Miloshoski: Macedonia has solved its "Albanian issue"

Macedonia has solved its Albanian issue and the Ohrid Agreement offers an integration model that may serve as an example to the other multi-national states, Macedonian foreign minister Antonio Miloshoski said in an interview with the Swiss daily "Neue Zuricher Zeitung".

He also said that Macedonia would get an invitation for membership in NATO and that the negotiations with the European Union (EU) might begin in 2008.

"A country with no oil or gas reserves with 2 and not 200 million citizens surely has a limited sovereignty. Macedonia wants to hand down part of that sovereignty to Brussels", Miloshoski said.

However, the foreign minister rejected the suggestions that membership in EU is the only way for Macedonia to survive in the existing borders, as according to him, the country reconfirmed its vitality over the past years of existence. Miloshoski also reminded that in addition to EU, Macedonia enjoys great backing of the United States of America too.

When asked to explain why Macedonia's neutral position regarding Kosovo's independence has given way to Kosovar Albanians' efforts to gain an independent state, the minister said that Macedonia "is not supporting the Kosovar Albanians, but the international community".

As to the relations with official Belgrade, which frowned at shifting of Skopje's position, Miloshoski said they remained steady and normal, mostly thanks to the personal friendly relations with Serbian president Boris Tadic and vice-prime minister Bozidar Gjelic.