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Within the framework of the visit to the Kingdom of Denmark, Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki had a meeting with the Minister for European Affairs, Nicolai Wammen. The strategic priorities, that is to say, the integration of the Republic of Macedonia into NATO and the EU and the support of the Kingdom of Denmark in the attainment of those goals were discussed at the meeting.
EDITORIAL
Mutual Understanding and Tolerance in the Republic of Macedonia as Fundamental Values for Next 20 Years
When I thought about the word tolerance, in terms of semiotics two things crossed my mind that can be symbols, not in the literary rhetoric sense of the word as a problem of someone elses freedom and different opinion and the idea that what the other says is always right, but rather as utter pious patience. It seems to me that had it not been for tolerance, what we have put in Article 5 and in the Declaration of Independent Macedonia that the Parliament of the Republic of Macedonia passed on 17 September 1991, and that is respect for all human rights and tolerance on all grounds, today I suppose we would not have talked about Macedonias independence, and especially not about this Macedonia independent, sovereign and a model of tolerance in the Balkans. Not only tolerance on religious grounds though but all those five postulates that the Government of the Republic of Macedonia established: social tolerance, cultural tolerance, tolerance of ethnic groups, tolerance of minorities and what was the ultimate, fundamental, important and powerful value religious tolerance. As a young country, we embarked on nurturing tradition, religion, tolerance of the environment, liberation from prejudice, cultural, identity-related and sociological stereotypes, separation and delusion. We tried all together in these past 20 years to create a world of better conduct. The idea of the first world conference on inter-religious dialogue literally united us all in a shared alphabet, in a semina verbi, in a new way of action in the country. And we did not stop there. Our friends from the Council of Europe and UNESCO strongly supported the Government of the Republic of Macedonia, the Ministry of Culture and the Commission for Relations with Religious Communities, all with a common goal: to continue the dialogue of coexistence, understanding and tolerance. We went through the second conference as well, passed two important declarations at both conferences and did not stop there either. We received an excellent report from the Department of State and we managed over the past 20 years with all those fundamental rights that we established in the 1990s through the political system of the state, through the social aspect of the state, through all the laws, the laws passed by the Commission for Relations with Religious Communities, especially the Parliament of the Republic of Macedonia, not to turn off the set path of international conventions, ratifications, norms of the UN and conventions of the Council of Europe. Being tolerant is listening to the stance of the other, of the different, without holding inside conflicting opinions and views. That does not mean not voicing opposing views and being silent. On the contrary, the goal is through dialogue to come to and seek out a real common consumer of arbitrage of tolerance. Through tolerance we free ourselves also of our need to be polite through restraint and focus on understanding the other. Only then can we say in a sociological context what we think of the other and also hear what the other, the different, thinks of us. Ethnic tolerance was important all these years. It was authentic and essential and a mainstay for keeping out identity, the identity of the Republic of Macedonia. All the webs woven through tolerance kept us from falling into the abyss as certain other countries did. We persevered on that road and endured the sometimes harsh challenges from the neighborhood. It appears to me that during all this period, especially in recent years, the laws we passed, the law on discrimination, which the Council of Europe said must topple stereotypes, barriers and taboos in Macedonia, the law on the legal state of a church, religious community and religious group, the law on denationalization, the law on religious holidays, all of them brought about a different alphabet among the religious communities and among the very leaders in Macedonia. What we have achieved last
year with the Ministry of Education with the introduction of Ethic of Religions in schools was also the main imperative about how we should go further. Without scholars, great minds, young promising people who know education is a strong argument for future tolerance, we cannot talk about tolerance. As John Stuart Mill says, we do not necessarily need to respect the views of the other far from it juts to try to understand and tolerate them; just to tolerate them because without tolerance, the conditions for rational criticism and rational condemnation, and of course for rational debate, are being destroyed. Therefore, we are going to leave these past 20 years as concepts inside any of us, no matter our ethnicity or religion, to tell their own truth. And their story. We expect a strong echo from the Republic of Macedonia as leader in honoring religious rights and freedom both in the Balkans and Europe as an example with a new image of exercising religious rights and liberties. Valentina BOZINOVSKA, President of the Commission for Relations with Religious Communities and Groups
DIPLOMATIC NEWS
Editor: Vladimir Efremovski Editorial Board: Agneza Rusi; Lina Ognenova; Zuko Rizvanski; Shaban Jashari; Aleksandar Trajkoski; Katerina Stavreska; Eli Bojadjieska Ristovski; Edvard Mitevski; Maciej Kaczorowski; Elena Georgievska; Mircela Dzuvalekovska Casule Photo: Dragan Todorovski
Published monthly by: MACEDONIAN INFORMATION CENTRE Director: Dragan Antonov Chief Translator: Aleksandra Ilievska Address: Naum Naumovski Borce 73, 1000 Skopje, Republic of Macedonia www.micnews.com.mk
BILATERAL RELATIONS
that the Republic of Croatia would continue supporting the Republic of Macedonia in its Euro-Atlantic integration. During the visit, the Ministers of Justice of both countries, Blerim Bexheti and Draen Bonjakovi signed the Agreement on Extradition between the Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Croatia. President Ivanov also laid flowers at the grave of the Macedonian revolutionary and Vice President of the Presidium of ASNOM, Panko Brasnarov, at the Zagreb cemetery and attended the presentation at the Croatian Economic Chamber about the Croatian companies doing business in Macedonia.
On 17-18 October, the Emir of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, paid a 2-day official visit to the Republic of Macedonia. His delegation included 12 Ministers of the Government of Qatar. At the meeting between Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov and Sheikh Al-Thani, the bilateral relations between the two countries were considered, as special stress was laid on the development and promotion of the economic cooperation, boosting trade and the possibility for direct Qatari investments in the Macedonian economy. Views about the situation in the regions of the Middle East, North Africa and the Balkans were also shared. President Ivanov decorated Sheikh Al-Thani with an 8 September Order for his commitment to promoting the dialogue between civilizations and religions and the cooperation with the Republic of Macedonia in that regard, as well as for his exceptional contribution and dedication to the development and promotion of the relations between the State of Qatar and the Republic of Macedonia. In the course of his visit, the Emir of Qatar also met Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski and Parliament Speaker Trajko Veljanoski. Within the framework of the visit, seven bilateral agreements were signed, most important of which are those in the fields of investments, employment and air traffic. ment of the standards for membership of the European Union. The European Commission in this years report too states that Macedonia is ready to open membership negotiations. Macedonia continues to a sufficient extent to meet the political criteria, to progress in meeting the economic criteria, including functional market economy, and to make further progress in the legal, institutional and administrative harmonization with the legislation and policies of the EU. Macedonia continues to implement all the responsibilities assumed with the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU. On that basis, the European Commission recommended, for the third successive year, opening of accession talks with Macedonia, the Report stresses.
No. 54/55 2011 MACEDONIAN DIPLOMATIC BULLETIN
Interview with H.E. Mr. Torben Brylle, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Denmark to the Republic of Macedonia
Your Excellency, on behalf of the editorial staff of the Macedonian Diplomatic Bulletin and the Bulletins publisher, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Macedonia, we wish your country, the Kingdom of Denmark, successful presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2012. Could you tell us something more about the priorities your Government will dedicate itself to in the course of the presidency of the Council of the European Union? Denmark takes over the presidency at a time when the EU is facing its perhaps biggest challenge ever. A central task for the Danish Presidency will be to unify and strengthen the EU through concrete results that take Europe forward showing the value and necessity of EU cooperation. The Danish Presidency is going to focus on the following main areas: The EUs economic situation The negotiations on the multi-annual budget framework and the underlying reforms, such as agriculture, structural funds and research [will not be finalised during the Danish Presidency] Strengthening growth and employment in Europe, not least through the Single Market Setting a green growth agenda Justice and Home Affairs Strengthening the EUs role in the world More information about the Danish priorities can be found at www.eu2012.dk The wider Macedonian public is familiar with the positions of the Kingdom of Denmark in regard to the EU enlargement process. What does the concrete cooperation of the Kingdom of Denmark with the
institutions in the Republic of Macedonia consist of, in terms of setting Macedonia a date for opening membership negotiations as soon as possible? We congratulate you on the latest Progress Report from the European Commission and encourage you to keep up the good work. Denmark would like to begin negotiations with your country. It requires an agreed EU position, which again requires that the name issue does not stand in the way. This issue must, in other words, be settled by mutual consent between the two parties directly concerned. I am sure you know that Denmark has been a proponent of EU enlargement and we remain so. Mr. Ambassador, how do you assess the relations between the two countries and the possibilities for their further promotion? It is my true belief that our two countries have had an excellent relationship since independence in 1991. Our former Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Uffe EllemannJensen, was very proactive with respect to your country during his time in office. As you may know, for this effort he was decorated with the Order of 8th September in 2010 a very high honour for him and for Denmark indeed. We have been fortunate to work with and be represented by an excellent Consul General, Mr. Zhivko Mukaetov, who is also the CEO of Alkaloid, one of the largest companies in the country. The work he does for Denmark goes above and beyond what is demanded of a Consul General, and we cannot thank him and his team enough for their work. In the latest World Bank Doing Business Report 2012, the Republic of Macedonia, has moved up twelve places and is now ranked 22nd in the world compared to
2011. According to other similar reports, it is considered to be the regional leader and a serious destination for foreign direct investments. Could the cooperation between our two countries be promoted by exchanging experiences in attracting foreign direct investments or by drawing Danish investments in the Republic of Macedonia? Whenever I travel to Copenhagen or to Skopje, I spend a lot of time telling people of the many opportunities that are available to encourage bilateral relations, mutual cooperation and business investments between our countries. It has been truly remarkable to follow the progress of your country over the years. From the Danish perspective, we work around the globe through the Danish export and investment promotion activities of the Trade Council of Denmark. Through the Trade Council, we advise companies on how to grow, how to develop their international partnerships, how to seek out new business opportunities and markets, and we also seek to attract new investments to Denmark. I am convinced that the trade and investment between our countries can and will develop further in the future. Does your Embassy plan any additional activities in the sphere of culture, sport, education, science and art that could bolster the cooperation between the two countries in these fields as well? We are currently in the process of planning non-core activities during our Presidency. They provide an opportunity for us to show some of the qualities of what Denmark represents, and we hope to identify means to bolster cooperation in some of the areas which you mention. An overview of all Danish activities during the presidency can be found at www.eu2012.dk
The strategic priorities, that is to say, the integration of the Republic of Macedonia into NATO and the EU and the support of the Kingdom of Denmark in the attainment of those goals were discussed at the meeting. The officials also agreed that being set a date for opening membership negotiations between the Republic of Macedonia and the European Union was particularly important. Denmark expressed willingness to support Macedonias Eurointegration process during the Danish Presidency of the EU. As regards the name issue with Greece, it was stressed that Denmark backed a mutually acceptable solution to the problem. During his visit to Denmark, Minister Poposki was received also by the Parliament Speaker of the Kingdom of Denmark, Mogens Lykketoft.
On 5 October 2011, Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski paid a one-day working visit to the Italian Republic. The visit was realized at the invitation of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi. During the conversation of the two prime ministers, the traditionally good and friendly relations between the two countries were confirmed. The Italian prime minister emphasized once again Italys support for Macedonias membership of the EU and NATO. Prime Minister Gruevski talked about the reforms that the Republic of Macedonia is carrying out on its path toward the EU and its expectation of another positive report from the EC with a recommendation for opening EU accession talks. Prime Minister Gruevski was accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Vladimir Pesevski and Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki. Within the economic part of the program, Pesevski had several meetings with representatives of Italian companies, including FINMENICCANICA, SIMEST and RESI GROUP, which expressed interest in implementing their business plans in Macedonia.
Within the framework of his first official visit to the Republic of Albania, Nikola Poposki, Minister of Foreign Affairs, met his host, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Edmond Haxhinasto. Minister Poposki was also received by the President of the Republic of Albania, Bamir Topi, Parliament Speaker Jozefina Topalli and the Chairman of the Council of Ministers, Sali Berisha. In the course of the talks, satisfaction with the bilateral cooperation was expressed and the commitment to building good neighborly relations and cooperation based on the shared strategic objectives establishing and implementing European and Euro-Atlantic standards was reconfirmed.
In August 2008, a Ministry of Information Society was established in the Government of the Republic of Macedonia in response to the challenges of the new age, of the need to promote and spread the use of the information and communication technology (ICT) in the service of faster economic growth of the country by bringing it closer to the citizens, the state administration and the business sector. The global information and communication trends impose a rapid and continuous development of the information society as a prerequisite for taking the country closer to the western democracies, avoiding regional stagnation, integrating the domestic economy with the global one and accelerating the economic tendencies that lead to growth. With the aim of realizing its vision of a developed information society and realizing the priorities of the programs: e-citizens, ebusiness, e-infrastructure, e-government and information security, in the past three years the Ministry realized concrete initiatives and measures. A part of the program e-education is the project Computer for Every Child, which represents the biggest investment in the education in the Republic of Macedonia in the past 17 years. The project supplied 163,000 computer workstations for primary and secondary schools, 53,000 laptops for students of the first, second and third grades, as well as 22,000 laptops for all teachers in the primary and secondary education. Computers are used as teaching tools and for accessing the education content on the Internet. Moreover, 55,000 desks have been supplied suitable for this computer equipment. Teachers have also been trained so they can become part of the process of creating information society. Forty-three software tools were localized in Macedonian and Albanian and were adapted to the operative system Edubuntu. The tools will be used for the objectives of the curricula. As regards the development of new centralized educational portals, the Ministry created the portal www.skoool. mk for electronic educational content where 513 educational en-
tries, a donation from the company Intel, can be found. There is also a portal for electronic textbooks and electronic publications, which helps students learn in an innovative and interesting way as teachers can prepare and present the curriculum with the aid of the information technology. A centralized system of electronic education has also been put in place for centralized access to and management of education tools and for establishing a system for electronic learning, which would lead to a more efficient educational process. In the service of the countrys computerization was also the provision of 22,000 vouchers for purchasing computers for all regular students enrolled in the last year of their studies. With the project of free Internet in dorms in Macedonia, new communication infrastructure was provided in every room and free Internet access was enabled in all dorms, while the realization of the project e-dorming made it possible for students to apply for rooms in dorms electronically. The implementation of the system for e-distribution resulted in transparent and objective evaluation of all submitted applications for dorm rooms. In the past two academic years, 250 scholarships for talented information technology students were also awarded, a practice that will continue in the next three years as well. Within the framework of the program e-Government, a National Strategy for e-Government 2010-2012 was passed, based on which the implementation of a great many projects from this field began or continued. An electronic system for management of documents, which is a unified standard system, with which all civil servants will be able to electronically create and manage all types of documents, have been introduced in government institutions. Because of the need for introducing one stop shop services and improving communication among institutions, the system
No. 54/55 2011 MACEDONIAN DIPLOMATIC BULLETIN
of interoperability has been introduced to serve as a standard mediation system for electronic sharing of information and documents between institutions. Within the project e-Documents, this infrastructure will also be used to digitalize the administrative procedures for taking out a great many documents and receiving services from state institutions. Introducing electronic IDs for the citizens of the Republic of Macedonia is planned and that is going to raise considerably the use of present and future electronic administrative services. A prominent number of electronic administrative services have already been developed and are being used, as particularly important are the electronic public procurements, the electronic reporting and canceling of employment contracts, the electronic submission of annual tax returns, the electronic distribution of international licenses for transport of goods, the electronic application for and issuing of licenses and quotas for import/export, etc. It is also important to emphasize that in keeping with the eGovernment Strategy, implementation of even greater number of electronic services, with whose introduction a more efficient way of fulfilling the responsibilities and rights of citizens and companies will be provided , has gone underway. In order to facilitate the administrative procedures and make the services completely electronic without any physical contact of citizens with office windows, a system of electronic collection of fees by the state administration bodies via mobile phones and the Internet has been introduced. Within the framework of the adopted National Strategy for einclusion, numerous projects have been planned whose aim is to make the access to the information and communication technologies available to all citizens regardless of where they live, their ICT knowledge, age, education and financial means, and regardless of whether they are people with special needs, socially marginalized groups, etc. An important project from this area is the Wi-Fi Access Points in rural areas with which free Internet booths have been setup with the aim of preparing the Macedonian citizens for the modern IT economic market, helping them get ready for the competitive
global economy. In the future, the project will focus on raising the number of Internet users in the Republic of Macedonia, making the Internet accessible to all citizens. The free Internet clubs that operate in 22 towns raise notably the accessibility of computers and the Internet and the peoples IT literacy. Following this encompassing presentation, it worth saying that the latest edition of the report Measuring the Information Society of ITU (International Telecommunication Union) highlights the pronounced progress that the Republic of Macedonia has made in developing its information society. Via the two main indicators, the ICT development index and the ICT price basket, the report follows the development of the information society on a global scale, stresses the key trends globally, locally and nationally, and identifies the countries with the best results in the information society development and the mainstays of change. The chief purpose of the ITU report is to provide an all-encompassing international estimate of the information society development, based on quantitative indicators and identification of the ICT areas of high and low growth. The ICT development index, which shows the overall progress of the countries in building the information society, has been measured for a total of 159 countries and the ICT price basket index for 161 countries. The highest-ranked countries are still those from the developed world, yet a certain number of developing countries have demonstrated prominent improvement in their ranking between 2007 and 2008. They are Bahrain, Macedonia, Greece, the United Arab Emirates, etc. The ICT development index consists of three sub-indexes: ICT access, use, and skills. As a result of the improvement of the sub-indexes, the overall grade of the Republic of Macedonia of 3.40 in 2007 improved to 4.32 in 2008, which is an upward leap of 12 positions, whereby Macedonia was ranked 51st from a total of 159 countries. The leading countries are Sweden, Luxembourg, South Korea, Denmark, and The Netherlands. However, in order to get the complete picture, it is important to bear in mind not just the ranking list but also the index values and the changes in the ranking, the manner in which the dynamic in the process of ICT development is seen, as well as the potential progress of the countries transiting toward an information society. As if to illustrate the point, of the countries in the region, before Macedonia are Croatia, Greece, Bulgaria and Montenegro, but their progress is much smaller compared to Macedonias Montenegro moved up by only 3 notches, Bulgaria by none, and Croatia and Greece by one notch. Countries of the region ranked worse than Macedonia are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, Serbia and Albania.
Macedonia, the National 11 October Award was presented to ballet dancer Tanja Vujisik-Todorovska, writer Resul Shabani and actor Petar Temelkovski for life achievements in the field of culture and art, counselor-librarian Mile Boseski for life achievements in the field of protection of cultural and historical legacy and businessman Tihomir Cepreganov for life achievements in the field of business.
historical, social cultural and economic relations between Turkey, Macedonia and the Balkans in the context of the past, the present and the future. The meeting was attended by over 200 scholars. President Ivanov called attention in his address to the stand of great Atatrk that, the territories to be left out of the borders of Turkey, including Macedonia and Albania, should first be given autonomy and then full independence, as well as to the fact that the founder of modern Turkey shaped his European views of reform of the disintegrated empire in Bitola in the early 20th century, the city that was Europes gateway to the Turkish Empire. Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Blent Arn addressed the scholars too, saying that in the tumultuous times of the disappearance of the multinational Ottoman Empire, Kemal Atatrk incorporated the principles of parliamentary democracy and secular state.
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On 3 and 4 October, organized by the Macedonian Ministries of Interior Justice and Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the Polish Presidency of the EU, an informal European Union-Western Balkans Ministerial Forum on Justice and Home Affairs took place in Ohrid. The Forum was attended by the ministers of justice and home affairs of the countries of the Western Balkans, Poland and Slovenia, the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, Cecilia Malmstrm, as well as high representatives of Denmark and Cyprus, the countries to be chairing the EU next, and representatives of the EU agencies responsible for justice and home affairs. Following the introductory address by Macedonian Interior Minister Gordana Jankuloska, a few working sessions followed dedicated to the cooperation of the European Union with the countries of the Western Balkans in the areas of freedom, security and justice. Within the framework of the Forum, a presentation of the priorities in the areas of home affairs and justice of the forthcoming Danish and Cyprian chairmanships of the EU was also held.
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Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski visited Singapore on 28-29 November 2011 and had a meeting with the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, at which the bilateral relations and cooperation between the Republic of Macedonia and Singapore were discussed and the need to intensify the political dialogue and promote economic cooperation and trade was emphasized. he government delegation participated also in a business forum in Singapore, at which Macedonias potentials as a business destination were presented before some 50 Singapore-based companies. From 29 November to 3 December 2011, Prime Minister Gruevski paid a working visit to Japan, which is the first ever visit of a Mac-
edonian prime minister to Japan. During the visit, he met his host, the Prime Minister of Japan, Yoshihiko Noda, at which the need for promoting the bilateral relations between the two countries was stressed. Prime Minister Gruevski met also Japanese Crown Prince Naruhito. Business forums were staged in Tokyo and Osaka, at which the comparative advantages of the Macedonian economy and the possibilities and benefits of investment in the Republic of Macedonia were presented. On this occasion, Prime Minister Gruevski and the other members of the Macedonian delegation met representatives of a number of Japanese companies.
Macedonia is the most attractive business destination with the lowest taxes and best business reforms, said Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski in his address at the 8th Vienna Economic Forum held on 22 November, presenting also the conditions offered in the free
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the political and economic relations between the two countries were excellent without any open issues. The presidents also discussed the situation in the region, the issues of shared interest, the economic cooperation and the internal problems of both countries. The guest extended gratitude for the support from the Republic of Macedonia in the process of European integration of Bosnia and Herzegovina and for the military contribution to the peacekeeping missions. Komi also met Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski and Parliament Speaker Trajko Veljanoski, and paid tribute and laid flowers at the grave of Goce Delcev in the Church of St. Spas. Prime Minister Gruevski received the Deputy Chairman of the House of People of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the leader of the Party of Democratic Action, Sulejman Tihi, on 27 October. It was emphasized at the meeting that the cooperation between the two countries was characterized by a high level of friendship and identical stands as regards development of international and regional cooperation with a joint strategic goal of realizing the commitment to full-fledged membership of the European and Euro-Atlantic organizations.
In the Parliament of the Republic of Macedonia, the 9th Meeting of the Republic of Macedonia-European Union Joint Parliamentary Committee, attended by MPs of the Delegation of the Parliament of the Republic of Macedonia and MEPs of the Delegation of the European Parliament, took place on 3 and 4 November. On behalf of the Macedonian Government, the meeting, chaired by Kenan Hasipi and Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, was addressed by Teuta Arifi, Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs, and Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki, and on behalf of the European Union by Robert Liddell, Charge dAffaires of the Delegation of the European Union in Macedonia, and Richard Howitt, rapporteur for the Republic of Macedonia at the European Parliament. A number of issues relating to the relations of the Republic of Macedonia with the European Union were discussed and common recommendations were adopted.
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The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Gjorge Ivanov, decorated the National Institution Turkish Theater-Skopje, which celebrates this year its 60th anniversary, with the Order of Merit for Macedonia, for its outstanding achievements in the dramatic arts and remarkable contribution to the promotion of multiculturalism in Macedonia. The Turkish Theatre in Skopje has so far received numerous awards at home and abroad, including a dozen awards for directing, best actor, best actress, best young actor, the 13 November and 11 October awards, etc.
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ian Parliament, Darko Angelov, Ambassador of the Republic of Macedonia to Hungary, addressed the Second Panel on the subject The Power of the Renewed NATO Partnerships upon the Adoption of the New Strategic Concept of the Alliance. He was the only invited ambassador at the conference from the ranks of the accredited ambassadors to Hungary.
TRADITIONAL THANKSGIVING CONCERT THANKS FROM THE MACEDONIAN TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE 2011
The third annual cultural event Thanks from the Macedonian to the American people 2011 was held on November 14 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, DC. The concert also marked the 20th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Macedonia. The concert featured performances by artists Boris Trajanov (baritone) accompanied by Darko Marinovski (piano), Venko Serafimov (guitar), Boban Mirkovski (piano) and Aleksandar Ikonomov (guitar) with a program that included old Macedonian folk songs, jazz compositions by American authors and excerpts from famous classical masterpieces. In his opening speech, the Macedonian Ambassador to the United States, H.E. Mr. Zoran Jolevski, expressed the appreciation for the support and the cooperation of the U.S. since the early days after the independence of Macedonia and noted that there is no better sign of partnership and trust between the two countries when their soldiers are fighting shoulder to shoulder for the same values and ideals in other countries. The Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs, Ambassador Philip Reeker, reaffirmed the strong interest of the U.S. in a democratic and prosperous Macedonia and stressed the firm U.S. support on Macedonias path towards European and Euro-Atlantic integration. DAS Reeker welcomed the progress that country had made in the past 20 years, placing special emphasis on Macedonias contribution to the ISAF Mission. The evening was enriched by the presence of officers from the Army of the Republic of Macedonia and the National Guard of Vermont. On behalf of the Minister of Defense of Macedonia, Fatmir Besimi, Ambassador Jolevski presented to General Roy the Appreciation Award from the Army of the Republic of Macedonia to the National Guard of Vermont. On behalf of General Dubie, General Roy expressed gratitude for the honor presented to the Guard and stressed the importance and the role of the Macedonian soldiers in Afghanistan praising their accomplishments and professional skills. This traditional event has grown into a distinctive feature of the Macedonian Embassy in Washington, D.C. in the holiday season. The Concert was attended by over 250 guests from the U.S. administration, Congress, diplomatic corps, NGOs and business, as well as from the Macedonian diaspora. Among the guests were the Macedonian Minister for Foreign Investments, Bill Pavleski, U.S. Representative Robert Aderholt and World Bank CEO Ruud Treffers. The event was organized in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Macedonia and the American-Macedonian businessman Andy Peykoff.
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Days of the Macedonia Culture took place in Moscow and Saint Petersburg on 15-18 October, through which some of the achievements of the Macedonian culture were presented. At the opening of the event, at the Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Conservatory, Ana and Igor Durlovski, accompanied by the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, performed music by Mozart, Handel, Bellini and Verdi, as well as traditional Macedonian folk songs. In Saint Petersburg, the Macedonian culture was presented through an exhibition by painter Vladimir Georgievski, the play Dangerous Liaisons, a production by the National Theater of Bitola, and showings of old Macedonian documentaries. The event drew significant attention in the cultural circles of Saint Petersburg and Moscow. During the Days of the Macedonian Culture, Culture Minister Elizabeta Kanceska-Milevska and her Deputy Dragan Nedeljkovik paid a visit to Moscow and St. Petersburg and met a number of high-ranking officials from the Russian Ministry of Culture.
On the occasion of the Macedonian national holiday, 11 October, the international cultural and scientific event Goce Days took place in Podgorica, Montenegro, on 10-12 October. Within the framework of the event, a panel was held on the subject The Cultural and Historical Relations between the Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro, in which a number of scholars, academicians and university professors from both countries took part. An exhibition of 35 art works from the International Art Colony in Vevcani, as well as a promotion of four books by the former President of the Republic of Macedonia, Kiro Gligorov, also took place.
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H.E. Mr. Khamkheuang BOUNTEUM, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Lao Peoples Democratic Republic to the Republic of Macedonia, resident in Vienna H.E. Mr. Ju Wang HWAN, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea to the Republic of Macedonia, resident in Sofia H.E. Mr. Aliyar Lebbe ABDUL AZEEZ, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka to the Republic of Macedonia, resident in Vienna H.E. Mr. Juha OTTMAN, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Finland to the Republic of Macedonia, resident in Zagreb
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DIPLOMATIC DIARY
nent was strong and traditionally went on, as was the case with the promotion of the Year of the Macedonian Language or the publication of the anthology of works by Academician Goran Stefanovski for the first time in the Romanian language. There followed books by Plevnes and Rade Siljan, preceded by a series of Macedonian poets led by Academician Mateja Matevski. Film festivals, Days of the Macedonian Film, Labina receiving a cinematography award, Mancevski, Mitrikjeski and other authors capture the audience. Culture is impossible without a strong economy. May 2010. Intensive preparations for harmonization of an agreement on economic cooperation, tourism, education. Preparations for a business forum in Skopje within the framework of the Romanian presidents official visit to Macedonia. An extraordinary reception, many useful conversations and advice from a head of state of a NATO and EU member state. At the start of this year, Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki paid a return visit to his counterpart Baconschi. Agreements on cooperation were signed between the two ministries. A perspective and a good base for expanding the cooperation of the two diplomatic services. In the second half of 2011, better economic results were achieved. The first quantities of Macedonian wine were exported to Romania. The first tourist agents with serious plans left for Macedonia. Early October 2011. Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov paid a return visit to Romania. At the meetings with his host, President Basescu, Prime Minister Boc, and the President of the Senate, the friendship was confirmed, and a commitment to further support and a shared wish for closer economic cooperation were expressed. President Ivanov presented the concluded agreements from this area at the Business Forum in Bucharest. That afternoon another Business Forum took place in Ploieti. Macedonian honorary consuls Gogulescu and Mihaescu know their job. An exceptionally pleasant meeting and meaningful conversation at the meeting between the Macedonian president and the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, His Beatitude Daniel. A reminder that the Romanian Orthodox Church gave the blessing in the declaration of the autocephaly of the Macedonian Orthodox Church. The president receives the title doctor honoris causa from the Dimitrie Cantemir Christian University. Hundreds of people attend the ceremony and the presidents inspirational speech on this occasion leaves no one indifferent. A ceremony at the Association of Macedonians President Ivanov decorates Liana Dumitrescu with Order of Merit for Macedonia posthumously. The meeting with the Macedonians in Romania was beautiful, heartwarming and unforgettable. The Macedonians in Romania and the Vlachs in Macedonia are a secure and lasting bridge of cooperation. The close and sincere friendship between the Republic of Macedonia and Romania has a bright future. This thought inspires a wonderful feeling. Ljupco ARSOVSKI Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Republic of Macedonia to Romania nias foreign policy also as a member of numerous state delegations and interstate bodies. At the celebration organized on the occasion of his retirement, our colleague Miomir Ristovski, as an example of lasting, practical and historic benefits in his long career, among other things, with great satisfaction, pointed out his contribution to the drafting of what is known as Ad-Memoir of 14 points, addressed to the Government of the Republic of Greece, and primarily to the drafting of the document of the Republic of Macedonia containing the answers regarding the meeting of the conditions for becoming an independent and sovereign state provided to the Badinter Arbitration Commission.
In September this year, after nearly 40 years spent in the diplomatic service, our colleague Miomir Ristovski retired. At the beginning of 1972, he started working in the Republic Secretariat for Foreign Relations, the predecessor of the present-day Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He matured and built his career of professional diplomat alongside the growth of this independent state authority for foreign affairs. In the course of his professional career, from an intern to an assistant republic secretary, that is to say, state counsellor to the Ministry, he also served as vice-consul in Benghazi, minister-counsellor in Rome and minister plenipotentiary in Podgorica. He made his contribution to the realization of Macedo-
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