The United States has declared former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski and another official in northern Macedonia ‘non grata’

“Their actions undermined the rule of law, democratic institutions and public processes in both countries and eroded public confidence in their governments.” stated in the notice.

Nikola Gruevski (Gruevski) has been convicted and remains a suspect in several corruption cases, and has been charged with abuse of office, money laundering and other criminal offenses related to his time as Prime Minister of Northern Macedonia from 2006 to 2016. He has consistently avoided his arrest for the 2018 sentence by a court in northern Macedonia on corruption-related charges, which poses a serious obstacle to corruption accountability and corruption-related activities in northern Macedonia. Gruevski is the owner and manager of a Hungarian company ICIC KFTwhich is registered as a limited liability company in Pecel, Hungary.

Gruevski is designated under EO 14033 because he has been responsible or collaborating in or for direct or indirect involvement in corruption related to the Western Balkans, including corruption by, on behalf of, or affiliated with a government in the Western Balkans, or an official current or past government, at any level of government in the Western Balkans, such as the appropriation of public property, the expropriation of private property for personal gain or political gain, or bribery. ICIC KFT is defined in application of EO 14033 because it is owned or controlled by Gruevski.

Sasho Mijalkov (Mijalkov) is the former head of counterintelligence in northern Macedonia. Mijalkov is suspected of being involved in a vote-rigging scheme and a large-scale illegal wiretapping operation targeting 20,000 people, including opposition politicians, judges and journalists, that provided political and economic benefits and sparked a two-year political crisis in country by revealing alleged government interference in the judiciary, control over some media and interference in elections. In February 2021, for his role as the main organizer of the wiretapping scheme, he was convicted by a court in Northern Macedonia of criminal co-operation, abuse of office and receiving rewards for illegal influence. Later, in April 2021, a court in northern Macedonia convicted Mijalkov of abuse of power in connection with a procurement deal for surveillance equipment.

Mijalkov is defined under EO 14033 because he has been responsible or collaborating in, or for direct or indirect involvement in, actions or policies that undermine democratic processes or institutions in the Western Balkans.

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