Skopje, 26 February 2025 (MIA) - The decisions confirm the country’s consistent international policy and our aspiration to be an active, constructive and credible partner in the processes to find solutions for current geopolitical challenges, as opposed to a passive onlooker without a clear position, which was the case during the rule of the previous government led by SDSM and DUI, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade said in a statement issued Wednesday in response to SDSM leader Venko Filipche’s criticism of the country’s positioning in the United Nations over the resolutions on Ukraine.

In the statement, the Ministry said the opposition leader’s criticism included “a series of insults and produced irresponsible and arbitrary conclusions with which he demonstrated an insufficient knowledge of foreign policy and completely overlooked the essential elements that make up the complex process of making decisions of strategic and global political importance”.

“We once again reiterate that the recent decisions related to our country’s vote on the resolutions in the General Assembly of the United Nations were made on the basis of a series of realized diplomatic contacts, thorough analyses, domestic consultations, alignment with the positions of influential international stakeholders and in coordination with our strategic partner – the United States of America. More importantly they reaffirm the strategic orientation of our country towards the establishment of a stable and predictable position on the international scene, as well as strengthening relations with our strategic partners,” the Ministry said.

With the vote, the Ministry said it reaffirmed its firm support for Ukraine and “expressed deep respect, solidarity and responsibility to the Ukrainian people and its efforts to secure lasting peace and complete protection of its territorial integrity, sovereignty, independence, freedom and democracy”.

“It is precisely the frequent visits to the US at the highest political level that are a confirmation of our firm commitment to strengthen our partnership and bilateral cooperation with the US. These strengthened diplomatic activities also additionally confirm our further commitment to full alignment with the Common Foreign and Security Policy of the European Union, as well as the process of European integration, which remains one of the highest foreign policy priorities of the country,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade added in its statement.

The statement comes after a press conference by SDSM leader Venko Filipche earlier on Wednesday, during which he said the Government, with its vote on the UN resolutions on Ukraine, has sent a message that its foreign policy is improvised.  

On Monday, North Macedonia co-sponsored a United States resolution on Ukraine at the United Nations General Assembly that did not pass, while a resolution supported by European countries, which identified Moscow as the aggressor in its war against Ukraine and demanded Russian troop withdraw from Ukrainian territory, was adopted. Later in the day, the UN Security Council voted in favor of the US resolution on Ukraine that calls for a rapid end to the war but does not name Russia as the aggressor and does not call for a Russian withdrawal.

Photo: MIA Archive