The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, sent a letter of condolences to the President of the Russian Federation, Mr. Vladimir Putin on the occasion of the terrorist act in St. Petersburg.

Distinguished Mr. President,

It is with deep sadness and sense of indignation that I received the news of the explosion at the metro in St. Petersburg, Russian Federation, and I sincerely regret the loss of lives in this tragic act.

In these sad moments for you, for the citizens of your country and the families of the victims, allow me, on behalf of the citizens of the Republic of Macedonia and on my personal behalf, to extend my deepest condolences and wish the injured a speedy recovery. I want to assure you that the Macedonian citizens are in their thoughts with you and with the friendly Russian people.

I strongly condemn the violence that took place in St. Petersburg and truthfully hope that, while the Russian Federation goes through these difficult times, the entire international community will work together in the fight against the evil and will thus intensify the existing cooperation against terrorism.

Please, Mr. President, convey the expressions of sympathy to the families of the victims.

Dr. Gjorge Ivanov

The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, sent a congratulation message to Mr. Aleksandar Vucic on the occasion of his election as President of the Republic of Serbia

Distinguished Mr. Vucic,

It is my great honor and pleasure, on behalf of the citizens of the Republic of Macedonia and on my personal behalf, to extend sincere congratulations on your election as President of the Republic of Serbia, and wish you much success in carrying out this responsible office.

I avail myself of this solemn occasion to express satisfaction with the continuous development of bilateral relations and belief that, during your tenure as President of the Republic of Serbia, we will jointly contribute to an even more successful and fruitful cooperation in all fields of mutual interest.

Building good neighborly relations, regional stability and cooperation, as well as integration into the European Union are priority areas for the Republic of Macedonia. I believe there is mutual readiness for close cooperation with you in this regard, for the benefit of both countries and peoples. The traditional friendship, historical and especially interpersonal relationships are a huge potential that should utilized with joint efforts to strengthen the mutual trust and intensify the overall cooperation.

Please, Mr. Vucic, accept the assurances of my highest consideration.

Dr. Gjorge Ivanov

The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, today, 27 March 2017, upon completion of the term of Mr. Nake Culev, Director of the Intelligence Agency, made a decision to appoint Dr. Zoran Ivanov as the new director of the Intelligence Agency.
 

Dr. Zoran Ivanov served as Head of Military Intelligence within the military security and intelligence service. He is a professional staff of the Ministry of Defense and active military personnel with combat experience in carrying out operations in the country and in international defense missions overseas. After completing military academy in Skopje, he was deployed in the battalion for special operations and participated in the 2001 conflict. He was awarded with a medal, a bronze star, for bravery by the US Department of Defense for serving as the commander of the military contingent and performing special operations and providing support to Iraq in 2006. He graduated and has his MA degree at the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, USA, and a PhD degree at the Institute of National History of the Republic of Macedonia. Since 2009, he is the Head of Military Intelligence. Besides combat experience, he is specialist for special operations and psychological warfare.
 

The former director, Mr. Nake Culev, continues to be part of the professional composition of the Intelligence Agency and, in cooperation with the newly appointed Director, he will continue the started process for transformation of the Intelligence Agency, whose mission is to collect data to inform the defense of the state, to protect the national security and achieve the interests of the Republic of Macedonia abroad.

The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, received today Ms. Helen Clark, Under- Secretary-General of the United Nations and Administrator of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).

The meeting discussed the overall cooperation between the Republic of Macedonia and UNDP and the implementation of the current and future projects and initiatives.

President Ivanov expressed his expectation that the signing of the new framework for development cooperation of the United Nations, "Partnership for Sustainable Development: 2016-2020 UN strategy for the Republic of Macedonia", will provide greater coherence in the work of the United Nations agencies in the country and more efficient use of their expertise, experience and resources.

"We expect increased transparency and accountability in the planning of future activities of the United Nations in the Republic of Macedonia, as well as strengthening of the partnership with the national institutions,

President Ivanov said at the meeting, adding that it requires greater involvement of our representatives in the joint working groups for monitoring and reporting the results of the implementation of the projects and activities supported by UNDP and the United Nations.

Ms. Helen Clark praised the way the Republic of Macedonia handles the refugee and migrant crisis and said that the support and cooperation with the Republic of Macedonia will continue and deepen with new projects.

The meeting welcomed the active participation of the Republic of Macedonia in adopting the Sustainable Development Goals under the UN Agenda 2030 and the actions taken to implement them.

The Macedonian President expressed satisfaction that the priority activities in the operations of the UNDP in the Republic of Macedonia for the period 2016-2020 result from the priorities of the Government of the Republic of Macedonia and represent a continuation of the activities to provide support for employment, strengthening local public services, social inclusion and sustainable environment.

President Ivanov thanked for the engagement and initiatives of UNDP in the Republic of Macedonia, as well as for the successful implementation of the project for protection of Lake Prespa.

The interlocutors expressed their expectation for continued cooperation in defining jointly the strategic priorities, ongoing activities and in implementing existing projects.

The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, received today at a farewell meeting H.E. Mr. Rajesh Kumar Sachdeva, Ambassador of the Republic of India to the Republic of Macedonia, resident in Sofia.

At the meeting, they exchanged views on the situation in both countries, as well as on the overall bilateral relations between the two countries and the cooperation in all spheres of mutual interest.

President Ivanov expressed his expectation for further improvement of the cooperation in all spheres of mutual interest and stressed the Republic of Macedonia's interest to establish a more intensive economic cooperation.

Ambassador Sachdeva expressed satisfaction with the performance of his diplomatic duty and expressed conviction that his country will continue with its efforts to improve the relations with the Republic of Macedonia.

President Ivanov expressed his appreciation for the overall engagement of Ambassador Sachdeva and wished him success in his future career.