Macedonian president recalls ambassador to U.S. over media correspondence

SKOPJE, Macedonia Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski on Tuesday recalled the country's new ambassador to the United States whom Macedonia's governing conservatives accused of undiplomatic behavior.

Crvenkovski said he unwillingly signed a decree recalling Ljupco Jordanovski from Washington after Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki threatened to keep the diplomat in Skopje indefinitely "for consultations."

Macedonia's conservative government, elected in July, sharply criticized Jordanovski — a former parliament speaker posted to Washington the same month — after he engaged in a public debate in local media with his counterpart in London over why their Social-democratic party lost the elections.

The two ambassadors aired their opinions on the matter in newspaper letters columns, and their views were extensively quoted in the media.

The ambassador to Britain was recalled last month.

Crvenkovski — who has final say on diplomatic appointments — complained that the affair tarnished Macedonia's international image.

"The excuse that someone should be recalled only because the government lost confidence in him is unacceptable and unfounded," he said.

"Macedonia does not have its ambassador to one of the most important capital cities."

Macedonia insists on mutually acceptable solution for Kosovo

Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski said on Monday that Macedonia insists that the solution for the Kosovo status issue has to be "mutually acceptable" by Belgrade and Pristina.

"We encourage both sides to reach a mutually acceptable solution under the auspices of the international community," Crvenkovski told Stefan Lehne, director for western Balkan in the Council of Europe, who is on a visit to Macedonia.

News reaching here from Skopje said Crvenkovski and Lehne agreed that the demarcation of the border between Macedonia and Kosovo should be completed before the decision is made on the final status of Kosovo.

Kosovo has been under UN administration since 1999 when NATO troops forced Serbian forces to withdraw from that province.

Source: Xinhua

Priebe: Date for starting EU entry talks with Macedonia not specified yet

It's not possible to set the date for starting the EU accession talks with Macedonia for the time being, said Reinhardt Priebe, the Head of the European Commission Directorate for Western Balkans.

On the sidelines of a two-day conference on Economic Co-operation and Investment Opportunities in Southeast Europe, staged by Washington-based Center for Strategic & International Studies, Priebe stressed that the European Union has not yet set the starting date for accession talks with Macedonia.

"No date has been set. We co-operate with the Macedonian government and next month we will publish an evaluation report on the progress the country has made thus far in the process of reform. The report will specify the areas that require additional work to meet the accession criteria," Priebe said.

Asked to comment the reforms that Macedonia has wrapped up, Priebe stressed that the country has a lot of work ahead.

"It's obvious that the country should focus on implementation capacity. It's a small country with small administration and an extensive EU agenda ahead," Priebe said.

In the course of the conference, European Commission's Director for Western Balkans underlined the need to boost regional co-operation among the countries in the Western Balkan, adding that EU candidate-countries should address the open issues, press ahead with judicial reform and seek modalities to fight corruption in order to boost foreign investments.

He underscored that the wider international community should be involved in the region, particularly in the process of Kosovo status settlement. Priebe reckons that timely settlement of Kosovo status would be in the interest of the entire region.

Priebe said Croatia has made a significant progress in terms of EU integration process, adding that the EU expects the country to be ready for entry by the end of 2010.

EU Worried as Macedonian Crisis Looms

EU officials have expressed concern over instability in candidate state, Macedonia, as ethnic Albanians have vowed to challenge the newly-established government led by incoming Macedonian Prime Minister, Nikola Gruevski, the center-right leader.
"It would be wrong to say that we (the EU) are not worried," a source who wished to remain unnamed told Balkan news agency, DTT-NET.COM.

EU diplomats said its current member states are watching recent developments in the west Balkan country "very closely," and urging "all sides to behave constructively" (to avoid escalation of hostilities).

Ethnic Albanian politicians in the country have warned that the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) could find itself in a serious crisis in the coming weeks amid strong dissatisfaction of most Albanians whose preferred party has been excluded from the new government.

The main party of ethnic Albanians in Macedonia, The Democratic Union for Integration (DUI), is under heavy pressure from its members and supporters to oblige Gruevski to respect their will as expressed in the July elections "by all means", DUI top adviser, Agron Buxhaku, said.

Buxhaku went on to explain that the DUI ??would not like a repetition of 2001. We will do the utmost to avoid it and change the mind of Mr. Gruevski by political means in order for the political will of Albanians expressed during the elections to be respected," he said, in expressing doubts that the DUI leadership could contain growing internal discontent.

In 2001, Macedonia suffered through seven months of heavy fighting between Albanian separatists and Macedonian security forces, which ceased following the June 2001 Ohrid Agreement ? brokered by the EU and NATO diplomacy ? and stated that the Macedonian government agreed to improve the rights of the Albanian population.

Gruevski's (PUT THE ACTUAL PARTY NAME HERE AND PARENTHECISE THE PARTY AS SHOWN) VMRO-DPMNE party led the Macedonian government during the 2001 hostilities, while the DUI's President, Ali Ahmeti, led the Albanian guerrillas.

Buxhaku last week held meetings with EU officials in Brussels, telling DTT-NET.COM after the talks that "We are to decide in coming days on our next steps."

Buxhaku said various options are on the table. These included the disruption of relations between municipalities in the westernmost areas of the country, which is mainly populated by ethnic Albanians, and the central government.

Such a move, according to Buxhaku, may be the first concrete "political step" to be taken as soon as a message to Gruevski that "?his government doesn't represent the majority of Albanians and cannot function within the whole territory of Macedonia" is made clear.

Ethnic Albanians make up approximately 25 per cent of Macedonia's 2.2 million population and the DUI, together with its partner Party of Democratic Proseperity (PDP), won 17 parliamentary seats, or more than 60 per cent of support of the voters of the Macedonia's main minority.

Macedonia�s unrest is likely to negatively influence its first EU progress report, due in November, less than a year after it won official candidate status last December.

The EU made clear that Macedonia can expect admission talks to take place only if it steps up reforms that stress further improvements on the rights of ethnic Albanians.

England held by Macedonia

England suffered humiliation at the hands of Macedonia for the second time in four years as they were held to a goalless draw in their European Championship qualifier at Old Trafford.

Steve McClaren's side were woeful in the opening 45 minutes and there was only a slight upturn in fortunes after the break against a well-organised side who had drawn with England at St Mary's Stadium in 2002.

Macedonia grew in confidence as the game progressed and there will have to be a massive improvement if England are to attain a positive result in Croatia on Wednesday.

Macedonia gave England an early warning when Goran Pandev jinked into the penalty area and smashed a shot into the side-netting.

Robert Petrov arrived late to meet a right-wing cross from Vlade Lazarevski but fired his volley wide.

England held to draw, Scotland upsets France, Spain loses in Euro 2008 qualifying

Scotland upset World Cup runner-up France 1-0 Saturday, and Spain lost for the second time in European Championship qualifying. The Netherlands and England were both held to draws and world champion Italy earned its first win.

Scotland's win puts it in first place in Group B with a perfect nine points from three games, three more than France.

Gary Caldwell capped a standout defensive performance by turning home an in-swinging corner from Paul Hartley at Hampden Park.

"It is amazing — an unbelievable result," Caldwell said. "One of the best ever for Scotland. But the group goes on and there is a long way to go yet."

It was also the first time in 14 years that France had lost a qualifying game on the road. Since a 2-0 loss to Bulgaria on Sept. 8, 1992, France had won 13 European Championship and World Cup qualifying games away from home and drawn seven.

"I know what we have to do and what we cannot do," France coach Raymond Domenech said. "Playing for playing is not enough. We have to play to win and have that combative attitude again."

Also in Group B, Italy beat Ukraine 2-0 off goals from Massimo Oddo and Luca Toni for its first win since lifting the World Cup in July. Key Ukraine striker Andriy Shevchenko missed the match with a fever.

Lithuania beat the Faeroe Islands 1-0 in the same group to be third with four points. Italy is fourth with four points and Ukraine is fifth with three.

"The France loss shows how difficult this group is. It's tough for everyone to gain points," Italy coach Roberto Donadoni said. "We have an extremely difficult road ahead of us."

The winners and runners-up of the seven groups advance to the final tournament in Austria and Switzerland from June 7-29. The two hosts automatically qualify.

Sweden beat Spain 2-0 to keep its perfect record after three games and lead Group F. Johan Elmander and Marcus Allback scored and goalkeeper Rami Shaaban made several key saves.

Spain has only three points from three games after losing to Northern Ireland 3-2 last month. It opened qualifying with a 4-0 win over Liechtenstein.

Denmark drew 0-0 with Northern Ireland and Latvia beat Iceland 4-0 in the other Group F games. Denmark and Northern Ireland each have four points, with Spain in fifth place.

England beat Macedonia 1-0 last month but couldn't score at Old Trafford.

"It's never an easy ride in these qualifying groups. Ask Italy. Ask France," England midfielder Frank Lampard said. "That's the way it goes."

England barely had a shot on goal in the first half, but the second half of the Group E match provided more opportunities for the hosts. Macedonia goalkeeper Jane Nikolovski kept out attempts from Peter Crouch and Wayne Rooney, and Steven Gerrard hit the crossbar.

Israel held Russia to a 1-1 draw in Moscow. Israel substitute Amit Ben Shushan scored late in the second half. Andrei Arshavin scored for Russia after five minutes.

Croatia beat Andorra 7-0 to equal its highest ever margin of victory, with Mladen Petric scoring four goals.

England still leads Group E with seven points, followed by Israel, which also has seven. Croatia is third with four points.

The Netherlands earned a 1-1 draw at Bulgaria off a header from Robin van Persie in the 61st minute. Martin Petrov scored for Bulgaria.

Romania beat Belarus 3-1 in another Group G game with goals from Adrian Mutu, Ciprian Marica and Dorin Goian.

That win puts it top of the group with seven points, ahead of the Dutch on goal difference. Slovenia earned its first points with a 2-0 win over Luxembourg.

There were plenty of goals in Group D qualifiers. Ireland fell to a 5-2 defeat at Cyprus, the Czech Republic beat San Marino 7-0 and Slovakia defeated Wales 5-1.

Michalis Constantinou and Constantinos Charalambides each scored twice against Ireland in Nicosia, with Alexis Garpozis adding the other. Stephen Ireland and Richard Dunne got the goals for Ireland.

Dunne was sent off in the 78th minute for two yellow cards.

Jan Koller and Milan Baros scored two goals each for the Czechs, with Marek Kulic, Jan Polak and David Jarolim also scoring.

"We got what we wanted," Czech Republic coach Karel Bruckner said. "It was a compulsory victory for us ... without a card and without an injury."

Wales fell to its heaviest home defeat in 98 years against Slovakia. Marek Mintal scored two goals for Slovakia, with Dusan Svento, Miroslav Karhan and Robert Vittek adding the others.

Wales' previous worst home defeat was a 7-1 loss to England in Wrexham in 1908. The hosts were without Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs, who had a hamstring injury.

"I was surprised it was so easy, but then Wales were depleted and they did not have Ryan Giggs," Slovakia coach Dusan Galis said. "These things make a difference."

The Czech Republic leads Group D with nine points, followed by Germany and Slovakia with six points each.

In Group C, European champion Greece beat Norway 1-0 off a goal from Kostas Katsouranis to go top of the standings with six points. Turkey also has six points after beating Hungary 1-0 off a goal from Tuncay Sanli and Moldova drew 2-2 with Bosnia-Herzegovina. Norway also has six points.

In Group A, Nikola Zigic scored for Serbia in a 1-0 win over Belgium. Armenia held Finland to a 0-0 draw and Poland beat Kazakhstan 1-0. Euro 2004 runner-up Portugal beat Azerbaijan 3-0 with two goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and one from Ricardo Carvalho.

Macedonian parties sanctioned for campaign financing violations

During the July parliamentary elections in Macedonia, only seven parties complied with campaign finance regulations, according to the country's election commission. Eleven other political formations -- including the election winner VMRO-DPMNE and the former ruling party, the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) -- broke the rules and now face fines.

The commission said last week that it has filed misdemeanor charges against parties, coalitions and voters' groups that failed to turn in a required financial report on time. The violators could each face penalties of up to 5,000 euros.

The VMRO-DPMNE and SDSM, meanwhile, have been told to release the names of those who funded their campaigns. Otherwise they too will face misdemeanor charges.

In reports submitted to the commission, the VMRO-DPMNE said it had spent 1,262,000 euros on its campaign, while the SDSM said it spent 862,000 euros.

SDSM Secretary General Nikola Kjurciev explained the party had submitted a complete report, including the names of donors, to the State Auditing Institute. "If it is necessary, we will submit the report to the State Election Commission as well," Kjurciev said.

The election commission also is filing misdemeanor charges against seven television channels: MRTV, Sitel, Alsat, A1, Artan, Ohrid, and Orbis. It says they did not provide balanced coverage of all the parties during the campaign. That conclusion stems from a report by the Radio Diffusion Council, a panel responsible for monitoring television broadcasting.

The Election Code obligates parties to submit a report on the total amount of money spent, as well as sources of funding and private expenditures, within 30 days from the verification of MPs' terms.

Campaign finance practices in Macedonia were a major target of criticism by the OSCE in its report on the July elections. The OSCE called for the Election Code to be amended, and for clear and precise provisions to be established in order to prevent illegal methods of funding.

The seven parties that did comply with the rules were The New Social Democratic Party, the DUI-PDP coalition, the League for Democracy, National Democratic Party, the Serb Radical Party, the DRUM and the United Macedonians coalition.

Macedonia's trade deficit nears $900 million

Macedonia's trade deficit in the first eight months of 2006 totals $885.648.000, according to latest data published by State Statistical Office.

Macedonia's balance of trade in the period of January-August 2006 ranges $3.853.198.000, whereas export comprises 38.5% and import comprises 61.5%.

Major contribution to country's export in the period of January through August 2006 was noted in unfinished products (33.2%), finished products (26.1%). The major import was reported in unfinished products (29.9%), mineral fuels, lubricants etc. (19.5%), machines and transport devices (18.7%).

Major contribution to Macedonia's export of goods was marked in country's export to EU member-states (55.1%) and the former Yugoslav republics (32.7%). Macedonia's imports from EU members are put at 44.6%, imports from developing countries total 37.4%.

Turkish hijacker stayed in Macedonia, police have no data

Hakan Ekinci, the hijacker of Turkish Airlines passenger plane, stayed in Macedonia for 48 hours, said Albanian police sources. Macedonian Interior Ministry, on the other hand, claims it has "no data" so far.

Makfax correspondent in Tirana said Albanian daily Shekuli cited police sources as saying that Ekinci had entered Albania on 6 May this year and later he entered Macedonia at Kafasan border crossing on 8 May.

He stayed in Macedonia for 48 hours before heading back to Albania, Tirana's daily Shekuli said, citing a source in Albania's Anti-Terrorism department.

Asked by Makfax to comment the information, sources in Macedonian Interior Ministry said the ministry has no available data indicating that the person entered Macedonia.

Shekuli daily claims that Albanian Interior Ministry will notify the authorities in Skopje in a bid to collect information on individuals Ekinci had contacted with during his stay in Macedonia.

Local media say Ekici's trip to Macedonia might shed light on the investigation into possible links he had in Macedonia.

The hijacker is said to have close ties with five China's Muslim Uyghurs. His girlfriend works at the Albanian Interior Ministry.

In the course of Thursday's session of Albanian Parliament, the opposition deputies had insisted that the government should be held accountable for the case, urging the ministers of interior and transport to resign

11th anniversary of assassination attempt on Gligorov, perpetrators unknown

There are neither suspects nor convicted in relation to attempted assassination of Macedonia's former president Kiro Gligorov although 11 years have elapsed after the car bomb explosion in downtown Skopje.

A remote-controlled bomb went off shortly before 10:00 hrs on 3 October 1995 at Makedonija Street near Bristol hotel. The bomb, stashed in parked automobile, was activated when president's limousine was passing by.
The explosion killed president Gligorov's driver and injured two by-passers. One of the injured people died.
Gligorov suffered severe injuries in the head and it took months to recover. Later on, he resumed presidential duty till expiration of mandate.
The investigation into attempted assassination turned futile. There were different indications on who might have ordered the assassination, nonetheless, the most likely thesis is that the assassination was masterminded by Serbian mobsters with logistical support from Macedonia and secrete services of neighboring countries.
The motive and the mastermind of the assassination is still enigma. The investigation remained deadlocked, only the media continued to seek evidence in a bid to shed light on the assassination.

At the time of attack, a number of high-ranking police officials were not in Skopje. The initial measures in the course of investigation, such as closing of borders and airports, were carried out with a few-hour delay.
Later on, the investigation was directed to individuals and organizations which were later proved to have nothing to do with the assassination.
The then interior minister Ljubomir Danailov-Frckovski said a powerful multinational company from neighboring country had masterminded the assassination. Media pointed their finger on Bulgarian Multigroup.
Gligorov had invited the then chief of Multigroup, Ilija Pavlov, who assured the president that Multigroup was not involved in the attempted assassination.

The last institutional attempt to shed a light on the assassination was made during Ljubco Georgievski's government (1998-2002), when Stavre Djikov served as public prosecutor and Ljube Boskovski as interior minister.

Macedonian premier says border dispute with Kosovo should come before final status

SKOPJE, Macedonia Macedonia's prime minister on Tuesday said a border dispute with Kosovo should be settled before the province's final status is determined.

Nikola Gruevski met with the top U.N. official in Kosovo, Joachim Rucker, to discuss the dispute.

Kosovo has claimed more than 2,000 hectares (4,900 acres) of land in Macedonia since 2001 border agreement between Skopje and Belgrade.

"The border dispute should be solved before, or as a part of the overall solution for Kosovo, but not after," Gruevski said.

Rucker, who also met Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski, agreed.

"It should be solved in the context of the status and certainly not after," Rucker said.

The United Nations hopes to resolve Kosovo's status by the end of the year, but talks have stalled with both sides unwilling to compromise on their demands.

Ethnic Albanians, who make up 90 percent of province's 2 million people, are seeking independence from Belgrade. Serbia and Kosovo's Serb minority say the province is the heart of Serbia's ancient homeland and should remain within its borders.

"Days of Comedy" festival opens in Kumanovo

Traditional international theater event "Days of Comedy" opens Tuesday at Trajko Prokopiev Culture Center in Kumanovo.

Italian dramatist Carlo Goldoni's play, directed by Kole Angelovski, will open this year's festival.

The 9th edition of Days of Comedy, featuring 11 comedies, seven domestic and four foreign plays, will run till 18 October.

Besides Kumanovo Theatre, other guests will include the Macedonian National Theatre, Bitola Theatre, Veles Theater, Albanian Theatre from Debar and Albania, National Theater of Djakovo, Kosovo, Montenegrin National Theater, Varazdin Theater, and Bulgaria's Constantan Velickov National Theater.

The one-act comic opera Rita of Gaetano Donizetti, directed by Trajko Jordanovski, and performed by Macedonian Opera and Ballet, will be the closing show.

Vecer: Macedonia Opens Air Space to Low-Cost Airlines

Skopje. Macedonia prepares to open its airspace to European airline companies, offering low-cost flights, the Macedonian daily Vecer. The cabinet of the country envisages to discuss the agreement for a joint European air space, which would create conditions for passengers in Macedonia to use the services of small air carriers, servicing low-cost flights to larger European towns.

Head of UNMIK to visit Macedonia

The Head of UNMIK Joachim Rucker is to due arrive to Skopje on Tuesday for an one-day working visit, an official announcement says.

According to the agenda, the Chief of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo will hold talks with Macedonia's top officials.

Following his meeting with the Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski on Tuesday morning, Rucker will hold separate talks with Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski and Foreign Minister Antonio Miloshoski.

U.S. Congratulates Macedonia on Success in Clearing Land Mines

Washington -- The United States congratulated Macedonia September 29 for successfully clearing land mines from its territory and thus joining "the growing number of countries that are no longer significantly affected by land mines leftover from past conflicts."

The United States contributed $1.6 million to humanitarian mine action in Macedonia through the International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance by matching contributions made by other donor nations, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), corporations and individuals, according to a State Department announcement.

The aid sent six teams of mine-removal experts to Macedonia from Bosnia-Herzegovina, and helped Macedonia build its own capacity to clear mines. The funding also supported the training of 60 mine-clearance personnel, including 16 specialists in disposal of explosive ordnance.

The United States also provided the Macedonians about $500,000 worth of mine-removal equipment, including four-wheel drive vehicles, metal detectors, radios, medical gear, a computer and other office equipment. In addition, the United States contributed funds to local Macedonian Battle Area Clearance Teams.

Many of the land mines were left over from hostilities that erupted in the first half of 2001 when a group of ethnic Albanians calling themselves the National Liberation Army carried out armed provocations near the Kosovo border that soon escalated into an insurgency. Claiming to fight for greater civil rights for ethnic Albanians in Macedonia, the group seized territory in northern and western Macedonia and launched attacks against government forces.

In August 2001, the Ohrid Framework Agreement ended the fighting and laid out a legal and political action plan for the creation of a stable, multiethnic country with a strong civil society that respects the ethnic identity and interests of all Macedonian citizens. (See related article.)

Macedonian authorities have estimated that, as a result of the fighting, 80 villages were contaminated with land mines and unexploded ordnance, according to the United Nations’ Mine Action Service.

The U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program has invested well over $1 billion in mine action worldwide, including mine removal, mine-risk education, assistance to mine survivors, research and development on better ways to find and clear mines, and training for local mine action managers. Countries and regions that have received this assistance and that have been rendered free from the humanitarian impact of land mines and unexploded ordnance are Costa Rica, Djibouti, Guatemala, Honduras and Kosovo.

In addition, El Salvador and Suriname also have become mine-impact free, receiving from the United States land mine survivors' assistance and airlift capacity for humanitarian mine-removal specialists.

In July the U.S. government announced $2.1 million in grants to 20 NGOs around the world and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). (See related article.)

In August the State Department announced a breakthrough mine-detection device that combines metal detection with ground-penetrating radar, called a Handheld Standoff Mine Detection System. The new device, which is being used by the Department of Defense, can screen out the many bits and pieces of metal found in mined areas and on former battlefields that give a "false positive" signal to metal detectors. (See related article.)

The State Department continues to provide humanitarian aid to land mine removal through its Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement.

A report summarizing recent accomplishments of the interagency U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program and a fact sheet on milestones in humanitarian mine action are available on the State Department Web site.

For more information, see Arms Control and Non-Proliferation and the electronic journal Protecting Lives, Restoring Livelihoods: The U.S. Program To Remove Landmines.

Bulgaria Introduces Free Visas for Macedonian Citizens from 1st January 2007

Skopje. Bulgaria is going to introduce free visas for Macedonian citizens from 1st January 2007 and the regime for their issue will be maximally relieved, Macedonian Vreme newspaper reports citing sources from Macedonian Foreign Ministry. The official Sofia authorities took the engagement for that after the official agreement in Sofia was signed on 21st September. The procedures for issuing visas will be quite easy and the visas will be valid for longer period of time. The Bulgarian Embassy in Skopje will be issuing these visas and the officials promised to enlarge the personnel at the embassy.
The expected accession of Bulgaria to EU next year obliges the country to stick to the Schengen agreement.

Conference on decentralization process

A conference dubbed "One Year of Decentralization Process in the Republic of Macedonia" will be held today in Ohrid.Attendance of Macedonian municipality mayors, representatives of the central power, international organizations and diplomatic corps, has been announced.
Andrej Petrov, the President of the Local-Self Government Units Association, is due to open the conference on Friday morning.
Zoran Konjanovski, the Macedonian Minister of Local Self-Government, Erwan Fouere, the EU Ambassador in Macedonia, Gillian Milovanovich, the US Ambassador to Macedonia and Head of OSCE for Macedonia, Carlos Pais, are scheduled to give addresses at the conference

Macedonian government endorses key police reform legislation

The new ruling coalition of the VMRO-DPMNE and the Democratic Party of Albanians (DPA) has reached agreement on a police reform law, and the bill has now been forwarded to parliament. The legislation is called for under the Ohrid agreement that ended the 2001 interethnic conflict in Macedonia. Brussels has made it clear it will not set a date for beginning EU membership talks until the reform is in place.

"The legislation endorsed by the government is actually the version that was proposed by the professional team formed by the previous government," Interior Minister Gordana Jankulovska said. "This is a good legal text that offers a new organisation of the police in compliance with the principles of decentralisation."

One of the most important changes provided for in the law concerns the appointment of police station chiefs, the minister said. Local self-government councils will now appoint the chiefs of 38 police stations in the country whose main task will be traffic security.

Chiefs of the eight internal affairs sectors will also be appointed in a new way -- by the interior minister, with input from the respective municipalities. Each municipality council will submit a list of three candidates to the minister, with one of them being from the majority ethnic community in the municipality. The chief will then be appointed from the list.

The law was the subject of debate between the former ruling coalition partners SDSM and the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) for almost a year, above all over the number of the sectors for internal affairs. DUI had called for their number to be increased, or for new sectors to be established in Kicevo and Struga.

Another area of contention was the length of the work experience a candidate should have to be the chief of a police station. The SDSM had proposed that the criterion should be 12 years of work experience, plus 4 years' experience in management. DUI wanted the amount reduced.

Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski is now seeking broad parliamentary support for the new legislation.

EU representative in Macedonia Erwan Fouere praised the adoption of the bill by the government. After a meeting with Jankulovska, he confirmed that he has received a copy of the legislation and will now study it to see if it is harmonised with European standards.

Video conference to link Oxford, Skopje and Varna on low-carbon

A panel discussion on the theme Low Carbon Future will be staged Friday in Oxford. The session by video conference will link three separate audiences in the Oxford (UK), Skopje (Macedonia) and Varna (Bulgaria).

The event is in the framework of European Researchers Night, September 22. This is the second year in which the European Commission is celebrating science and scientific achievement through a series of public events.

The event will be broadcast Friday from 17:00 to 19:00 at the premises of the British Council in Skopje.

The British Council is organizing three simultaneous Café Scientifique sessions by video conference which will link 3 separate audiences in Bulgaria with 3 scientists in the UK and 3 other Southeast European audiences.

HRT: Croatia, Albania and Macedonia Get Signal for Their NATO Membership at Riga Summit

Brussels. The country members of the Adriatic charter Croatia, Albania and Macedonia could depend to get a signal for their possible NATO membership at the Riga summit in December, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Schefer stated cited by the Croatian TV HRT. Decisions for NATO’s enlargement will be taken during the summit. The three countries are expecting to be invited in NATO during the summit meeting in 2008.