Fakti (Albanian- language Newspaper) Friday, 29 June 2001

NATO Mission in Macedonia will not be Pro-Albanian nor Pro-Macedonian Translation of the interview by NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson given to Fakti (Macedonian/ Albanian language daily) published on Friday 29 June. For a country that was functioning good, which managed to avoid the great horror of Bosnia, Kosovo, Serbia, Krajina, Eastern Slovenia and to get into a civil war, now, it would be a great tragedy. For this reason NATO is very worried and it strongly believes in finding a political solution for this matter. I believe that this week with the withdrawal from Haracinovo, a great and important step is undertaken in order to find a peaceful solution for all these matters. Fakti: Mr. Robertson, the situation in the Balkans, especially the one in Macedonia has activated the mechanisms of NATO, too, although it is much different from the one In Kosovo. Independently from the appeals for peace and restraining, unfortunately the situation in Macedonia is not getting back to normal. In this context, which is the role of NATO so that the crisis doesn't escalate In the region, too? Robertson: The president of the state has asked NATO to offer a force of the troops as a part of President Trajkovski's plan to end the crisis and in a specific way to concentrate as far as the arms are concerned in the process of demilitarization of those people, who are included in the armed uprising in this country. So, this is as a result of the demand made by NATO, and which will come in force when there will be reached cease-fire and when there will be a political agreement which results with disarming of the rebels. But it is understandable that this is not all. NATO is also offering a great political support together with the EU. NATO is monitoring the Macedonian-Kosovo border in a very aggressive way to stop the ones who enter and get out of Kosovo, to join the rebels. Countries, members of NATO are giving a great bilateral help and equipment to the armed forces of Macedonia, we have a coordination center, a coordination and a control center of NATO, and of course that we are making sure we coordinate the help which is being given. These are our efforts in the state that we have strong relations with, which is also a country partner to NATO, a country which applicates for membership in NATO and a country for which we strongly feel that the conflict should be avoided, civil war or a further violence, for the interest of the country itself as well as for the neighboring countries. Fakti: About the preventions of escalation of the conflict? Robertson: Absolutely. Every potential escalation would be catastrophic for the entire region. As we are concerned about the stability of and security of the people within Macedonia we are concerned of the people outside it as well. Fakti: The Macedonian Government has bought Russian and Ukraine planes and helicopters recently, while as a few days ago It has signed a Military -Technical Agreement with Yugoslavia. On the other side the Official Skopje works on being a member of the European Institutions. Do you see any contradiction here? Robertson: the Republic of Macedonia has the right for self-defense according to the chapter of the UN. It is faced with armed uprising and it buys equipment wherever it can in some of the nowadays markets. As a country applicant for membership in NATO it continues with the work of reforming the armed forces in order to be as compatible as possible with the rigorous conditions of getting a membership in NATO. Fakti: In case the Albanian Guerillas want to get disarmed, which would be the role and the involvement of NATO in this case? Robertson: If there is to be an agreement of disarming, NATO Troops will be there to collect the arms which will be sent to them. It is a process of collecting and destroying the weapons. So, it is to be a limited mission with a determined deadline as a part of that process. Fakti: Destruction of weapons will be carried out only by the NATO Troops? Robertson: NATO will collect and will destroy all the weapons. So, only NATO will collect the weapons and only NATO will destroy it. It is very important, because as it seems the rebels are not to decommission the weapons to the Macedonian forces, but in these conditions they want to decommission it to NATO. So, if the conditions are the right ones and if the NATO Forces get in, then only NATO Forces will be the ones to collect the weapons and only the NATO Forces will destroy the last weapon. Fakti: In the police and the army of Macedonia the Albanians are marginalized and we can say that the commanding cadre in the armed forces of Macedonia is not even one percent. In such kind of a situation can the Albanian citizens of Macedonia consider themselves secure and can Macedonia get integrated in NATO with such discriminating standards? Robertson: The first thing to be said is that membership in NATO understands a chain of standards, including treatment of minorities. In the process of Action Plan of the membership, that is a matter, which should be dealt. The Macedonian Government is dealing with it, too. About the way in which the political process about dealing with the proportional presence in the army, police and in the public services is a matter of the four political parties, a part of the political process and a part of the hard work which they should solve. But, one of the demands of the Albanian Community has been in connection with the small participation of the Albanians in the Police and in the army. Partially, that is because of the fact that there was a low level of applications but still this is not the whole story and in a clear manner it is in the agenda of the talks of all the parties. Fakti: The Albanian guerillas in Macedonia are leading a special war and we can say that this Is a rare case to make war in order to remain a part of a country, as a difference from the other nations which make war to get cut off from the country where they live. This fight may not be considered as a method but we can say that it was born spontaneously and the Macedonian politics is to blame for creating pre-conditions for such a conflict in Macedonia? Robertson: There is no justifying for the presence of violence in democracy. There is no defending it. Ruling of laws and rules is the only way which can rule in a democratic country, because if one side is seen to be achieving success through violence, then it means that the other side will come to a conclusion, that that is the way of reaching the goal. So, whatever the end is to be, the means are mistaken and the way in which Macedonia will remain as a whole and will resolve the conflict is through politics not through violence. Politics is a very powerful arm. For this reason Xhaferi and Imeri have understood this, because they are politicians, they have been elected and behind them stands the power of the voters. So, I want to see, NATO wants to see them making reforms, with which the International Community is pleased also, because that is the only way to move forward. Nothing justifies the killing or wounding someone for any reason in a democracy and I regard it as pretty definitive, because people in Macedonia, especially the Albanians know me, because I was the one among others who helped in Kosovo, one of those who lead the military battle, to allow the Kosovo Albanians to live where they always did. In saving of thousand of lives I'm only one among many others who did that, and I think that people know that I'm not an enemy of the Albanian matter, but I see that violence is not a good conclusion. Those ones who practice violence, whether Milosevic or Arkan who have practiced violence everywhere have come to a miserable conclusion. Within these weeks Milosevic will be in Hague to face the tribunal, and Arkan is dead. They thought that violence could achieve political goals but they were wrong. People can see what they can get. Battles for Great Serbia, Great Croatia have lead only to a greater misery and violence. And now Yugoslavia is one of the poorest countries in the region of Europe, independently from the Megalomania of Milosevic and the great chances he had when he became head of Yugoslavia in 1989. Macedonia was a democracy, which came out from the ruin of Yugoslavia. There are two great groups of populations and these groups have lived together so far. There are people who say that the process of the political reforms is going too slow, but it was going on. If we have managed to co-live together during all these years after the independence that is after getting out of the communism, then they have the internal force to solve the problem now. For a country, which was functioning good, which managed to avoid the horror of Bosnia, Kosovo, Serbia, Krajina and Eastern Slovenia, to get into a civil war would be a great tragedy. For this reason NATO is very concerned and it strongly believes that this matter can be solved with political means and I believe that this week with the withdrawal from Haracinovo a great and important step was undertaken in relation to finding a peaceful solution for all these matters. Fakti: In the interview of the Prime Minister Georgievski, that he gave for the State Television he accused the West for being very harsh in their critics concerning the actions of the government against the Albanian guerillas, something that can not be noticed in the actions of the guerillas. Afterwards, Georgievski said that the West and NATO find It very difficult to leave alone what they call success in Kosovo and in this context for Macedonia, according to Georgievski it is being created a fraud picture in the West. What is your comment on this? Robertson: Georgievski, at the same time is a friend of mine. I think that he is wrong when it comes to that. I think that, as they say, he has the opposite side of the stick, because NATO is not bias in everything it does. What it was very interesting in that interview was that the Prime Minister Georgievski made it clear that he was a part of the agreement concerning the evacuation of Haracinovo. There were given many wrong declarations concerning the evacuation. The evacuation was done after a reached cease fire between Georgievski, President Trajkovski, Minister of Defence, Minister of Internal Affairs, who all agreed, that before something would happen, the fighters in Haracinovo to be evacuated with their arms and that that would diminish the tension and the threat to Skopje, from the fighters that were there. The Prime Minister said that he supported the President on that point and I am glad that he clarified that in the interview. However, he misunderstands the mission of NATO. The mission of NATO is not Pro-Albanian not Pro-Macedonian. The mission of NATO is Pro-democratic. That is the objective of NATO in Macedonia, too. We have it in consideration that this is a democracy, which has been attacked by armed rebels, and that politics should defeat those who use arms and in that aspect we support the Prime Minister Georgievski and his Ministers as well as the expanded Government and the Albanian representatives. We are not here to change, to order or to interfere, because what we are doing is helping the process, by saying to the Albanian leaders to be sincere and to be moderate and modest in their demands, as well as to say to the leaders of the Slav-Macedonian parties that there should be some changes. Of course since the country wants to be in the EU or in NATO, then there should be done changes and the sooner they are done the better. Fakti: So, do you think that the political dialogue in Macedonia can produce results, which everyone is expecting? Robertson: yes, I believe it will, I believe that it should produce good results. The International Community is saying that some reforms are absolutely urgent and necessary. It will be difficult but I think that, that is the reason why the people should be sincere, to set real objectives and to reach an agreement for these objectives. They are demanding this because this is a must for Macedonia if it wants to be a part of Europe and that there should be laws and rules which reflect on the population of the country. So, this is a very powerful reason to do that and a negative reason to avoid the war. I know the leaders in Macedonia, I know them even better than some of the personnel that are here at NATO, such as the President Trajkovski, than the Prime Minister Georgievski, with whom I have talked from the very beginning of the crisis in Kosovo a long time before the beginning of the actions, for different reasons, such as the help of the verifiers who where in Kosovo than to the Ex-Minister Crvenkovski I have contacted so many times, I have talked to Xhaferi, than to Imeri whom I know very well. So, these people who have the intelligence, have an ability as well as a vision to have the possibility to find a solution for this with political means, through politics not through violence on the mountains and on the streets. Every form of violence creates other forms of violence. While as Skopje is in the core of the region of Europe, which has managed to pass through many things over the past decade. Fakti: Concretely speaking we are interested to know the consistence, mandate and the purpose of the NATO troops involvement in Macedonia, if there will be circumstances and of course if the situation has a need for that? Robertson: The mandate and the purpose will be in a strict and a limited manner, collecting and destruction of weapon, of those persons who will be disarmed as a part of this process. That would be the entire thing. The mandate is based on the invitation of President Trajkovski to do that, nothing more and nothing less than that. The consistence is to be determined, but concerning this matter NATO has reacted faster than never before in holding of very complicated processes which have to do with uniting of NATO forces. That is understood very seriously, and we believe that we have the wish to help urgently in that process, when the time will come and as soon as possible to reach the point when there will be cease fire and when there will be created conditions in the political process so that we can enter and help this country get away from violence and return the democratic politics. Fakti: So, this means that you are an optimist? Robertson: I have to say that I am always optimistic. I know the people of this country. I have been there numberless times. I believe that the manner that NATO uses and its leaders, concerning me, we saved Macedonia from the turmoil in 1999 which was the objective of Milosevic, partially his goal to expel the Albanians from Kosovo, which would result in destabilizing Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria and the other countries of the Balkans. Concerning the fact that NATO undertook action, Macedonia got the chance to live and it has chances to join NATO and the EU, now. This is for the young generations, for those of your generation in Macedonia, no matter if they are Albanians or Slavs. I could never make the difference whether you were an Albanian or a Macedonian. So this is your chance. I hope that people will have the courage to take advantage of that.