Skopje, 13 August 2025 (MIA) – Today, 24 years after the signing of the Ohrid Framework Agreement, we stand here not only to remember a historic date, but to recall a profound truth that we have a state only if we safeguard it together, Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said at Wednesday’s ceremonial session marking the 24th anniversary of the agreement’s signing.

Mickoski noted that the summer of 2001 was one of the most difficult in our recent history, when our homeland was shaken by conflict, fear and uncertainty. There were moments, he added, when it seemed nothing would remain the same, that the path to disaster was inevitable. But then, Mickoski noted, with courage, patience, and vision, we chose the path of peace, dialogue, compromise and unity.

“We need to speak openly and without gloves about these matters. Were Macedonians the happiest with the signing of the Ohrid Framework Agreement? I am convinced they were not. There was bitterness, anger, and probably the same feelings among Albanians. Systemic and difficult reforms, constitutional changes in the midst of armed conflict. But let’s be frank: 24 years later, the Framework Agreement has brought peace. It has brought stability and ensured the preservation of Macedonia’s unitary character. The Framework Agreement is not just a sheet of paper. It is a symbol of maturity, courage, and wisdom. It is a reminder that, no matter how different we may be in language, faith, culture, or ethnicity, we share one history and one common future. It is proof that Macedonia can be home to all its citizens, and that our diversity is our strength,” Mickoski said.

Today, just as then, he said, we are faced with choices, not choices on paper, but choices in the heart and mind.

“Will we once again allow walls to rise between us? Will we give in to division and mistrust? Or will we choose the same path we chose back then - the path of unity, respect, love for the homeland, and mutual understanding?” Mickoski asked.

The Framework Agreement, as he said, has long been misused by certain individuals.

“For over 20 years we had structures that used nationalism as the best cover for protecting crime and personal interests. The kind of nationalism, is in facts, the last refuge of those who built careers and accumulate vast wealth on the backs of the people they divide – divisions that keep them alive in the politics. With one hand they write and dictate the kind of world we will live in; with the other, they rob the country, acquiring properties, hotels, shopping malls and expensive car fleets. And they do not care about the color of money. Such divisions do nothing to solve the problems of ordinary people, who want only one thing - a better life for themselves,” Mickoski noted.

“As a politician,” Mickoski added, “I do not recognize this or that world, a small or a large world, but only one world - Macedonia, the home of all its citizens, where we all have a duty to ensure a better future for all.”

“Let’s build together and solve problems together. The suitcases that leave have no nationality. People are leaving, villages are emptying Macedonians, Albanians, Turks, Roma, Serbs, Vlachs, Bosniaks, everyone. That is the clearest message from the people to those who have been manipulating them for 20 years, claiming to work for them while constantly dividing them. The contest is not about who can be more radical or pound their chest with naive nationalism, today’s battle is to solve real problems, to provide better living and working conditions, prosperity for every Macedonian, Albanian, Turk, Roma, Serb, Vlach, Bosniak, and all our other fellow citizens. Our task is to secure a future for everyone, because Macedonia is the home of all its people,” he said.

Mickoski said that those at the table today are people and partners who see politics in terms of what more can be done for the citizens.

“There is no longer room or place for individuals and structures that manipulated and created artificial ethnic and political crises, only to later impose themselves as the solution. The truth is that the biggest milestone regarding the Framework Agreement is that this government, by adopting the law on equitable representation, has fulfilled the final obligation, leaving no open issues in this regard,” Mickoski said.

Mickoski stressed that the Framework Agreement is a closed chapter and will remain as a remainder to the need for unity and integration in achieving common goals.

“Our homeland is not strong because we are all the same, but because we are different and still together. Its strength lies in being one state, with one heart, but many colors. Twenty-four years is enough time to understand that peace is not something to be taken for granted - it is something built every day. It requires patience, respect, and a willingness to hear the other side. And it calls on politicians, citizens, intellectuals, workers, students – everyone - to put the future ahead of personal interest,” he noted.. 

He stated that this day is more than a commemoration, it is a duty to recall the bravery of those who, at that time, stood up and declared: “Enough with the divisions, it’s time for peace.” It is our duty to prevent hatred and intolerance from taking root again, and to ensure we leave to our children a united, strong, and fair state.

“Let everyone know - there is no Macedonian future, no Albanian future, no Turkish or Serbian future - there is only one shared, Macedonian future for all of us. And that future will be what we create today,” Mickoski said, calling on everyone, regardless of faith, nationality, political affiliation or non-affiliation, to choose the state over division, the future over the past, and love for the homeland over hatred.

History, he stressed, teaches us that a homeland is not defended with weapons - it is defended with trust, respect and vision. “And my vision for Macedonia is clear - a country where citizens are free, institutions are fair and diversity is respected and celebrated. Twenty-four years after the Ohrid Framework Agreement, let us show everyone – at home and abroad – that we remain committed to the path of peace and unity. That we have learned from the past, that we are ready to look each other in the eye and say: “Together we are stronger,” Mickoski said.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Environment and Physical Planning Izet Mexhiti also spoke at the ceremonial session.