Hristijan Mickoski rules out early elections, cites €5 billion financing challenge
Mickoski says a six‑month technical government would push the country into financial danger while the budget must cover €5 billion of needs through 2029.
Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski ruled out the option of calling early parliamentary elections, saying the government must prioritise financial stability over short-term political gains. At a media briefing he argued that holding elections now would expose the state to serious fiscal risk.
Explaining the government’s assessment, Mickoski pointed to a short-term financing gap that, he says, requires careful management. "Next year we need to find €2.3 billion. Six months of a technical government will take the country straight to bankruptcy. And that technical government will be at the peak of the harshest winter, January and partly February. And in 2028 it is much easier, although then it's €2.7 billion. Then we can shift claims into 2029, because only that year they failed to fill it with a eurobond. Some obligations we can move into 2029 and get out of these two years when we need to secure liquidity of €5 billion," Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said.
Coalition tensions and opposition reactions
The stability of the coalition has come under renewed scrutiny after ZNAM leader Maksim Dimitrievski warned his party could leave the government if candidates are allowed to take the judicial-professional exam in a language other than Macedonian. Dimitrievski has said he will ask for a leaders’ meeting with coalition partners to define red lines on the issue.
The main opposition party, SDSM, said it will not initiate early elections. Party officials added they will not "give the government an alibi" and suggested elections would happen only if the government runs out of funds for public procurement.
On the issue of Euro‑Atlantic integration and the dispute with Bulgaria, Mickoski said he does not plan an aggressive diplomatic offensive to force a lift of the veto. He described the work as a long diplomatic marathon in which state interests matter more than quick gestures intended to appease others, and said the current diplomatic approach is already producing modest results.
Photo: press material from the event
