Washington, 17 August 2022 (MIA) - According to an amendment to the National Defense Law, Congress asked the Pentagon to propose more military exercises with North Macedonia next year. The US Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act, which included an amendment for North Macedonia. This is a federal law by which the United States determines the Pentagon's annual budget and expenditures. Under the amendment, Congress instructs the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Commander of US European Command, to submit a briefing regarding plans for additional NATO or joint exercises of the USA and North Macedonia during the 2023 fiscal year to the House Armed Services Committee, no later than December 1, 2022. "The committee strongly supports North Macedonia's integral role as a NATO ally and highlights the value of NATO's Rapid Response 22 exercise in North Macedonia for NATO interoperability, regional integration and deterrence against Russian aggression," the law says. It adds that it is essential that "the US and the rest of NATO continue to conduct similar exercises with North Macedonia and strive for further integration." North Macedonia was included in the proposed legal text by Congresswoman Lisa McClain, co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Macedonia and the Macedonian-American Community, at the request of the United Macedonian Diaspora (UMD), VOA reported. The new director of UMD for Macedonia Gordan Jordanov, the UMD’s president Metodija A. Koloski and the UMD’s director for advancement and development Ema Brown met on June with McClain, in order to request a stronger US engagement in North Macedonia. "Since our founding in 2004, UMD has been intensively working to strengthen relations between the United States and our homeland Macedonia in every field. I am honored that right before the 30th anniversary of the Macedonian Army, Congress voted to deepen the relationship between the armies of the United States and Macedonia. In its history, the Macedonian Army had no greater friend than the US Army. We are stronger together," Koloski said.