The leader of North Macedonia's rightwing VMRO-DPMNE party and designated prime minister, Hristijan Mickoski, formally submitted the proposal for the composition of the new government and its programme to the country's parliament for approval on June 18. This step follows the approval of ministerial nominations by his party's top bodies during the weekend.

Following his victory in the May elections over the Social Democrats, Mickoski received the mandate to form the new government from President Gordana Siljanovska Davkova on June 6. The proposed government lineup, comprising 24 ministers and deputy prime ministers is scheduled for parliamentary review and vote by June 23.

Ministers nominated 

The Your Macedonia coalition led by VMRO-DPMNE will have 15 ministerial positions, including three vice prime ministers, as reported by bne IntelliNews earlier this week. The ethnic Albanian Vlen coalition will oversee five ministries and one vice prime minister's role, while the ZNAM party, led by Maksim Dimitrievski, will head two ministerial portfolios.

“The proposed government composition enjoys significant backing from the electorate, having garnered over 600,000 votes in the recent May 8 elections. There is strong confidence in securing two-thirds support for crucial legal reforms that will be presented in the Macedonian Assembly in the near future,” Mickoski said.

Key appointments include Pance Toskovski for minister of internal affairs, Timco Mucunski for foreign affairs and foreign trade, and Gordana Dimitrieska Kocoska for finance.

Aleksandar Nikolovski is proposed as deputy prime minister and minister of transport, while Vlado Misajlovski will oversee the ministry of defence.

Other significant appointments include Zlatko Pirinski for minister of local self-government, Sanja Bozinovska for energy, mining and mineral resources, and Cvetan Tripunovski for agriculture, forestry and water management. The coalition partners, the Socialist Party and the Democratic Party of the Serbs, will hold vice prime minister positions responsible for political systems and community relations, to be held by Ljupco Dimovski and Ivan Stoilkovic, respectively.

Other nominees for ministerial positions include Stefan Andonovski for information society and digital transformation, Borko Ristovski for sports, Zoran Ljutkov for culture and tourism, and Vesna Janevska for education.

The general secretary of the government, to be appointed from VMRO-DPMNE, will be announced soon.

According to reports, the Vlen coalition is slated to oversee five ministries in the new government. Orhan Murtezani has been nominated as the minister of European affairs, while Izet Mexhiti is set to lead the ministry of environment and also serve as the first vice prime minister.

Additionally, the Vlen coalition will manage the Ministry of Social Policy, Demography and Youth, as well as the Ministry of Economy and Labour, with nominees Fatmir Limaj or Besar Durmishi, respectively. The health ministry will be headed by Arben Taravari.

ZNAM party announced earlier that Igor Filkov and Goran Mincev, have been nominated for the positions of minister of justice and minister of public administration, respectively.

Mickoski's agenda

Commenting on one of the key political issues in the country, Mickoski reaffirmed his commitment to using the constitutional name of the country, North Macedonia, internationally, in a televised interview on TV Sitel's Dnevnik. However, he stated that domestically he will continue to refer to the country as Macedonia, as has been customary, according to the party’s statement.

Greek officials have issued multiple warnings against the use of the old name "Macedonia" after new President Gordana Siljanovska Davkova omitted the word "North" from the country's official oath in Parliament. Despite this, Mickoski emphasized that securing EU membership would be the primary focus of the government agenda.

Highlighting the priorities of his incoming government, Mickoski stressed a strong stance against crime and corruption as a top agenda item.

"There will be no tolerance for any member of the government or elected official involved in criminal or corrupt activities," Mickoski declared.

Anticipating swift action, Mickoski announced plans for a substantial foreign investment in renewable energy within the first few days of his government's tenure, aimed at achieving energy independence for North Macedonia.

The investment, valued at €400mn-€450mn, underscores his administration's commitment to advancing sustainable energy solutions.