VZCZCXYZ0006
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHSQ #0492/01 2111608
ZNR UUUUU ZZH (CCY ADBDC641 MSI5146-695)
P 291608Z JUL 08
FM AMEMBASSY SKOPJE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7568
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE 0378
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUESEN/SKOPJE BETA
RUEHSQ/USDAO SKOPJE MK
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2316
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL

UNCLAS SKOPJE 000492 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
C O R R E C T E D COPY CAPTION 
 
STATE FOR EUR/SCE AND INR/B 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV NATO MK PINR
SUBJECT: MACEDONIA: NEW GOVERNMENT LINEUP 
 
REF: SKOPJE 464 AND PREVIOUS 
 
¶1.  (U)  Summary:  In the absence of the opposition parties, 
the Macedonian Parliament approved the new VMRO-DPMNE/DUI 
coalition on July 26.  Much of the new cabinet lineup is 
familiar, with many key officials returning for a second 
term.  This message provides biographical information for the 
new Government.  End Summary. 
 
¶2.  (U) On July 26, the newly elected 120-seat Macedonian 
Parliament approved the VMRO-DPMNE ) DUI coalition 
Government in a 77-0 vote.  Opposition SDSM-led Sonce 
coalition and VMRO-DPMNE,s former ethnic-Albanian coalition 
partner DPA remained absent from Parliament in protest 
(reftel). 
 
¶3.  (U)  PM Gruevski expressed his confidence that the new 
Government will succeed in achieving the five key strategic 
priorities of its program -- economic growth and 
competitiveness, improving employment opportunities and 
standards of living, EU and NATO integration including 
resolution of the name dispute with Greece, combating crime 
and corruption, and full implementation of the Ohrid 
Framework Agreement -- saying &the new Government will 
fulfill everything within the program and realize all 
envisaged reforms, aimed at raising the living quality of 
Macedonia's citizens." 
 
¶4.  (U)  The &new8 cabinet lineup is mostly familiar, with 
Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Interior, Justice, Finance, 
Agriculture and Transportation remaining unchanged, as well 
as the Deputy PM for Economic Issues.  New coalition partner 
DUI takes the Ministries of Local Self-Government, Health, 
Economy, Labor and Social Affairs, and Environment, as well 
as a Deputy PM slot for Implementation of the Framework 
Agreement.  One new Ministry, that of the Information 
Society, has been formed by the new Government.  PM Gruevski 
called his new team of ministers &a merger of youth and 
experience, but primarily people of exceptional values, 
individuals who are required to work with honesty, 
transparency and accountability.8 
 
BIOGRAPHIES FOR THE GOVERNMENT 
--------------------------------------------- -------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Deputy Prime Minister for Economy: Zoran Stavreski 
(VMRO-DPMNE) was born in Skopje in 1965, and continues for a 
second term in his position as DPM covering economic issues. 
His dominance on economic issues and tight links to the PM 
limited the role of the Ministers of Economy and Finance 
during the last mandate.  Stavreski received his MA from the 
Faculty of Economics at Skopje University, and served between 
1993 and 2000 as first an Advisor and then the Head of the 
Research Bureau at the National Bank of Macedonia.  In 2001 
Stavreski became an Undersecretary at the Ministry of 
Finance.  In the period 2001-2006, he held various positions 
at the World Bank.  Stavreski speaks good English. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Deputy Prime Minister for Euro-Integration:  Ivica 
Bocevski (VMRO-DPMNE) was born in Skopje in 1977, and takes 
up the DPM slot from his previous position as Spokesperson of 
the Government, which he held from March of 2007.  He 
graduated from the School of Political Studies at the 
University of Saints Cyril and Methodius in Skopje in 1999 
and from 2002 to 2004 studied public and international 
affairs as a Ron Brown Scholar.  Founder and Executive 
Director of the Institute for Democracy in Skopje, Bocevski 
formerly served as Chief of Staff to a Vice President of SDSM 
and in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  Following 
participation in the IV program as a member of the SDSM youth 
Organization, Bocevski made a political U-turn and joined 
VMRO-DPMNE.  Bocevski is one of the drafters of the 
Lustration Law.  He speaks fluent English. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Deputy Prime Minister  for Implementation of the 
Framework Agreement: Abdilaqim Ademi (DUI) was born in 1969 
in Jegunovce, near Tetovo.  A graduate of the Faculty of 
Polytechnics of the University of Tirana, Albania, he most 
recently served as the Chief of Staff for DUI leader Ali 
Ahmeti.  Ademi served as an MP from 2002 to 2006, as the 
chairman of the parliamentary committee on economic issues, 
as well as member of the committees on interethnic relations, 
finance and budget, transport, communications, and 
environment.  Ademi also worked as assistant professor at the 
State University of Tetovo.  He speaks Macedonian in addition 
to his native Albanian, but does not speak English. 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  Minister of Foreign Affairs: Antonijo Milososki 
(VMRO-DPMNE) was born in Tetovo in 1976, and continues for a 
second term as Foreign Minister.  A longtime influential 
member of VMRO-DPMNE, Milososki was spokesperson of the 
VMRO-DPMNE-led government from May 2000 to September 2001, a 
period including the country's internal conflict in 2001. 
After leaving his position as spokesperson in 2001, Milososki 
went to Germany to pursue a Master's degree in European 
Integration at Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universitaet in 
Bonn.  In 2002 he began work on a Ph.D. in Political Science 
at the University of Duisburg.   He has yet to complete his 
dissertation on Macedonian-Greek relations.  A graduate of 
Skopje University Law School, Milososki was previously known 
as a nationalist with hard-line views, leading protests 
against Albanian language instruction at Skopje University. 
Local observers say his views have moderated since those 
days.  However many still see him as the face of government 
during the 2001 conflict.  He is a regular columnist in the 
daily "Dnevnik" and has been active in many Euro-Atlantic 
leadership forums and conferences.  Milososki speaks English 
well. 
 
¶9.  (SBU)  Minister of Defense: Zoran Konjanovski 
(VMRO-DRMNE) was born in Bitola in 1967, and will serve for 
the first time as Minister of Defense.   A member of 
VMRO-DPMNE Executive Committee, Konjanovski served as 
Minister of Local Self-Government in 2006, where he was 
praised as an able administrator.   Following his tenure as 
Minister of Local Self-Government, he served as an Interim 
Manager of REK Bitola, a thermo-electric power plant.   A 
graduate of the School of Mechanical Engineering at Kliment 
Ohridski University, Konjanovski speaks only basic English. 
Konjanovski is a captain first class, having attended the 
school for reserve officers while serving the Yugoslav 
National Army. 
 
¶10.  (SBU)  Minister of Interior: Gordana Jankuloska 
(VMRO-DPMNE) was born in Ohrid in 1975, and continues for a 
second term in her position.   A graduate of the Law School 
of the University of Saints Cyril and Methodius in 1999, she 
holds a master's degree in International Commercial Law from 
the University of Kent, Canterbury.  Confidante of Prime 
Minister Gruevski, she had a career in the Ministry of 
Finance and as Secretary General of VMRO-DPMNE prior to 
assuming the office of Minister of Interior in 2006. 
Jankuloska visited the US in 2005 as an IV program 
participant; she speaks fluent English. 
 
¶11.  (SBU)  Minister of Justice: Mihajlo Manevski 
(VMRO-DPMNE) was born near Veles in 1937 and continues for a 
second consecutive term as Minister of Justice, and also 
served in that capacity in 1986-1991.  Manevski also had a 
long career in the Public Prosecutor,s Office, having served 
as a Deputy Public Prosecutor at the Regional Public 
Prosecutor,s Office in Skopje, Deputy Public Prosecutor of 
the Republic of Macedonia, and President of the Regional 
Court in Skopje.  He also served from 1994 to 2000 as a state 
counselor in the Government.  Manevski was elected to the 
State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption in 2002, 
and has served as its president since 2006.   Manevski does 
not speak English. 
 
¶12.  (SBU)  Minister of Finance: Trajko Slaveski (VMRO-DPMNE) 
was born in Ohrid in 1960 and continues for a second term as 
Minister of Finance.   Slaveski,s political career includes 
serving as Vice-President of VMRO-DPMNE since 2004, advisor 
to the former Minister of Finance Nikola Gruevski and 
national coordinator for preparation of the National Poverty 
Reduction Strategy from November 2000 to September 2002, and 
Minister of Development from 1999 to 2000.  He earned his BA 
in 1983, his MA in 1988, and his Ph.D. in 1997 at the Faculty 
of Economy of the University of Saints Cyril and Methodius. 
He did graduate work at the California State University in 
Chico (1986-87) and Harvard University (1989- 90).  Since 
2003, Slaveski has been an Associate Professor at Skopje 
University's Faculty of Economy.  He was a visiting professor 
at the Arizona State University in 1997.  Since 1999 he has 
taught a graduate course at the National and Capodistrian 
University in Athens, Greece.  He is fluent in English. 
 
¶13.  (SBU)  Minister of Local Self-Government: Musa Xhaferi 
(DUI) was born in Kicevo in 1959, and serves for the first 
time as Minister of Local Self-Government.   He is a founding 
member of the ethnic Albanian Democratic Union for 
Integration (DUI) and was Deputy Prime Minister for Political 
Systems during DUI,s tenure as part of the ruling coalition 
government from 2002 to 2006, monitoring Framework Agreement 
implementation.  Following his graduation from Pristina 
University's Economic Affairs Department in 1984, he moved to 
Switzerland and joined the politically active Albanian 
Diaspora and completed a master's degree in economics at the 
University of Zurich in 1995.  During the 2001 conflict, he 
was the National Liberation Army's principal political 
representative in Western Europe.  Xhaferi pursued 
post-graduate studies in adult education in Lucerne in 2000. 
Xhaferi speaks Macedonian, but does not speak English. 
 
¶14.  (SBU)  Minister of Economy: Fatmir Besimi (DUI) was born 
in Tetovo in 1975.  This is Besimi,s second term as Minister 
of Economy, a role he will leave his position with the World 
Bank in Kosovo to resume.  He first assumed the post in 
November 2004 following a year of service as a Vice-Governor 
of the National Bank of the Republic of Macedonia.  He 
teaches economics at Tetovo University and is a member of the 
Tetovo University Senate.  Besimi served as director of the 
public enterprise for airport services, JPAU Macedonia, from 
November 2002 until August 2003.  He worked as a researcher 
for the National Bank in 2001 and at Stopanska Bank's Tetovo 
branch in 2000.  He completed his Bachelor's and Master's 
degrees at the School of Economy in Skopje and holds a Ph.D. 
in Monetary Economics from the Staffordshire University in 
Great Britain.  Besimi speaks fluent English. 
 
¶15.  (SBU)  Minister of Education: Pero Stojanovski 
(VMRO-DPMNE) was born in Skopje in 1970, where he graduated 
from the School of Electrical Engineering at the University 
of Saints Cyril and Methodius.  Stojanovski was promoted to 
his ministerial position from his previous role as State 
Secretary in the same ministry.  Prior to his service in the 
Education Ministry, Stojanovski worked as a project assistant 
at an engineering company,  an instructor in mathematics and 
information science in a private school, and an administrator 
 and teacher in an experimental teaching project at a public 
secondary school.  He speaks basic English. 
 
¶16.  (SBU)  Minister of Labor and Social Policy: Xhelal 
Bajrami (DUI) was born in Kumanovo in 1973.  A Law School 
graduate, Bajrami passed the bar exam in 2008.  He previously 
worked as an intern in the Kumanovo Basic Court, taught at a 
high school in Kumanovo, and worked as a lawyer or a public 
enterprise that built and maintained roadways in 2006-2007. 
English language ability not known. 
¶17.  (SBU)  Minister of Health: Bujar Osmani (DUI) was born 
in 1979, and is a medical doctor serving for the first time 
in the government.  A 2004 graduate of Skopje Medical School, 
Osmani completed a specialization in general surgery in 2006. 
 He then enrolled in professional training in Liver Tissue 
Engineering in London until November 2007.  Osmani speaks 
English well. 
 
¶18.  (SBU)  Minister of Culture: Elizabeta Kanceska-Milevska 
(VMRO-DPMNE) was born in Veles in 1970, and comes to the 
Minister of Culture position from her position as State 
Secretary in the same ministry.   A graduate of the School of 
Sociology at the University of Saints Cyril and Methodius in 
Skopje, she holds a Master,s degree in European studies, 
concentrating in societal protection of cultural heritage 
sites. Kanceska-Milevska does not speak English. 
 
¶19.  (SBU) Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning: 
Nexhati Jakupi (DUI) was born in 1973.  A physician, Jakupi 
graduated from the Medical School at the University in Sofia, 
Bulgaria.  He specialized in general surgery at the 
University of Skopje in 2005.  Jakupi is moving to the 
Ministerial Office from his position as City Councilor in 
Gostivar.   English language ability not known. 
 
¶20.  (SBU)  Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Waterways: 
Aco Spasenovski (Socialist Party) was born in Kicevo in 1969, 
and serves for a second time as Minister of Agriculture.   A 
graduate of the School of Agriculture at the University of 
Skopje, he has been a private entrepreneur for most of his 
career.  From 1994-1996 he owned a dairy, through 1997 he 
worked in a pharmacy, from 1997 -1999 he worked as a field 
adviser in the World Bank Office in Skopje, and from 1999 
through 2006 he ran his own agricultural consulting firm. 
He speaks English and knows some Albanian. 
 
¶21.  (SBU)  Minister of Transport and Telecommunication: Mile 
Janakieski (VMRO-DPMNE) was born in Prilep in 1978, and is 
serving his second term as Minister of Transport and 
Telecommunication.  He received a BA in Management and 
Business Administration from the American College in 
Thessaloniki and is currently enrolled in postgraduate 
studies at Skopje University.   A member of the Central 
Committee of VMRO-DPMNE, Janakieski was Director General of 
the water supply public enterprise in Skopje in 2005-2006. 
He previously worked as an assistant manager in the State 
Foreign Currency Inspectorate of the Ministry of Finance, an 
assistant manager in the Sector for Macro Economy and 
Development Policy, and as Chief of Cabinet of the Minister 
of Finance. He speaks English well. 
 
¶22.  (SBU) Minister of Information Society: Ivo Ivanovski 
(VMRO-DPMNE) was born in Bitola in 1978, and is the first to 
take the helm of this newly-formed Ministry.  Ivanovski 
already has Government experience in IT issues, as he served 
as Minister without portfolio focusing on information society 
issues since 2006.  Ivanovski graduated from Ohio State 
University in 2003 with a Master,s in Hardware Engineering. 
During his eleven-year stay in the U.S., Ivanovski was an 
active member of the Macedonian-American Friendship 
Association.  He started his career in 1997 as an IT 
specialist and later served as IT Manager for the Plaskolite 
Company, a Plexiglas producer.  Ivanovski speaks English 
well. 
 
¶23.  (SBU)  Minister without Portfolio:  Vele Samak 
(VMRO-DPMNE) was born in 1974 in Prilep.  He was first 
appointed as a minister without portfolio in 2006 and will 
continue in that role for a second term -- focusing on 
attracting foreign investment.  Samak previously worked as a 
product manager at Microsoft and as a VP at Citigroup.  Samak 
holds a BA from the University of Chicago (1996)  and an MBA 
from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania 
(2005).  While at Wharton, he and a group of students started 
the company TerraPass which uses market mechanisms to help 
customers offset the carbon dioxide emissions of their 
vehicles.  A former Secretary of the Macedonian-American 
Friendship Association, Samak speaks fluent English. 
 
¶24. (SBU)  Minister without Portfolio:  Nezdhet Mustafa 
(United Party for Emancipation) was born in Skopje in 1962 
and is serving for the first time in the Government.   In 
1994 he founded the first Roma party in Macedonia, and serves 
as the President of its successor party-- the United Party 
for Emancipation.  He is a graduate of the School of 
Philosophy at the University of Saints Cyril and Methodius. 
With the exception of a brief stint as an editor for 
Macedonian National Television, Mustafa has continuously 
worked in politics.  He was Mayor of Suto Orizari, the 
largest Roma municipality in Europe, from 1996-2000 and has 
been a Member of Parliament since 2002.  He does not speak 
English. 
 
¶25.  (SBU)  Minister without Portfolio:  Hadi Neziri 
(Democratic Party of the Turks in Macedonia) was born in 
Zdunje, near Gostivar, and serves for the first time in the 
government.  He is a 1979 graduate of the School of 
Electrical Engineering at the University of Pristina.  He 
worked in electrical power plants for most of his career, 
until 2006, when he was elected a Member of Parliament from 
the ranks of the Democratic Park of the Turks.  English 
language ability not known. 
 
Milovanovic