N. Macedonia pulls controversial postage stamp, PM dismisses those responsible

REUTERS/Marko Djurica

North Macedonian Prime Minister Oliver Spasovski dismissed all members of the Philatelic Council, and the disputed postage stamp with the map of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) was annulled, Bosnian Ambassador in Skopje, Dragan Jacimovic said on Saturday. Earlier that day, the Post Office of that country apologized for the mistake.

Speaking to Alternativna TV, Jamcilovic said he spoke with Spasovski regarding the controversial postage stamp who informed him that the Council had been dismissed along with the head of the philatelic department at the Post Office.

Wishing to thank Croatia for their support to North Macedonia’s EU accession process, the N. Macedonian authorities issued a postage stamp showing Bosnia and Herzegovina, parts of Serbia and Montenegro as part of the Greater Croatia from the time of the fascist statelet – Independent State of Croatia (NDH).

The postage stamp from the “North Macedonia in the EU” series was issued on the occasion of the Victory in Europe Day and apart from showing the St. Mark’s square and the stylized Croatian flag in the borders of the Greater Croatia, it evidently shows the said countries within those borders.

North Macedonia-based MKD news portal was first to spot the mistake, saying that the designers, editors and the director of the North Macedonian Post Office obviously had no idea about Croatia’s geography and history.

That same day, Serbia and Bosnia sent protest notes to N. Macedonia, demanding apologies and that the stamp be withdrawn which it was, just hours later.