Today (21 November), Minister Vlado Misajlovski met with the newly appointed non-resident Ambassador of Canada, H.E. Michelle Cameron at the Ministry of Defense, to whom he wished a successful diplomatic mission and fruitful allied cooperation. The Canadian Defense Attaché, Colonel Donald Hilton, also attended the meeting.
Minister Misajlovski emphasized that our country remains committed to defense cooperation with allied Canada, which dates back to 1999.
“The deeds speak of our cooperation. The exercise ‘Maple Arch 2024’, which includes personnel from the Canadian Armed Forces, will begin next week on Macedonian soil,” the Minister noted. He expressed his gratitude for the long-term Canadian support, which is especially visible in the field of language training. So far, three hundred military and civilian personnel from the defense sector have gone through a large number of trainings in this allied country.
The two countries also cooperate within the framework of the multinational NATO forces in Latvia under the command of Canada, where the Macedonian contingent also contributes its forces. Minister Misajlovski confirmed that the country will continue to contribute to these multinational forces beyond 2024.
At their meeting Misajlovski underlined that the priority for our country is the modernization process, for which almost one third of the defense budget is allocated, which, in turn, exceeded the level of 2 percent of the gross domestic product.
