Skopje, North Macedonia, December 28, 2023
Photo: mpc-spe.mk
The Holy Synod of the Macedonian Orthodox Church-Ohrid Archbishopric is concerned about the possibility of Kosovo interference in upcoming Macedonian parliamentary elections.
The Vetëvendosje (Self-Determination) movement, led by Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, intends to run candidates in the next elections in neighboring North Macedonia, according to Izet Mejiti, the chairman of North Macedonia’s Democratic Movement, reports klankosovoa.tv.
Vetëvendosje, a center-left to left-wing Kosovo political party, oriented towards Albanian nationalism, also participated in Albanian elections in 2021. Albanians make up 24% of the population of North Macedonia.
At its session on Tuesday, under the chairmanship of His Beatitude Archbishop Stefan of Ohrid, the Synod addressed this recent news:
The Holy Synod paid particular attention and concern to the political developments in our country related to the announcements of the participation of a party from neighboring Kosovo that would participate in the next parliamentary elections.
The Synod appeals to all Macedonian political factors, from the ruling party and from the opposition as well as to the benevolent Albanian parties to do everything necessary to prevent such actions in the Macedonian political scene.
Prime Minister Kovačevski also expressed concern, stating that this move could lead to other neighboring countries also getting involved in Macedonian elections, though Opposition leader Hristijan Mickoski believes it is not a problem as long as candidates have dual citizenship.
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