Skopje, 12 September 2025 (MIA) – Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said Friday that the Vardarishte illegal landfill has been secured, but the Drisla landfill, despite being nearly controlled on Thursday, reignited last night for unknown reasons. The Ministry of Interior will address the issue today, following complaints from Skopje residents about the smoke in their neighbourhoods.

PM Mickoski said he has spoken with Interior Minister Panche Toshkovski and is in contact with Protection and Rescue Directorate head, Stojanche Angelov, regarding the Drisla landfill. He noted that construction machinery from socially responsible companies is engaged on the site and expects the problem to be resolved today or tomorrow.

Prime Minister Mickoski said that issues left unaddressed for decades, which no one cared for, will be resolved in a few days, likely within a week. “I fully sympathize with every citizen affected. Yet it is strange how certain public enterprises, staffed by the Democratic Union for Integration, are involved in such events. We will investigate and collect evidence to understand how a nearly controlled fire suddenly reignited, especially now, after successfully managing fires in neighboring countries that caused casualties and destruction, while our fires were handled successfully all summer,” he added.

According to PM Mickoski, although the government faced diversions earlier in the summer, the landfill fires in Skopje are now happening unexpectedly, ahead of the local elections.

“The real question is who benefits from all this. But we are not focusing on that right now, we are working to resolve the problem. Afterwards, we will address it, and rest assured, all those responsible will be brought to justice,” Mickoski said.

Regarding the Vardarishte landfill, a private security agency has been engaged by the municipalities since yesterday, and, as Mickoski said, “absolutely, as a government and as institutions, all measures are being taken.”

“Regarding Vardarishte, you know that several individuals who were using the illegal landfill have already been arrested. The site has existed for more than a few decades and spans over 20 hectares, where metals were produced and then sold illegally. These individuals have been identified and detained. Since yesterday, a private security agency, jointly engaged by several municipalities, has been deployed,” Mickoski said.

Photo: MIA