Tirana Cold on Skopje Ambassador Nominee

The 28 year-old Vele Trpevski, currently employed as advisor in the Macedonian parliament, is the government’s choice for the ambassador post, the spokesman for the Macedonian Foreign Ministry confirmed for Balkan Insight.

"It passed as a government proposal a few months ago," Petar Culev, the Ministry's spokesman, said.

The very fact that the Albanian President Bamir Topi has not said a word on Skopje’s proposal is indicative of his disagreement, Albanian TV station "Top Chanel" said in its comments on Thursday.

The TV assessed the purported new diplomat as too young and inexperienced for the task of serving in a country which is very important for Macedonia.

Trpevski’s CV, posted on the parliament’s web site, says that he has a university degree in business administration and that he speaks English, Bulgarian, Serbian, Croatian, English, Italian and Albanian.

Trpevski’s work at the parliament is his second employment. Previously he was employed at the Macedonian Cultural Center-Sterling Heights, in Michigan, USA.

Top Chanel comments that Trpevski's knowledge of the Albanian language is probably his main asset for the post and suspects that he got the job thanks to his political affiliation with the Macedonian ruling party VMRO DPMNE, of which he is reportedly a member.

Albania and Macedonia are neighbours who officially nurture good political relations. Both countries have walked the same path towards NATO and EU integration. Albania became a NATO member state in 2009, while Macedonia is still waiting to join, and both countries are working on their EU integration bids.

The ethnic Albanian population in Macedonia, which makes up one quarter of the country's population, is  seen as an additional connection between the two states.