Macedonian Foreign Minister Timcho Mutsunski expressed regret for the incident at the airport in Skopje, which caused a diplomatic scandal between North Macedonia and Kosovo, BGNES reported.
Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani was transiting to Slovenia on August 1 when Macedonian airport security confronted her. Osmani subsequently asked for help from the Speaker of the Macedonian Parliament Afrim Gashi /from the Albanian ethnicity - note ed./ who sent his bodyguards to the airport to protect her. Pristina accused Skopje of violating diplomatic rules and good neighborly relations.
Mutsunski said he would not succumb to provocations and suggested that the security of the President of Kosovo and part of Afrim Gashi's team may have been responsible for the incident, who may have wanted to take revenge on TAV (airport security) officials.
"The Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Kosovo maintain positive and constructive bilateral relations and cooperation, without open questions and with honest and continuous dialogue at all levels and in all areas. In this context, we regret the misunderstandings that occurred during the trip of the President of the Republic of Kosovo, H.E. Vyosa Osmani, at Skopje International Airport. We note that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Macedonia has already requested information from all competent institutions regarding yesterday's event. After an appropriate analysis of the collected data in cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior, all necessary activities and measures will be taken to avoid similar or similar situations in the future," says Mutsunski's reaction.
Earlier, Kosovo demanded an apology from Mutsunski and Macedonian President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova.
According to North Macedonia's Interior Ministry, when the Kosovo president was going through border control at Skopje airport, one of her security guards pulled a TAV employee over so the president could pass without her phone and carry-on luggage being scanned. Although the employee was pulled over, the luggage was still returned and passed through the scanner.
TAV Macedonia reported that the security department, acting within its powers, carried out a standard security check on Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani and her luggage at the security checkpoint in the VIP lounge to secure the particular commercial flight. | BGNES
