Skopje, 20 November 2023 (MIA) – There is no legal requirement for any institution in this country to take action, but it is very much my hope that among the institutions who already know that there is corruption in these cases, that they will indeed follow up, because the people of this country should demand it and they deserve to have this corruption investigated and followed up and prosecuted, says U.S. Ambassador Angela Aggeler. 

In an interview with Telma TV, commenting on last week's designations by the U.S. government, Aggeler said something that is very interesting is that each time the U.S. has designated individuals for corruption in the country, every citizen, every friend she has spoken with here says: "of course".   

"Because people know. People know who the corrupt actors are in this country," Aggeler stressed. 

In the designations that we have seen so far, the U.S. Ambassador noted, corruption does not tend to stay in one country. 

"The Balkans is an area that is very interconnected, and we have certainly seen those with the designations here, but I think one of the important points we stated in our posting on last Thursday, when the designations came out, is that who you do business with can and will affect you and your family, whether they are in this country or somewhere else in the region," Aggeler said. 

In the interview, Aggeler pointed out among other that the United States and the United States Embassy has worked very hard in over 30 years in the relationship with the country, to support the judiciary, at all levels. 

"We are very strong and clear about our support for the institution, for the judiciary, rather than an individual judge. The Supreme Court, for this country and for mine, is an incredibly powerful symbol, it is "the court of last resort", as we say, and so what I discussed with the judges is how important it is for all of them, individually and as a body, to follow the law to make their decisions, so that the people of this country understand how and why they reach those decisions," said Aggeler.  

Photo: MIA archive