Ethnic representation concerns in North Macedonia security

Concerns regarding ethnic representation within North Macedonia’s security institutions have emerged following recent admissions processes at state academies.

In late August 2026, the Alliance for Albanians (ASH) criticized the lack of ethnic Albanian candidates at the Military Academy in Skopje. The party noted that only one out of 46 candidates on the preliminary admission list was ethnic Albanian, prompting calls for accountability from the Ministry of Defense and the VLEN political coalition.

Shortly thereafter, the 7 May Police High School announced the admission of 310 students. While Interior Minister Pançe Toshkovski noted that the number of accepted students was increased from an initial plan of 200, the results sparked further debate. Reports indicated that ethnic Albanians comprised less than 3 percent of the new cohort, with estimates suggesting only 6 to 9 students out of 310 were ethnic Albanian.

In response to the controversy, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Astrit Iseni characterized claims that Albanians are being “excluded” from the process as “politically dishonest.” Iseni stated that interest levels from young Albanians did not meet expectations and noted that some applicants failed to appear for the testing phase, which effectively withdrew them from competition. He urged political parties, specifically BDI, to avoid using Albanian interests for “daily political gain” and emphasized that the institutional process must remain based on facts and transparency.

Following these developments, the BDI opposition party condemned the recruitment results, labeling them a “systematic exclusion of Albanians from state institutions” and demanding the immediate annulment of the competition. BDI argued that the outcome distorts the nation’s multi-ethnic demographic structure. Defending the process, Iseni clarified that of the 29 Albanian applicants, several were eliminated for failing to meet academic success criteria or failing to appear for testing, maintaining that the recruitment was conducted transparently and based on merit.