2001 insurgency in the Republic of Macedonia

2001 insurgency in the Republic of Macedonia
Part of the Yugoslav Wars
Date 22 January 2001 - 12 November 2001 (9 months and 3 weeks) Location Polog and Kumanovo regions of Macedonia near the border with FR Yugoslavia (Kosovo) Result Ohrid Agreement Ceasefire established, brokered by NATO Albanian insurgents agree to disarm The Macedonian government agrees to give greater political rights to Macedonian Albanians Low intensity resurgence since November 2001
Belligerents
National Liberation Army	Macedonia Supported by:  Ukraine(main arms supply)  FR Yugoslavia  Bulgaria
Commanders and leaders
Ali Ahmeti Fadil Nimani † Tahir Sinani † Rahim Beqiri † Hamdi Ndrecaj Gezim Ostreni Samidin Xhezairi	Boris Trajkovski Ljubčo Georgievski Pande Petrovski (from 12 June 2001) Jovan Andrevski (to 12 June 2001) Ljube Boškoski (from 15 May 2001) Dosta Dimovska (to 13 May 2001) Vlado Bučkovski (from 13 May 2001) Ljuben Paunovski (to 13 May 2001)
Strength
6,000 – 7,000	15,000–20,000
Casualties and losses
86 militants killed 50 civilians killed	75 soldiers killed 40 civilians killed 20-30 tanks or armed vehicles captured or destroyed by insurgents
150 to 250 total dead and 1,000 total casualties 70–250 killed in fighting Other: 140,000 people displaced Three EU monitors killed in a non-combat related car accident One UK soldier killed

Ohrid Agreement

 Macedonia
Supported by:

150 to 250 total dead and 1,000 total casualties
70–250 killed in fighting
Other:
140,000 people displaced

The 2001 insurgency in the Republic of Macedonia was an armed conflict which began when the ethnic Albanian National Liberation Army (NLA) militant group began attacking the security forces of the Republic of Macedonia at the beginning of February 2001, and ended with the Ohrid Agreement. There were also claims that the group ultimately wished to see Albanian-majority areas secede from the country, though high-ranking NLA members have denied this. The conflict lasted throughout most of the year, although overall casualties remained limited to several dozen individuals on either side, according to sources from both sides of the conflict. With it, the Yugoslav Wars had reached previously peaceful Macedonia.

When it declared its independence on 8 September 1991, Macedonia was the only ex-Yugoslav republic that managed to secede non-violently from the federation. Because of this, Macedonia was considered one of the bright spots in the former-Yugoslavia.

Although Macedonia seceded from Yugoslavia as one of the poorest republics, socio-economic interventions undertaken by the consecutive democratically elected governments managed to improve the economic picture in the country. According to the International Crisis Group, there was nearly 3% growth in 1999. The second half of 2000 also saw steady growth, leading to a 5% GDP increase for the year. In January 2001, the government projected a budget surplus for the second year in a row. In 2000 the country's emerging middle class began buying new cars, adding extensions to apartments and planning summer vacations abroad.

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