Republic of Macedonia

The Republic of Macedonia¤, referred to by the United Nations and many countries as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), is an independent state on the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. It is often called Macedonia, although this can cause confusion with the wider geographical region of Macedonia and the Greek region of Macedonia.

Politics

Main article: Politics of the Republic of Macedonia

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The Republic of Macedonia is a parliamentary democracy with an executive government composed of a coalition of parties from the unicameral legislature (????????, Sobranie), and an independent judicial branch with a constitutional court. The role of the President of the Republic is mostly ceremonial, with the real power resting in the hands of the President of the Government of Macedonia.

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With the passage of a new law and elections held in 2005, local government functions are divided between 78 municipalities (op?tini, singular - op?tina). The capital, Skopje, is governed as a group of ten municipalities collectively referred to as "the City of Skopje".

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The Republic is a member of a number of international organisations such as the United Nations and Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe. It is seeking to join NATO and the European Union, although its accession to either is unlikely to occur before 2006 and 2009, respectively.

Related Topics:
United Nations - Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe - NATO - European Union

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Within the Republic of Macedonia, the main political divergence is between the largely ethnically-based political parties representing the country's Macedonian majority and Albanian minority (25 %). The issue of the power balance between the two communities led to a brief war in 2001, following which a power-sharing agreement was reached.

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• See also: Albanians in the Republic of Macedonia