Misajlovski: Military Intelligence’s role in coordination council produced no result
The coordination council has not met in two years and old members, including the accused Artan Grubi, remain listed.
Defence Minister Vlado Misajlovski said that the involvement of Military Intelligence in the government’s coordination of the security and intelligence services "first and foremost, they take care of the security of the state and its citizens." He added that the mechanism has not produced results since the law governing coordination is now being annulled by the parliamentary majority.
Council dormant for two years, old members still listed
By definition Misajlovski should sit on the Council for Coordination of the Security and Intelligence Community, but he told reporters the body has not met in the two years since the change of government. He also noted that the roster of council members still includes former officials, among them the accused Artan Grubi.
The defence minister said the authorities’ priority remains the country’s security. He warned that because the council did not convene for two years, the statutory obligation to brief the president about work, risks and cooperation among the secret services was not fulfilled in that period.
Parliamentary work to repeal the coordination law began at yesterday’s session of the Assembly’s defence and security committee. The first reading — determining the need for the bill at a plenary session — is scheduled for next Tuesday.
Officials have described the repeal as the opening step in a process that could merge the two intelligence services, but so far there is no official text publicly available showing how the draft law would look. Three weeks ago a government official confirmed a draft had been prepared that envisages the merger and allows the head of a merged service to be a political appointee or even an economist/manager instead of a career intelligence professional.
Misajlovski’s comments underscore questions about oversight and personnel listed on coordination bodies that have remained inactive since the political shift two years ago.
Photo: press material from the event
