Foreign Minister Timčo Mucunski spoke at the meeting of NATO member states' top diplomats in Helsingborg, Sweden, with a message that wasn't exactly diplomatically smoothed over. „The Western Balkans remain a region of Europe in which serious malign influence persists," Mucunski said. Translation: you haven't solved the problem. You've just forgotten about it.

The Helsingborg meeting (May 21-22, 2026) is preparation for the upcoming NATO Summit in Ankara, scheduled for July this year. The agenda covers every current security challenge - Ukraine, the Middle East, cyber threats, disinformation. The Balkans weren't at the top of the list. Mucunski pushed for them to be put on it.

His thesis - the region functions as contested ground where five lines of influence intersect: European integration, Russian pressure, Chinese infrastructure interests, ethnic nationalism, and disinformation campaigns. Weak domestic institutions mean the doors stay open to outside influence. We still haven't figured out how to close those doors without more Western support.

On defense spending, Mucunski mentioned NATO's target of 5 percent of GDP on defense. With an important addendum - not just spending, but building resilient institutions, cyber security, and public understanding of the security challenges. That's a smarter message than the classic numbers about weapons and tanks. In the 5G era, disinformation can do damage no tank brigade can undo.

The question still left without an open answer - what does Macedonia actually get. Statements in Helsingborg are one thing, money and programs are another. Last year's summit in The Hague produced commitments to increased defense funding - but how much of that money actually reaches Macedonian institutions? How much of it ends up as real strengthening of security? Mucunski didn't answer publicly. Maybe he doesn't have to. But citizens have a right to know whether 5 percent of GDP on defense also means 5 percent more security, or just 5 percent less budget for everything else.