Environmental protection, sustainable development, and international cooperation at work in Macedonia's largest national park. Our correspondent visited the area of Mavrovo lake
Recently, a group of young protesters from Skopje seems to have chosen music as the credo of their civic and political activism. They protest by singing. They call themselves Raspeani Skopjani [Singing Skopjans], and their popularity has been growing
According to the European Commission, Macedonia is ready for the accession negotiations, but needs to solve the dispute with Greece first. Despite some positive signals between Skopje and Athens, like the meeting between Gruevski and Papandreou, the country expects a further disappointment
On 30 November, the Council of Interior Ministers of the EU approved the request to cancel visa requirements for citizens from Serbia, Macedonia, and Montenegro. Citizens from these countries will be able to travel freely to EU countries starting from 19 December. The reactions from Podgorica, Montenegro.
With their passionate, non-conventional music, theatrical contaminations, and growing domestic and international success, "Foltin" looks like the next best thing in Macedonian music. Osservatorio interviewed the group's singer and front-man Branko Nikolov
Macedonia ranks third, after the United States and France, in Google searches for the term "invest in". Of course, the real level of foreign investment is most important, but this search statistic is a relevant statistic of the country's visibility as a possible destination for foreign investments
He has been guarding sheep and shepherds' families around the Balkans for centuries. When Macedonia became independent in 1991, the Shara mountain sheepdog was given a place on the new Macedonian one denar coin
Macedonia is almost the last country in Eastern Europe, together with Albania, to pass legislation on lustration. Under the law's provisions, practically every public officeholder will have to swear they had not worked for the secret services
On May 4, daily Dnevnik revealed to its readers secret contracts between the Skopje Municipality and the Fonderia Artistica Ferdinando Marinelli from Florence, for the production of a series of monuments, the biggest of whom is that of Alexander the Great, which will be 22 meters high
A few days before Easter, the Macedonian constitutional court cancelled a law enacted by the VMRO-DPMNE led government introducing optional religious education in public schools. This act marked the beginning of the fiercest dispute between the executive and highest judiciary institution
The Bull, the Beggar, the Bimbo....These are only some of the sculptures the Macedonian government has been installing in the centre of Skopje as part of its recently launched architectural renewal spree.The process has not left anyone dispassionate, stirring political controversy over the city's urbanistic development
Gjorgji Ivanov has won the presidential elections with about 63 percent of the votes. The most important thing for the country, as is widely agreed, was the fact that the election was free and fair
Bombers crossed the sky by night and thousands of desperate people gathered at the borders by day. In Macedonia, at the time of the conflict in Kosovo, the smell of war was in the air. Back then, for most people in the country, it was as close as they had ever been to war in their lives
On 22 March, Macedonian citizens will go to the polls to elect a new president and new local governments. If Macedonia runs a good election, it might hope to get a date to start accession talks with the EU, perhaps by the end of 2009. But if the election doesn't go well, Macedonia can forget about it
Just before the start of the electoral campaign, Macedonian prime minister Gruevski announced a massive plan to invest in infrastructures. Little resources, though, seems to have been allocated to revive the "European Corridor 8", meant to link the Adriatic to the Black Sea
Macedonians have become bitter with each other. Over themselves. Over who they are. Over whether they are Slav or ancient Macedonians. Op-eds and commentaries have overwhelmed the press; the blogosphere has overheated. It all started because of a monument
As presidential elections approach, Macedonians have become embroiled in a heated debate over who they are. The "identity issue" will clearly be a thorny one in the upcoming campaign. And while VMRO revives the myth of Alexander the Great, many Macedonians are still perfectly comfortable with their Slavic roots
Macedonia caught the fever again. Merely six months after the early national vote of June 2008, the country braces itself again for elections. The presidential and local vote will both be held on 22 March. For the past weeks, the country's biggest political issue concerns the possible candidates for future head of state
In Albanian communities accross Macedonia, it is easy to find monuments dedicated to the National Liberation Army. But the opening of a new museum dedicated to the NLA in Skopje stirred much controversy
In Macedonia, economic crisis has spurred a new trend: treasure hunters are increasingly scouring the furthest reaches of the country in pursuit of Ottoman gold, Roman antiquities and other treasures. Whether basing their searches on actual history or dubious legend, hunters are going to great lengths to cash in on the proverbial jackpot...often illegally.
As the paths of wolves increasingly overlap with those of humans, creating tension for shepherds, farmers and drivers, Macedonia has once again legalized killing of the animals after a year-long ban on wolf hunting
The government of Skopje is trying hard to pay respect to diversity. Some analysts argue that, despite a difficult start, Macedonia remains the only viable example of successful ethnic co-existence in the Balkans. This may also be an exaggerated statement, but it is worth thinking about it
Skopje filed a petition against Greece at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on grounds of violation of the 1995 interim accord between the two countries. Skopje asks the ICJ to order Athens to refrain from further obstructing Macedonia's integration in international organizations
The European Commission reports on acceding countries published last week did not bring any big surprises in Macedonia. The major news was already known - the country was not granted a date to start negotiations with Brussels
US presidential election: overall, the impression is that the Balkans does not have a special preference for either of the candidates although it aligns with the wide-European sentiment which prefers Obama
In his column in the daily newspaper "Dnevnik", Professor Frckoski, a former Minister of Interior, revealed information concerning the attempted assassination of the first Macedonian president Kiro Gligorov on October 3 1995. The text raised ghosts from the past and stirred political tension in Macedonia
After the big vote in the UN General Assembly, the Macedonian Government recognized Kosovo. Despite the bitter reactions of Belgrade, Skopje thinks its decision will strengthen peace and stability in the region
Financial markets in the Balkans are cracking under the pressure from the global financial crisis. Tuesday (October 7) was a bad day for the Macedonian stock market. Its index, the MBI 10, plunged by almost 8%. The crisis seems to be only now arriving in the region
Some of Macedonia's international partners that support Kosovo's independence, recently reminded Macedonia that it is expected to recognise Pristina. The Albanian political parties in Macedonia are also strongly advocating recognition, yet the government exercises restraint
Mother Theresa, one of the icons of the 20th century, was born in Skopje. Her place of birth commemorates her with a special award for humanitarian engagement and a Memorial House in the centre of the capital of Macedonia
