards external threats.

Matthew Rhodes from the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies believes that letting the Russian aggression go unchecked is the biggest threat to NATO, and for the aggression to continue against other neighbors and other Alliance members.

Ruslan Stefanov from the Center for the Study of Democracy in Bulgaria regrets that there are disagreements between North Macedonia and Bulgaria.

“Every division between NATO allies is concerning, and we should be focusing on positive development, relations, infrastructure, constructive capital and, of course, NATO, for mutual security. It’s not the first time we’ve had such disagreements. It’s clear that the EU and NATO now prioritize the war in Ukraine,” he said.

He believes that North Macedonia and Bulgaria could peacefully and positively resolve open issues.

Daniel Braun, director of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, said that security issues are some of the main challenges in the near future.

“Your country has been the target for six months. There is a constant hybrid war with bomb threats. The defence forum will provide us with the knowledge on how to deal with these threats and challenges,” he said.

The Defence Forum was organized by the Ministry of Defence, and opened by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg via video conference, Minister of Defence Slavjanka Petrovska and U.S. Ambassador Angela Aggeler.

This is one of the biggest defence forums held in the country, planned to become tradition. The forum aims to share experiences and good practices on several topics such as geopolitical developments amid the new security architecture and regional security, prevention and response to crises, future place and role of Army, role of civil society in building resilience, private security and defense-security system. dk/nn/