site.btaJoint Operation with Frontex Officially Launched in North Macedonia

The joint operation with Frontex, called "North Macedonia 2023", underlines the growing cooperation between the EU and the Republic of North Macedonia, Frontex Executive Director Hans Leijtens said on Wednesday at a joint news conference with North Macedonia's Interior Minister Oliver Spasovski after the official launch ceremony.

The aim of the operation is to control migration flows, tackle cross-border crime, including migrant smuggling, human trafficking and terrorism, and strengthen European cooperation along the country's borders with Greece, Serbia and Albania.

Frontex deploys police officers and patrol cars to North Macedonia to support the authorities in border surveillance and border checks, including document checks as well as migrant screening and information gathering on cross-border crime.

Frontex officers always work together and according to the instructions of the competent authorities of the country they are deployed to, said Frontex Executive Director Hans Leijtens.

"Today's ceremony is of utmost importance for the Ministry of the Interior, but also for the citizens of the Republic of North Macedonia, and on this occasion I cannot but remind you of the special significance this agreement has for us," said Minister Spasovski. He recalled that the Frontex agreement was signed with the European Union in Macedonian, which, in his words, confirmed the country's aspirations for integration into the European Union, and "the Macedonian language has been introduced as an official language of the EU".

The Prime Minister of the Republic of North Macedonia, Dimitar Kovachevski, who participated in the official launch of the operation, thanked the MPs who voted for the ratification of the Frontex Treaty because with its signing and ratification "the status of the Macedonian language is elevated to the same level as all other languages in the EU" and for North Macedonia Frontex means the protection of the borders, the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the country.