Macedonia (FYROM): Post-Conflict Situation and U.S. Policy

Publication Date: January 2005

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Government

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Abstract:

In early 2001, an eight-month conflict between ethnic Albanian insurgent forces and Macedonian police and security forces threatened to derail the country's fragile stability and lead to another extended conflict in the Balkans. Later that year, U.S. and European intervention led to the signing of the Ohrid Framework Agreement, which outlined a package of political reforms to expand the rights of the ethnic Albanian minority while rebel forces were disarmed and disbanded under NATO supervision. Macedonia's current multi-ethnic government remains committed to the Ohrid process and seeks eventual membership in NATO and the European Union. Prospects for economic development remain modest and compromised by organized criminal activity. Some extremist political sentiment, mainly among opposition parties, point to ongoing risks to security and stability. However, an oppositionsponsored referendum on November 7, 2004, intended to halt plans for decentralization and local governmental reforms called for under the Ohrid accords, failed due to low turnout. The unresolved status of neighboring Kosovo has affected perceptions of regional stability and any final outcome of the status issue in Kosovo is likely to have significant consequences for Macedonia.

The United States continues to support multilateral efforts to stabilize Macedonia, but has increasingly looked to the European Union to play a larger international role in the Balkans, starting with Macedonia. In March 2003, the European Union launched its first military mission in Macedonia, taking over from a small NATO presence. The EU military mission, which has also served as a test case for the EU's ability to carry out its own defense policy, concluded its operation on December 15, 2003. The EU maintains a police training mission in Macedonia. The EU takeover of NATO military operations in Macedonia has been echoed in Bosnia, on a larger scale, beginning in December 2004.

Macedonia's long-term goals, shared by the United States and the international community, include full membership in NATO and the European Union. NATO has pledged to uphold its "open door policy" for NATO candidate countries such as Macedonia, Albania, and Croatia. At the EU's Thessaloniki summit in June 2003, EU member states reiterated their commitment to the full integration of the western Balkan states in the union. Macedonia has concluded a Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU, and formally applied for EU membership in early 2004. EU and U.S. officials urged Macedonian voters to stay on track with reforms consistent with the Ohrid agreement, and praised them for endorsing Euro-Atlantic integration with the widespread boycott of the November 7 referendum. On the eve of the referendum, the United States announced its decision to recognize Macedonia by its constitutional name, the Republic of Macedonia, rather than its interim name, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, as an expression of support to a multiethnic and democratic state.

Related reports include CRS Report RL31053, Kosovo and U.S. Policy, and CRS Report RL32136, Future of the Balkans and U.S. Policy Concerns. This report may be updated as events warrant.