24 November 1993

Ministry of Foreign Relations

MINISTER

Dear High Commissioner,

I was very pleased to meet you again during your visit to Skopje on l5 November l993 on which occasion you handed over your letter of 1 inter-ethnic relations in the Republic of Macedonia. I should like to thank you for your sincere efforts aimed at contributing to the further stabilization of the overall situation in our country. I am particularly pleased with the fact that you took note of the deteriorating economic situation in our country, as well as of our concern that, "if this trend will not be reversed, destabilizing effects might manifest themselves". I would also like to thank you for your efforts that such a situation of ours, which is a result of known external political and economic causes, is presented to the CSCE participating states and institutions, in order to accelerate the solution of these problems of ours and that the admission of the Republic of Macedonia to this European organization is accelerated as well.

In respect of your recommendations, I would like to inform you that my Government basically accepts them and consider that they will only strengthen activities of the Government in the fieled they concern. During our last meeting I informed you that a part of your recommendations have been already put into effect or are on the way to be carried out. This means that you have selected the problems that truly represent the main activity of the Government of the Republic of Macedonia in promoting inter-ethnic relations.

Concerning your first recommendation relating to the forthcoming population census, I would like to assure you again that since last year when the Government decided to conduct a new census, the Government s organs have been undertaking all necessary expert preparations for the census to be held in April next year. The Government have already considered the Census Law and it will be submitted to the Parliament these days. In other words, all the obligations on the part of the Government will be finished in due time. on the other hand, as you may know, the issue of financing the census by the European Union has not been settled yet. We expect that you will do everything in your power in order that a satisfactory solution to this problem is found.

Regarding your second recommendation relating to the training of Albanian teaching staff for elementary schools (l to 8 grade), the Government fully supports it. you have already pointed out that the Government "is aware of the need to promote greater access of Albanians to secondary schools". After studying this problem for a considerable time and in that process permanently contacting Albanian ministers in the Government, as well as representative of the Albanian parties and associations, the Government finally came to an appropriate solution to this issue. Namely, as i informed you during your last meeting, on 1 November 1993 the Government brought a decision on establishing courses in the languages of nationalities, including Albanian, at the Pedagogical Academy of Skopje in the course of this school year. In this regard, the Ministry of Education was requested, in cooperation with the Pedagogical Academy and University of Skopje, to undertake all necessary measures and activities to resolve this problem. (In your letter, probably due to technical misunderstanding, instead of the Pedagogical Academy the Pedagogical Faculty was mentioned).

With regard to your third recommendation concerning the recently established Council for Inter-Ethnic Relations in the Parliament, I think that it contains very useful ideas that could only promote the work of this extremely important body. The Government will forward these proposals of yours to the Council and I believe that they will be paid special attention and further elaborated. Since you have already directly contacted members of the Council I am convinced that they, appreciating your rich experience and genuine commitment to these issues, will be interested in continuing direct contacts with you.

At the end, I would like to thank you once again for the efforts and endeavours you have made so far in order to contribute to further promotion of inter-ethnic relations in our country. I hope that we will continue to cooperate on these matters in the future.

(s i g n a t u r e)

Stevo Crvenkovski

Minister of Foreign Relations

of the Republic of Macedonia