Skopje, 28 November 2025 (MIA) – Our national interest is straightforward – to build a country that recognizes, analyses and responds to hybrid and information threats in coordinated way, quickly and professionally, said Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski addressing Friday’s Hybrid and Information Threats conference, organized by the Institute of Communications Studies.

According to him, the time when knowledge disappeared with the replacement of directors is over.

“We’ll implement mandatory procedures, methodologies, data bases and standards so there are no longer ‘gaps’ in the system, to eliminate dependence on individuals. We’re planning trainings for civil servants in all the institutions, specialized programs for MoI, MoD, the National Security Platform, the public administration and local self-government; programs for media literacy and digital security of young people,” said Mickoski.

No state, he added, is able to defend itself without trained people and hybrid treats cannot be curbed with silence, they can be defeated with a joint action.

“The government will open a platform for regular cooperation with research centers, universities, media associations, civil organizations and the private sector. This is a problem that is too demanding for only one institution to fight against. Macedonia will build a system, not an improvisation,” the prime minister pledged.

The vision is straightforward – a country that recognises early, institutions that react fast and civil servants that act professionally, citizens that recognize manipulations and a society that won’t be a victim, it will be resilient, Mickoski noted, adding it is a joint mission for the future of our democracy. 

British Ambassador Matthew Lawson said he was pleased to have the chance to open the conference on the fight against disinformation. 

“As partners of NATO, we are committed to this fight, which is why I’m glad to be part of this cooperation. We believe it is crucial for the systems to have exact sources of information because disinformation violate every democracy. We believe as partners in NATO we need to be part of this fight together with the prime minister and with you,” said Ambassador Lawson.

At the panel discussion, Minister of Digital Transformation Stefan Andonovski referred to the National Cyber ​​Strategy and the National ICT Strategy.

“As a country that has clearly aligned itself with the NATO and EU stance, we are and will be susceptible to attacks. The question is not whether they will happen, the question is how we will cope, what kind of resilience we will build and how we will respond to this type of attack,” said Andonovski.

Zhaneta Trajkoska, Director of the Institute for Communication Studies, said that this project is a logical continuation of the previous activities that the Institute of Communication Studies worked on in the field of disinformation.

“Foreign interference and manipulation of information is an insidious and serious threat that undermines democracy and emphasizes divisions on all grounds, limits the sense of security and focuses on vulnerable categories of citizens. In response to these threats, an integrated system is needed that will be unifying and will include the academic community, civil society, etc,” Trajkoska said in her keynote address.

Photo: MIA