USAID paid tens of millions for left wing politicized projects and media outlets in Macedonia, including the Soros Foundation

Media outlets in Macedonia are publishing reports on USAID spending in the country, on politicized, left wing programs and media outlets supportive of the SDSM and DUI parties. The data set includes over 50 million USD for projects awarded after the 2015-2016 Colored Revolution. The implementation of some of the projects has concluded, while others are still being implemented. USAID has other programs in Macedonia, but the list that was published today by outlets such as Denesen.mk, focuses on the politicized USAID projects that have usually drawn the most criticism in Macedonia.

One of the programs that jumps out is the “USAID Macedonia Civic Engagement Project C-1676” awarded in 2016 and implemented until 2021, for 1.19 million USD. It was awarded to the East-West Management Institute in New York and the Foundation Open Society – Macedonia, better known as the Soros Foundation. This is likely a continuation of an older such project awarded by USAID to FOSM in 2012, again in cooperation with the East-West Management Institute, as well as the well known pro-censorship group Metamorphosis and the ADI group. The project cites FOSM director Fani Karanfilovska – Panovska as its implementor. Karanfilovska was recently named Vice President of the SDSM party – after a career in managing dozens of ostensibly non-governmental left wing groups that fall under the umbrella of the Soros funded FOSM group, she formally took a position in the social-democratic party, which added to the widespread allegations that the NGO sector in Macedonia, which was long dominated by FOSM, is a thinly disguised partisan operation.

East West Management Institute, which includes in its staff Delina Fico, the former wife of Albanian Prime Minister and another Soros confidant Edi Rama, has won a number of other contracts from USAID, for “civic engagement”. The largest such project was also awarded in 2016 and is worth 3.44 million USD, and a smaller ““USAID Macedonia Civic Engagement Project C-1675” awarded the same year is worth 254.000 USD, citing the National Youth Council of Macedonia as its implementer. Project C-1674 worth a little over 300,000 USD is awarded to East West Management Instiute as well as Lulzim Haziri from the ADI – association for democratic initiative. This group, which was co-recipient of USAID funds in the run up to the Colored Revolution, is seen as close to the DUI party, and Haziri himself was the key member of a media watchdog set up ahead of the 2016 elections. His votes in the narrowly divided watchdog were often used to approve issuing of fines to media outlets for alleged violations of “balanced reporting” rules, and the practice was effective at threatening and silencing TV stations which later faced criminal charges under the Zaev regime.

On the media side, the list of USAID projects includes 360 Degrees, a TV show and news site edited by Vasko Popetrevski, that was awarded 1.44 million USD between 2016 and 2019, as well as Telma TV, that was given 542,000 USD for its debate show “Top Tema” between 2016 and 2018. 360 Degrees has received additional funding and along with Telma TV, was notable in the run up to the Colored Revolution in supporting SDSM and their positions during the major political crisis in 2015 and 2016 known as the Colored Revolution.

While generally far less activist than in their Colored Revolution days, 360 Degrees, which is seen as the main outlet for US and other diplomats to state their positions in Macedonia with little pushback, ran an interview with US Assistant Secretary of State James O’Brien ahead of the crucial 2024 elections. In the interview, O’Brien endorsed SDSM in no uncertain terms, as he urged Macedonian voters not to vote for VMRO-DPMNE: “..you wouldn’t buy a car from from that person, so I don’t think you should vote for them either”. His request failed spectacularly and VMRO-DPMNE won the elections in a historic landslide.

While the initial project for 360 Degrees has ended, the outlet is a co-implementer of a new 4.8 million USD project that began in 2023 and ends in 2028, awarded to the Macedonian Center for International Cooperation, the Center for Civic Communication, and several other news outlets widely seen as politically biased – IRL and BIRN. 360 Degrees is has been awarded 501,000 USD, IRL has 655,310 USD and BIRN – 417,291 USD through this project that amounts to USAID funding media outlets. The motto of the project is “Citizens against corruption”.

These and other projects cited in the newly released list seem like a continuation of the practice of USAID to support left wing, Soros and SDSM tied projects in Macedonia that was prevalent in the period between 2012 and 2016, and greatly contributed to the Colored Revolution, the collapse of the Nikola Gruevski Government and the imposed name change. Claims from Macedonian activists that USAID and the US are picking a side led to an audit of the embassy, which concluded that about 45 million USD were spent “for democracy assistance” between 2012 and 2017. The GAO report did not include political and ideological qualifications of the recipients and their obvious bias, but merely noted that the agency “generally complied with operational policy intended to ensure a fair and transparent selection process”. The claims of political bias by USAID in the run up to the Colored Revolution were also echoed by a number of GOP congressmen and the Heritage Foundation.

Media related groups such as the Institute for Communication Studies and the Macedonian Institute for Media shared a project worth 4.42 million USD that is still being implemented. Both groups are known to have positions supporting stronger media regulation under the guise of “fighting misinformation” or enforcing “balanced reporting” in the past, leading to allegations of restricting of free speech and censorship by the Zaev regime, which persecuted journalists and empowered “factchecking” groups to go after citizens posting on social media.

Other major contracts include one awarded to Arlington based Cardno (now DT Global) for 6.42 million USD for “Strengthening Resource Mobilization Activity” with several local subcontractors. Washington DC based groups that have been awarded contracts include IESC (Improving Economies for Stronger Communities – formerly International Executive Service Corps) that was given just under 7 million USD in 2023 for an on-going project for to have “Youth Actively Create Opportunities”. Politicized youth activist groups were widely used to drum up support for the Colored Revolution.

Several Roma organizations were awarded contracts for building “a prosperous community” (1.43 million USD) and Roma inclusion (934.728 USD). The Soros Foundation Open Society has implemented large Roma engagement projects in the past, and they were often criticized as having an element of vote buying among this disenfranchised community.

As in other countries across the world, USAID Macedonia has suspended its activities following a decision by the new Trump administration and its website leads to a notification that direct hire personnel will be placed on administrative leave.

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