Paris, 6 December 2001- Macedonian president Boris Trajkovski said Thursday that crime and corruption are the "number one problem" in the Balkans ahead of tensions between ethnic groups. 
 
He told the Assembly that crime and corruption are "threatening the fragile democracy" in the region and that Kosovo "is playing a dangerous role that direction." In his speech, he said that the "grey zones," where guns rule rather than the law, "are a perfect environement for drug trafficking and terrorist training." 
 
While Macedonia was "not seeking handouts, but handups" from the European Union, he acknowledged that the economy had suffered from the crisis and warned against any delay in holding the Donar Conference. If it did not take place, this "would be a blow to the political process" and would create "a lot of hardship" for Macedonia, Mr. Trajkovski  added. 
 
He dismissed concern that recent changes to the Macedonian constitution might not halt the violence between the countryís Slav and Albanian ethnic groups. People fighting for greater human rights will find that the problem has already been resolved, he said. "No country in the region has such a high level of human rights and freedom." 
 
He added that the country would need the 1,000-strong Amber Fox force, which protects the 284 EU and OSCE observers, for another three months beyond its initial three-month mission. After that, the WEU  Assembly agreed that the WEU Council should urge the European Union (EU) to take over the task, and to ensure troops are ready to intervene in the event of a crisis. 
 
The United Nations and OSCE guaranteed the country's external security, but "failed to prevent" a conflict between its two main communities, added a report prepared for the Assembly's defence committee by Stef Goris (Belgium/Lib). The Assembly also called for a Balkan conference to be staged to adopt a comprehensive approach to the region’s problems (see press release S211).