Germany Appoints Special Envoy for Macedonia Crisis

Haindl, who was appointed by Germany's Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, is being deployed in a bid to help settle the political crisis in Macedonia, alongside the European Union and the United States, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

"The political situation in Macedonia is a cause for concern in the German federal government," said foreign ministry spokesperson Martin Schafer.

"Ambassador Haindl as of now will work together with the European Commission, the United States and with other partners to support their mediation aimed at resolving the political crisis," Schafer added.

Haindl is a diplomat who has experience working in the Balkans.

During his 30-year-long diplomatic career, he has worked at the German embassy in the former Yugoslavia, and 14 years ago, he led the German foreign ministry's department for south-east Europe and Turkey.

The 60-year-old former journalist is expected to arrive in Macedonia in the coming days.

Macedonia's former ambassador to US and Holland, Nikola Dimitrov, told Deutsche Welle that the appointment of the special envoy "shows that Germany cares about democracy and the rule of law in Macedonia and shows it will approach the solving of the crisis with all its capacity and attention".

The crisis in Macedonia took a turn for the worse on April 12 when President Gjorge Ivanov abruptly halted criminal investigations into 56 politicians and their associates, most of whom come from the ranks of the ruling VMRO DPMNE party of former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski.

The president's decree and the VMRO DPMNE's insistence early elections on June 5 without completing reforms that would ensure they are truly free and fair has sparked massive ongoing anti...