Leaders' First TV Duel in Years Grips Macedonia

A three-hour televised duel between Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and opposition leader Hristijan Mickovski, the first such event in 16 years, attracted intense attention from viewers in the country and drew heat on social networks.

Major national topics, such as the dispute over Macedonia's name with neighbouring Greece, NATO and EU perspectives, the economy, judicial independence and administration reforms dominated the face-off.

The Prime Minister and leader of the main ruling Social Democratic Union, SDSM, insisted on the need for political leadership in finding a solution to the long-standing name dispute with Greece in order to unlock the country's blocked NATO and EU accession bids.

Zaev said that his government was only a short way away from finding a "creative solution" on the name issue.

He added that restarting economic growth after years of political crisis, thorough reforms of the judiciary and administration, as well as improving the government's transparency and freedom of speech and the media were also in his focus.

He commended the former ruling right-wing opposition VMRO DPMNE party for ending its boycott of parliament earlier this year, which he said had calmed the political situation and would help Macedonia get a clear recommendation from the European Commission to start EU accession talks.

Mickovski, who took over the VMRO DPMNE party from Nikola Gruevski - who this week received a jail sentence - attacked Zaev's government, however, which he likened to a "Tsunami", insisting that it had failed to deliver on all of its promises.

He said the judiciary was run according to the government's dictates, claimed civil servants were being harassed and laid off based on their...

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