Skopje, 7 July 2024 (MIA) - Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski will head the Macedonian delegation at the NATO Summit, taking place from July 9 to 11 in Washington. According to government information, the delegation will also include the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Timcho Mucunski, the Minister of Defence, Vlado Misajlovski, and the Minister of Interior, Panche Toshkovski.

Washington summit will mark NATO's 75th anniversary and will address all the problems and challenges facing the Alliance.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Mucunski, emphasized at the NATO working breakfast on Friday, ahead of next week's Summit in Washington, that we are grateful NATO recognizes the Western Balkans as a region of strategic importance for the Alliance.

“We firmly believe that continuing the close coordination and joint activities of NATO and EU in the region are crucial, primarily through the acceleration of the European and Euro-Atlantic integration processes, thus strengthening stability and closing the vacuum that can be used for destabilizing influence by third parties,” Mucunski underlined.

In a video posted on his Facebook profile on Saturday, Mucunski said that the event is an excellent opportunity to 'demonstrate the unity among all allies and our joint efforts to advance transatlantic cooperation.'

"Today, we are heading to the USA, where a delegation led by Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski will attend the NATO Summit in Washington. I would like to take this opportunity to thank our strategic partners for organizing this historic summit, which celebrates the 75th anniversary of NATO's founding. The event is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the unity among all allies and our joint efforts to advance transatlantic cooperation. We continue to be a reliable NATO ally, investing over 2% of GDP in defense and providing support to Ukraine,” Mucunski said in a video message.

So far, there is no information about bilateral meetings between Prime Minister Mickoski and the members of our delegation. When asked if there will be a meeting with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the upcoming NATO Summit, Mickoski said that if such a meeting occurs, he hopes they will maintain their dignity and engage in discussions as partners and good neighbors.

“I hope that we will maintain our dignity and engage in discussions as partners and good neighbors if such a conversation takes place. If it doesn’t, I hope that it will happen soon. Our government’s stance is to seek good relations with our neighbors, to build cooperative bridges, and to view this as a two-way street,” Mickoski said.

“Until now, I suppose they were used to a one-way street, but now we are the politicians and the government who want to lead a good neighborly two-way street, and that is how we will continue to act,” Mickoski said recently.

Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis recently stated that he expects the new Prime Minister to use the constitutional name of the country for both domestic and international purposes and that he will raise the issue at the upcoming Summit.

The United States strongly supports the Prespa Agreement and hopes that bilateral disputes will remain outside of NATO, said Alton Buland, Principal Director for European and NATO Policy in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, in an interview for Voice of America in Macedonian on Saturday, ahead of the commemoration of alliance’s 75th anniversary next week in Washington. He also said that the Western Balkan countries need to make the necessary reforms for EU accession, and that the lengthy integration process could lead Russia and other "malign actors" to exploit the people's discontent.

“Membership in the EU is certainly a decision for the European Union and its member states. However, the US has always been a strong supporter of Euro-Atlantic integration for the Western Balkans. We continue to encourage countries to implement the necessary reforms on this path and to adhere to international agreements. I think that when there is impatience with what can be a long integration process, it can create opportunities for disappointment, and for Russia and other malign actors to spread disinformation and exploit the people's discontent. Therefore, the risk is all the greater, which is why we would encourage countries to do everything they can to continue on this path of Euro-Atlantic integration for the region,” Buland noted.

During the interview, Buland points to the State Department for comments on particular political issues.

"For a political issue like this, and especially a bilateral one, I would again refer you to our colleagues at the US Department of State who lead our diplomacy. From the Department of Defense’s perspective, we strongly support the Prespa Agreement. We also strongly support NATO membership and the contributions of North Macedonia and Greece, and we will continue to do everything we can to strengthen those ties within the Alliance and to keep making this the most successful and strongest alliance in world history,” Buland said.

Buland expresses his anticipation for the leaders from the country to join the celebration of NATO’s 75th anniversary next week in Washington.

“For North Macedonia, I believe it should continue to play a leading role in advancing regional stability in the Western Balkans. I must express my gratitude to the Ministry of Defense for North Macedonia’s contribution to the NATO KFOR peacekeeping mission in Kosovo and the EU missions in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which have helped to promote stability in that country. We appreciate the contribution of North Macedonia to Ukraine. Even as a small country, this security support is essential for helping Ukraine defend itself against the brutal and unprovoked Russian aggression in this conflict that is killing thousands of civilians in Ukraine. Thus, I look forward to North Macedonia joining the other NATO allies here next week to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the most powerful and successful alliance in world history, which continues to work on strengthening our collective deterrence and defense. And this is such a critical moment and truly a commitment that our country, our citizens have taken towards North Macedonia and the citizens of 30 other nations, to stand together and support one another in the event of an external threat to NATO. And we look forward to advancing and preparing the Alliance for the threats it may face in the future, from dealing with terrorism to addressing climate change challenges. I expect that next week we will witness strong statements and exceptionally powerful and historic decisions from 32 allied leaders, including North Macedonia, to advance all these goals,” Buland said. 

The main topics at the NATO Summit in Washington will be providing secure and stable support for Ukraine, enhancing deterrence and defense, strengthening transatlantic defense industrial cooperation, increasing defense production, and reinforcing global partnerships with the Indo-Pacific region.

At a press conference ahead of the Summit, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that support for Ukraine will be NATO’s 'most urgent task' and that he expects the heads of state or government of member countries to agree on a 'significant package' for Kiev.

Photo: MIA archive