Kovacevski: Kurti's visit was private; the absence of the Macedonian anthem and flag to be condemned

The Cabinet of the Prime Minister of North Macedonia announced that the visit of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti to the Skopje municipality of Chair and Tetovo was a private visit, and that displaying non-national flags is against protocol and the law, the Macedonian portal a1on.mk reported.

"The visit of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti is a private visit, and for details on the invitation, protocol and organization of the indicated event, please contact the organizer," the government statement says, following the reactions after Kurti's visit to Tetovo and Chair yesterday.

The prime minister's office believes that displaying flags that are not national flags is against the protocols and laws for organizing events in the presence of statesmen of foreign countries.

"At the same time, the type of iconography observed at the event in the presence of a high representative of a foreign country is inappropriate and illegal in a UN member state and a NATO member state, and in this regard, we inform you that SVR Tetovo is taking measures to identify the perpetrators and fully clarify the case", the announcement states.

They also point out that during the day the Prime Minister's office contacted the ambassador of Kosovo in North Macedonia regarding the iconography that was used during Kurti's private visit to that country.

At the same time, they point out that the fact that the Macedonian national anthem was not sung and the Macedonian national flag was not displayed at the event organized on the territory of North Macedonia is reprehensible.

Also, they emphasize that all the countries of the region which want it to be prosperous, economically developed and integrated into the European Union and which want to build friendly relations with their neighbors, should by their actions deepen friendships between states and citizens, and insist on respect, above all, national features, as well as multicultural specificities of each of the countries in the region.

"Northern Macedonia as a functional multicultural and multi-ethnic society is an example of a country that respects differences and intensively builds good neighborly relations with all its neighbors, based on respect and cooperation, which should contribute to the further development of both the country and the region," added the Prime Minister's office.

In addition, although the local self-government in North Macedonia has full freedom in making decisions concerning the municipality, Kovacevski's cabinet points out that they do not agree with the renaming of the street that bears the name of the heroic Second Macedonian Brigade.

"We emphasize that in the past period the local self-government should have done its work more diligently and by now built a new street that would be named according to legal procedures," the announcement reads.

Political parties also reacted to Kurti's visit and the renaming of the street, so for VRMO-DPMNE it is unclear how it is possible that the street that bears the name of the Second Macedonian Brigade in the capital bears the name of a person who has no connection with Macedonian history, and the whole event does not have any Macedonian flag, and in the presence of the prime minister of a foreign country.

In the response from the LDP, it is stated, among other things, that nationalism brings nothing and nothing good to anyone in a multi-ethnic society and that it is only a source of conflict and hatred, reports this portal.

On the other hand, for the president of the European Democratic Party, Arianit Hoxha, the visit of the Prime Minister of Kosovo came at the right moment, because Kurti sent a message to the parties to be careful with whom they cooperate.

According to the mayor of Kumanovo Maksim Dimitrievski, the events in Skopje and Tetovo throw the slogan "One society for all" into the water, but a special problem is the highlighting of the characteristics of the so-called "great Albania", as well as the absence of the national anthem.

At the same time, the United Macedonian Diaspora (UMD) asked the government to declare Kurti persona non-grata.