On 12th December, Senior Course 121 (SC 121) attended a day of high-level presentations and briefings in Skopje, capital of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)*. The group was headed the Dean of the NATO Defense College (NDC), Dr Richard D. Hooker.
FYROM* Chief of Defence Major General Gorancho Koteski warmly welcomed the group to the Army Home, at which the meeting was hosted. MajGen Koteski, who is an Ancien of the College, spent time in a very fruitful introductory exchange with Dr Hooker and Brigadier General Gerd Bischof, Director of the NDC Academic Planning and Policy Division. This afforded an excellent opportunity to review recent developments in the NDC’s courses and related activities.
The group was then addressed by H.E. Emil Dimitriev, Deputy Minister of Defence, who paid tribute to the NDC’s fundamental role in high-level education on defence and security matters. He also spoke of current priorities for FYROM*, with particular reference to NATO membership and the country’s ongoing defence reform. On the subject of NATO membership, he focused initially on the prospective benefits for FYROM*: long-term stability and security, with greater international integration ensuring general prosperity and economic development; enhanced economic status, conducive to foreign investments; and the opportunity to share responsibility for the Alliance’s security agenda in Europe, North America and beyond. Deputy Minister Dimitriev underlined that FYROM* membership would be positive for the Alliance too, in three respects: first, through inclusion of a significant contributor to security, regional cooperation, global security and world peace; second, as a demonstration of consistency with the open door principle, placing a premium on results achieved, standards and criteria; third, as a contribution to the continuous transformation of NATO, encouraging the efforts of prospective members, and thus ultimately as a step towards to the common goal of extending peace, security and welfare.
The following speaker was Mr Igor Gjorevski, who represented the Ministry of Defence. He briefed Course Members on national security and defence policy, with a particular focus on the national White Paper which defines the long-term guidelines for the development of the defence sector during the decade 2011-2020.
Lieutenant Colonel Angjelee Todosov, of the Army General Staff, then took the floor to speak about the transformation process of the Armed Forces of Macedonia (ARM), offering a clear overview of the ongoing modernization plan for the years 2012-2015. ARM contributions to NATO, EU and UN missions were examined by Colonel Sinisha Stamenov, from Joint Operations Command: FYROM* is currently engaged in four theatres – Afghanistan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo and Lebanon (UNIFIL) – and plans to increase its levels of interoperability with NATO in missions abroad.
Each presentation was followed by a challenging and stimulating Q&A session, during which Course Members took full advantage of the opportunity to discuss points of interest frankly and exhaustively.
The morning session concluded with a lecture by Mr Oliver Krliu, Advisor at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, entitled “Foreign Policy and NATO/EU Integration of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia*”. Mr Krliu explained the ongoing process of renovation by which FYROM* is working to meet both NATO and EU standards, since plans for membership of the two organizations are closely connected.
Member of Parliament Mr Vladimir Gjorchev then gave the last briefing of the day. He stressed the importance, for FYROM*, of actively participating in NATO- and EU-led missions abroad. The speaker focused on measures that the national Parliament is taking to ensure that the country can serve as a reliable and respected member of both the transatlantic and European communities.
* Türkiye recognizes the Republic of Macedonia with its constitutional name.
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