MACEDONIA COMMITTED TO STAYING THE COURSE IN IRAQ

UNCLAS SKOPJE 000601

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EUR/SCE AND NEA/I

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL MK
SUBJECT: MACEDONIA COMMITTED TO STAYING THE COURSE IN IRAQ


USG INTERAGENCY DELEGATION ON IRAQ VISITS SKOPJE


1. (U) NEA DAS Butler, together with OSD and JCS
representatives, was in Skopje July 15-16 to thank the GOM
for its troop contributions to missions in Iraq and
Afghanistan. DATT and POLOFF (notetaker) accompanied the
delegation. DAS Butler thanked GOM officials for their
strong support for coalition operations, urged them to stay
the course in Iraq, and explored other potential tasks for
Macedonia. He also briefed them on ongoing operations in
Iraq.

UNWAVERING SUPPORT FROM EXECUTIVE BRANCH, PARLIAMENT


2. (SBU) GOM interlocutors, including FM Milososki and MOD
Elenovski, expressed the GOM's unwavering support for
coalition efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. (NOTE: The Army
of the Republic of Macedonia (ARM) has contributed troops to
Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003, and currently contributes 40
troops to coalition operations in Iraq and 130 troops to
NATO's ISAF mission in Afghanistan. Troop deployments
require parliamentary approval, which has been unanimous in
every case. END NOTE.) MP Vladimr Gjorcev, Chair of the
Parliamentary Committee on Defense and Security, and MP
Ruzhdi Matoshi, Deputy Chair of the Parliamentary Committee
on Foreign Policy, pledged parliamentary support for the
current number of Macedonian troops serving in operations in
Iraq and Afghanistan. Gjorcev noted the ARM's ethnically
diverse and multi-confessional characteristics, which he said
reflected the effective functioning of Macedonia's
multi-ethnic state.


3. (U) In addition to official meetings, the USG delegation
members met in an informal setting with more than twenty ARM
officers and NCOs who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The officers and NCOs shared with DAS Butler and other
members of the delegation their personal experiences from
serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, providing a first-hand look
at the challenges of serving alongside U.S. troops in those
operations.

PROMOTING INTEROPERABILITY FOR NATO CANDIDACY


4. (SBU) DAS Butler stressed that, although Macedonia
contributes only a relatively small number of troops to
coalition operations, their presence in Iraq is vital because
they operate as a deployable unit. That allows the ARM
soldiers to showcase their capabilities and their
inter-operability with U.S. and NATO troops. CHOD LTG
Stojanovski noted that the readiness of ARM troops to deploy
and operate alongside international forces has been achieved
because of significant reforms implemented within the ARM and
Ministry of Defense (MOD) in recent years. Although GOM
interlocutors said that ARM troop contributions abroad will
continue at the current level, they noted that the number of
troops deployed has reached the maximum level possible. In
discussions on possible future tasks, as events develop, they
stressed that additional deployments would negatively impact
ongoing domestic reform efforts. (NOTE: In addition to Iraq
and Afghanistan, the ARM contributes 20 troops to EUFOR in
Bosnia-Herzegovina, and 2 soldiers to UNIFIL in Lebanon --
with overall deployments constituting approximately 3% of the
total number of ARM forces. END NOTE)
MILOVANOVIC