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23 November 2001 Transcript: U.S. on Implementing Framework Agreement in FYR Macedonia (Davidson at OSCE: calls for continued, consistent progress) Continued progress in implementing the remaining commitments under the August 13 Framework Agreement (FWA) "will be essential to strengthening a peaceful, multi-ethnic, democratic Macedonia and to maintaining regional stability," said Douglas A. Davidson, deputy chief of the U.S. mission to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. In a statement to the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna November 22, Davidson urged the Macedonian government to proceed rapidly on implementing a national law on local self-government, "the passage of which remains for us a precondition to participation in a donor's conference," and he stressed "the critical necessity" for the government to cooperate completely with the OSCE, NATO and the European Union "to facilitate the peaceful return of security forces to all areas of the country." He announced that the United States has resumed its bilateral multi-ethnic police training program in Macedonia, after assessing that local conditions no longer pose a threat to trainees or instructors. OSCE technical assistance programs in Macedonia should be strengthened, Davidson said, adding that the opening of Southeast European University in Tetovo "is a clear example of the tangible long-term benefits that the people of Macedonia can enjoy from a sustained OSCE engagement there." Following is a transcript of his remarks: United States Mission to the OSCE STATEMENT ON THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Mr. Pendarovski, Ambassador Jenness and Personal Envoy van der Stoel, for your informative briefings today. We welcome the efforts of Ambassador Jenness and Envoy van der Stoel on behalf of the Chair and the Permanent Council to represent the OSCE in, and offer the best of the OSCE's expertise to, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The period between the August 13 signing of the Framework Agreement (FWA) and the November 16 parliamentary adoption of the FWA's constitutional amendments was a critical time for Macedonia and for Southeast Europe. Your work was essential to contributing to the maintenance of the cease-fire, the success of NATO's Essential Harvest disarmament efforts, and the implementation of the September 28 Permanent Council decision (439) to deploy additional monitors, police advisors, and police trainers to help build confidence and promote stability. We also welcome your leadership roles in working with the Macedonian authorities to coordinate pilot project security force returns, to help find common ground on language for constitutional amendments under the Framework Agreement, and now your energetic efforts to provide us with an excellent draft budget for the OSCE Skopje Mission's continued operations throughout 2003, a budget we support fully. Mr. Pendarovski, we would also like to offer our appreciation to you and the Macedonian authorities, and in particular President Trajkovski, for his commitment to bringing about parliamentary approval of the FWA constitutional amendments and for his personal engagement in advancing the peace process beyond that critical milestone. His further clarification on November 16 of the amnesty for the insurgents is a welcome step. Much work lies ahead, both [for] the Macedonian authorities and for the OSCE Skopje Mission. Continued consistent progress to implement the remaining FWA commitments will be essential to strengthening a peaceful, multi-ethnic, democratic Macedonia and to maintaining regional stability. We urge the government to proceed rapidly on the Law on Local Self-Government, the passage of which remains for us a precondition to participation in a donor's conference. We also stress the critical necessity of the Government's complete cooperation with the OSCE, NATO, and the EU to facilitate the peaceful return of security forces to all areas of Macedonia. To minimize the risk of further violence and tragic casualties, unilateral, precipitous moves must be avoided and returns must proceed on the basis of careful preparation and an agreed, fully transparent planning process, involving representatives of both ethnic Albanian and Macedonian communities and the international community. We note with much concern the withdrawal of the Ministry of Interior from the government's Crisis Management Committee, which has been the key technical-level forum for coordinating returns between your government, OSCE, and NATO. We urge you, Mr. Pendarovski, and Macedonia's senior political leadership, to ensure that that co-operation and coordination continue. The OSCE Skopje Mission, and other OSCE institutions, will have much expertise to offer Macedonia in coming months to assist with full implementation of the FWA. We believe the ongoing presence of monitors and police advisors to offer confidence and facilitate the process of both security force and IDP/refugee returns will be crucial to their success. The draft 2002 budget's planning and assumptions for gradual phase-down of those staff strike us as appropriate. We also fully support the objective of OSCE assumption on January 1 of the United States Government's multi-ethnic police training program. Mr. Chair, on that subject I would like to announce that the USG's bilateral program was resumed November 19 after we assessed that local conditions, including the presence of security forces at the academy, no longer posed a threat to the trainees or instructors. This program represents another aspect of international community assistance in Framework Agreement implementation, assumed at the request of the Macedonian Government. In the absence of further delays, we now project graduation to occur on Wednesday, December 19. We look to the government to integrate the graduates of the program into the process of security force returns as soon as possible. It is our view that strengthening the Mission's technical assistance programs in such areas as minority affairs and media support responds directly and positively to the specific FWA Annex C requests for OSCE help in those areas. We also hope to see as full as possible an engagement by other OSCE institutions -- the HCNM [High Commissioner on National Minorities], ODIHR [Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights], and the Free Media Representative -- on related areas. The official opening November 20 of Southeast European University is a clear example of the tangible long-term benefits that the people of Macedonia can enjoy from a sustained OSCE engagement there. In 2002, we also hope to see a robust ODIHR observation effort of the next elections, and assistance to the future census to be undertaken by the Council of Europe (COE). Finally, we welcome the support of the Macedonian Government for an extension of the OSCE's mandate through 2002, and we hope we can achieve a rapid consensus here in Vienna on a decision to approve the planning concepts presented by Ambassador Jenness and described in the circulated draft budget. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (end transcript)
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