Prosecutors issuing the arrest warrants for former speaker Trajko Veljanoski, former minister for education Spiro Ristovski and former minister for transport Mile Janakieski, said the three former high officials were involved in violent acts which have threatened the constitutional order and security in state institutions.

Veljanoski, who benefits from parliamentary immunity, has denied charges and was released hours after his arrest. The three are leading figures of VMRO-DPMNE party of exiled former PM Nikola Gruevski.

A Skopje Court has today asked Parliament to revoke Veljanoski’s immunity, after he was charged by the state prosecutors on Wednesday.

In April 2017, tens of VMRO-DPMNE supporters stormed into the parliament building, injuring several MPs and journalists, including former social-democratic chair Zoran Zaev, currently the prime minister of the country.

Prosecutors have said that Veljanovski, Ristovski, and Janakieski were involved in a plot to block the parliament’s activity and prevent the peaceful transfer of power from VMRO-DPMNE to LSDM.

The violent acts by nationalists followed plans by Zaev’s LSDM and Albanian minority parties to approve a controversial law which would make Albanian the second official language of Macedonia.

Former VMRO-DPMNE leader Nikola Gruevski, currently on the run, is also under investigation on the matter, alongside 15 others.

Mr. Gruevski, who served as prime minister of Macedonia for 10 years from 2006 to 2016, has now fled the country and granted political asylum in Hungary, following a prison sentence on corruption charges.  

Following the election of social democratic leader Zoran Zaev to the premiership of Macedonia , the small Balkan country has agreed an historic deal with its southern neighbor Greece to change its name to ‘North Macedonia’ and has since signed a membership protocol with NATO, while it expects to formally start membership talks with the European Union later this year.

Last year, EU member states agreed to a European Commission recommendation to open accession talks for Macedonia to join the European Union, a scenario which looks more feasible now following the landmark agreement between Athens and Skopje.

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The vote at Albania’s Parliamentary Committee on National Security comes days after NATO Allies signed the Accession Protocol for North Macedonia in Brussels. Following the meeting in Brussels and after holding up its admission for years, Greece became the first nation Friday to ratify Macedonia’s membership of NATO, after the two states resolved a decades-old name dispute last month.

“This is an important moment not only for North Macedonia, but also for Albania, as free countries and part of Balkan countries , which choose which alliance to be part of,” said the committee’s chair Ermonela Felaj.

Felaj also confirmed that during next Thursday’s plenary in Albania’s Parliament, Tirana’s vote will be greeted by a special address from Macedonian Speaker of Parliament Talat Xhaferri.

Speaking in front of the National Security Committee in Tirana, Foreign Ministry Treaty Director Armand Skapi said that North Macedonia has traveled a long way towards its NATO and that its membership “directly affects the strengthening of security across the Euro-Atlantic geographic space and especially in the Western Balkans, while benefiting bilateral neighborly relations with Albania.”

Opposition members of parliament temporarily abandoned their typical obstructive engagement across parliamentary activity and joined their votes in favor of North Macedonia’s NATO accession.

Macedonia’s membership has been blocked over the past 28 years due to a name dispute with its southern neighbor Greece, which claims the name of ‘Macedonia’ and its historical connotation for its northern region.

Following intense negotiations between Skopje and Athens, both countries have now agreed to a name change for the former Yugoslav republic (FYROM) into North Macedonia, clearing the way for the Euro-Atlantic integration of the small Balkans state.

Last year, the European Commission recommended opening accession talks for Macedonia to join the EU, a scenario which looks more feasible following the landmark agreement between Athens and Skopje.

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Macedonia\’s membership has been blocked over the past 28 years due to a name dispute with its southern neighbor Greece, which claims the name of \’Macedonia\’ and its historical connotation for its northern region.

Following intense negotiations between Skopje and Athens, both countries have now agreed to a name change for the former Yugoslav republic (FYROM) into North Macedonia, clearing the way for the Euro-Atlantic integration of the small Balkans state.

NATO had last year formally invited FYROM to becoming a member of the Alliance, pending a successful ratification of the name change as agreed with Greece.

Following the signing of the Accession Protocol, North Macedonia can now take part in NATO activities as an invitee.  The accession process now moves to the capitals of the 29 Allies where the Protocol will be ratified according to national procedures.  The country will become a member of NATO as soon as all NATO members have ratified the Accession Protocol.

Speaking following the signing ceremony NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg said, “NATO keeps almost one billion citizens across Europe and North America secure and with  you joining NATO there will be thirty countries committed to protect each other. Your accession will bring more stability to the Western Balkans. This is good for the region and for Euro-Atlantic security.”

Mr. Stoltenberg congratulated both Skopje and Athens for showing commitment and courage in reaching an agreement on the name issue.

North Macedonia already makes important contributions to NATO’s training mission in Afghanistan and the Alliance’s KFOR peace keeping mission in Kosovo.

With Macedonia’s membership, NATO closes in its borders in the Balkans further sealing its presence in a region where Russian interests are at play. Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, Bulgaria and Romania are all NATO members, and the Western Alliance is already present in Kosovo, leaving only Serbia as Russia’s hand in the region.

Political analysts expect Moscow to undermine the deal which would further delay Macedonia’s de-facto membership into NATO.

The 2m small Balkan country already provides valuable support to NATO-led operations and missions in Afghanistan and Kosovo.

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During an interview for Sitel TV in Macedonia, Gruevski said he was not scared to confront the prison sentence given to him by a Skopje court and continue the legal battle, however, fresh information that he would be assassinated in confinement made him change his mind.

\”I received information from people who were well informed inside prison, that someone was planning my elimination in jail, and this made me change my decision and leave Macedonia,\” Gruevski said.

Gruevski fled to Budapest in November 2018 after passing through Albania, Montenegro and Serbia following a conviction on corruption charges and a 2-year jail sentence. Reportedly, his friend Viktor Orban arranged for political asylum to be granted to Gruevski, over political persecution pretences in Macedonia.

Gruevski, who was prime minister of Macedonia from 2006 to 2016, was convicted in May over a €600.000 state money used to  buy a luxury Mercedes for personal use.

In April 2017, his VMRO-DPMNE party supporters stormed into the parliament building, injuring several MPs and journalists, including former social-democratic opposition leader Zoran Zaev.

Gruevski, known for his pro Russian stance and involvement in high levels of corruption, was replaced in May 2017 by social democratic leader Zoran Zaev, following a period of dirty tapping recordings which brought down the Gruevski Klan from power.

Following the election of Mr. Zaev to the premiership, the small Balkan country has agreed an historic deal with its southern neighbor Greece to change its name to ‘North Macedonia’ and has since signed a membership protocol with NATO, while it expects to formally start membership talks with the European Union later this year.

Last year, EU member states agreed to a European Commission recommendation to open accession talks for Macedonia to join the European Union, a scenario which looks more feasible now following the landmark agreement between Athens and Skopje.

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Following months of fierce debates and several angry protests, Greece’s Parliament has ratified the Prespa Agreement by 153 votes out of 300 total MPs, under which FYROM agrees to abandon its constitutional name of Republic of Macedonia, used since it gained independence from Yugoslavia in 1991.

Instead, the country will call itself North Macedonia ending a bitter feud with Greece, whose northern region is called Macedonia. The ratified agreement in Athens was earlier approved by the Macedonian Parliam ent and paves the way for Greece to lift its veto for Skopje’s membership into NATO and the European Union.

The issue has been keeping bilateral relations between Athens and Skopje under constant deadlock since 1991, only to be shaken by both Macedonian PM Zoran Zaev and his Greek counterpart Alexis Tsipras last year when the two agreed in Prespa to turn the page for both Balkan countries.

Despite a failed referendum last year, social democratic PM Zaev managed to approve the deal in Parliament thanks to 8 defected MPs from the nationalist opposition party VMRO-DPMNE as well as its ethnic Albanian allies in government.

In Athens, the ongoing debate since last year has provoked two no-confidence motions on Tsipras’ government as well as several massive protests by Green nationalists angry that the name ‘Macedonia’ has still been kept by their northern neighbors. The vote marks another victory for Tsipras’s Syriza party while the opposition New Democracy party as well as the extreme right wing Golden Dawn were strongly against the deal.

Following the debate and vote in parliament, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said that future generations in both countries will owe gratitude to those MPs who courageously and boldly laid the foundations for a future of peace, solidarity and harmonious coexistence between the two peoples.

“The northern Macedonia that was born today will be a friendly country, ally and supporter of Greece in its efforts for security, stability and co-development in the region.” Wrote Tsipras on Twitter.

According to the bilateral agreement, now ratified by both parliaments, Greece agrees to recognize Macedonia (FYROM) under the new name of ‘Republic of North Macedonia or “Severna Makedonija”, its language as Macedonian and its citizens Macedonians or Citizens of the Republic of North Macedonia, thus opening the door to a new era of cooperation between the two neighboring countries.

Commenting immediately after the vote, Macedonian PM Zoran Zaev wrote on Twitter: “Congratulations my friend @tsipras_eu, together with our peoples we reached a historical victory. Long live the Prespa Agreement! For eternal peace and progress of the Balkans and in Europe!”

Skopje and Athens have been under intense UN mediated negotiations to resolve the name dispute, which dates back to 1991 when Macedonia peacefully broke away from Yugoslavia, declaring its independence under the name Republic of Macedonia. Greece has since vetoed its NATO and EU integration until a new name acceptable to Athens was agreed.

Last year, the European Commission recommended opening accession talks for Macedonia to join the EU, a scenario which looks more feasible following the landmark agreement between Athens and Skopje.

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The landmark parliamentary move of 80 against 39 MPs to amend the constitution and to allow the Balkan nation to change its name, follows a national referendum which failed to reach the required threshold to make it binding.

The vote will end three decades of diplomatic conflicts with is southern neighbor Greece, which to date has blocked Macedonia’ integration into NATO and the European Union. Greece has been opposing the name of Macedonia, which is the same as its northern region.

Instead, thanks to a recent agreement signed by both prime ministers in Prespa, the country will be called North Macedonia. According to the deal, Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and his Greek counterpart Alexis Tsipras agreed that if Macedonia was renamed North Macedonia, Greece would stop blocking Macedonia’s bid to join the European Union and NATO.

Opposition rightwing nationalists VMRO party, backed by Russia, fought hard to prevent any of their MPs backing Prime Minister Zoran Zaev’s attempt to amend the constitution – however, eight of them voted in favor, prompting their immediate ejection from the VMRO party.

The United States and the European Union have hailed the move as an historic decision which would open the way for Macedonia’s Euro-Atlantic integration, fearing recent Russian advances on the small Balkan nation.

The US State Department welcomed the parliamentary result, which was opposed by Russia. In a tweet over the weekend, the department’s spokesperson Heather Nauert said: “The US believes that the Prespa Agreement is a historic opportunity to advance stability, security and prosperity throughout the region.”

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“We believe that these are actions coming from a small group of people driven by extreme nationalist feelings and we hope that such incidents that incite ethnic hatred will remain isolated. The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs of Albania calls on the responsible institutions to investigate the instigators of violence and bring them to justice.” – read a statement on the Ministry’s website.

The strong statement comes after anti-Albanian chanting was overheard during a commemorative event in the town of Kruševo where participants were remembering the ‘Ilinden Uprising’ of August 1903 where predominantly ethnic Bulgarian peasants and the Aromanian population of the region rose against Ottoman forces in the region.

Despite the presence of Macedonia’s President Gjorge Ivanov who was delivering a speech at the event, a group of young nationalists were recorded chanting anti-Albanian racist slogans “Good Albanian, Dead Albanian”

While Ivanov largely ignored the slogans and later its office failed to condemn the young nationalists, Macedonia’s progressive prime minister Zoran Zaev immediately spoke out against the incident.

“The Government of Macedonia condemns calls for hatred and violence which go against the interests of the Macedonian citizens. Ilinden is a day for unity not divisions.” – said Zaev through a statement.

Macedonia’s stability,  which comprises 30% of its population as ethnic Albanians, has come under threat from several inter-ethnic conflicts between its majority Slavic and minority Albanian populations, most notably during an armed uprising in 2000 which ended with the Ohrid Agreement, granting wider rights to its Albanian population.

Despite the agreement, ethnic relations have been fragile and are largely preserved through a power-sharing deal at the government level. Relations between the two communities on the ground remain frail.

Albania and Macedonia are both expecting to start EU membership talks next year and both countries enjoy relatively good neighborly relations, despite isolated incidents at such events.

The small Balkan country will soon go to a national referendum which is expected to ratify a recent deal with Greece over a new name of ‘North Macedonia’, which is disputed by opposition nationalist party VRMO-DPMNE, where President Ivanov comes from.

“Albania and Albanians have been and will be long-lasting friends of Macedonia. We believe in the values of coexistence, in the harmony and cooperation between our countries and our citizens.” – ended the statement from Tirana.

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As the country’s four main political parties met last night in what was seen as a third and last attempt to resolve the deadlock, hopes were high for an agreement after ruling social democrats announced they had met all opposition requests, including a special provision which would guarantee a technical government in place 100 days ahead of any general elections.

However, VMRO DPMNE chairman Hristijan Mickovski did not grant his party’s accord, sending the third round of political talks into disarray.

As part of a deal between Skopje and Athens which would rename the small Balkan country as Northern Macedonia, its citizens are expected to vote on a national referendum to approve the name.

Without opposition participation, pundits warn, it may be difficult to achieve the 50% turnout needed for the referendum to be valid.

Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev accused the opposition of blocking the talks and lying when they say they want their country to joine NATO and the European Union.

“It is unfortunate that Hristijan Mickovski failed to seize the moment. Instead of boarding the train towards the EU and NATO, he chose to stay on the dark side of history,” Zaev said during a public address.

Social Democratic Party LSDM accuse VMRO-DPMNE of blocking the deal because of darker intentions linked to a possible amnesty for their former leader and former prime minister Nikola Gruevski and his close collaborators currently on trial over corruption charges.

Following the historic deal with Greece, Macedonia has got a formal invitation this month to join NATO, pending the referendum’s results and expects to formally open EU membership talks by the end of next year.

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Hahn who visited Albania and Macedonia this week said the visit was geared to “set out the path towards opening of accession negotiations in June 2019 with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and with Albania”.

The statement follows the June Council Conclusions where EU member states agreed to start membership talks with Albania and Macedonia within 2019 if both small Balkan nations show substantial progress in their crucial rule of law reforms under way.

Earlier on Commissioner Hahn told Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama in Brussels that both Brussels and Tirana “should start work immediately even before the summer break to work on all challenges in order to guarantee a sound and full analysis of the situation.”

While accession talks are already underway for both Serbia and Montenegro, the European Commission recommended earlier this year that negotiations start with both Albania and Macedonia, with the latter agreeing to solve a long conflict over a name dispute with its southern neighbor Greece.

EU member states disappointed Albanian and Macedonian leaders when they decided in June during their General Affairs Council meeting in Brussels to postpone opening accession talks until next year.

All Western Balkan countries hope to join an increasingly skeptical and tired European Union with a target agenda of 2025 for final steps of membership.

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Under the deal with Athens, the country which calls itself Macedonia and which is internationally recognized as the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), would be renamed to Republic of North Macedonia, breaking a decade of deadlock of Euro-Atlantic integration for the former Yugoslav republic which was previously blocked by Greece.

A joint statement after NATO’s summit in Brussels said the members “have decided to invite the government in Skopje to begin accession talks to join our alliance,”.

The invitation to being accession talks, comes weeks after Macedonia’s new social-democratic prime minister Zoran Zaev agreed with his Greek counterpart Alexis Tsipras to move forward with a new name for the country, thus removing any Greek suspicion that its northern neighbor may have territorial claims over its northern region which is also called Macedonia.

With Macedonia’s membership, NATO closes in its borders in the Balkans further sealing its presence in a region where Russian interests are at play. Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, Bulgaria and Romania are all NATO members, and the Western Alliance is already present in Kosovo, leaving only Serbia as Russia’s hand in the region.

Political analysts expect Moscow to undermine the deal which would further delay Macedonia’s de-facto membership into NATO.

The 2m small Balkan country already provides valuable support to NATO-led operations and missions in Afghanistan and Kosovo.

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