Macedonia Halts Debate on Reforms
NATO’s role in Macedonia’s peace process could be in jeopardy after parliament suspended debate on reforms to grant greater rights to ethnic Albanians, an alliance envoy warned Saturday.
Hans Joerg Eiff, NATO’s ambassador to Macedonia, told Macedonian officials that parliament cannot put up new conditions that would stall a deal to end a six-month insurgency.
He spoke after parliament Speaker Stojan Andov adjourned debate, saying that discussions of proposed constitutional changes could not be held while barricades remained on roads and protesters pressured parliament.
In exchange for restarting the session, Andov demanded a promise from Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski that all people who fled fighting be allowed to return home.
The demand appeared to put the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and hard-liners in parliament on a collision course. Under a Western-backed peace plan, parliament must endorse the package before the alliance resumes collecting weapons from ethnic Albanian rebels.
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