SKOPJE – Today, the solemn session held by the Government of North Macedonia marked the 25th anniversary of the Ohrid Framework Agreement, which was originally signed on 13 August, 2001. The peace treaty successfully ended a six-month armed conflict between Macedonian security forces and the ethnic Albanian National Liberation Army (NLA).
It reshaped the country’s political system by rejecting territorial division while expanding power-sharing and linguistic rights for minority communities.
According to the First Deputy Prime Minister of North Macedonia, Bekim Sali, the Ohrid Framework Peace Agreement put an end to the 2001 conflict and established a new approach to the functioning of the country, based on partnership between communities, civic equality and equitable representation.
“Democracy is not only measured through free elections, but also through the ability of institutions to guarantee inclusiveness, equitable representation, dialogue and trust among citizens”, Sali remarked.
He added that the Ohrid Framework Agreement should not only be seen as a historical document, but also as part of the constitutional order and political direction for the institutions.
The Minister of Justice, Jeton Shasivari, said that the Agreement is not just a document from the past, but “an institutional responsibility and a standard that we should continue to build every day”.
Shasivari stressed that equality and justice must be part of the day-to-day functioning of the state and of citizens’ trust in institutions. “
Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Nikoloski noted that 25 years ago the country was on the threshold of one of the most difficult crises in recent history, “but instead of the path of divisions chose the path of agreement, compromise, dialogue and political maturity”.
