MACEDONIA'S GEOPOLITICAL ALIGNMENT: NAVIGATING WITHOUT A COMPASS IN THE MULTIPOLAR WORLD.

The Macedonian elites have adhered to the so-called TINA principle (There Is No Alternative) for most of the state's independent existence. Regardless of their ideological position on the specter, they shared a consensus that the country's future and prosperity lie solely in becoming members of NATO and the European Union. While the full membership in NATO was achieved in March 2020, it came at a high national cost. The EU membership remains as elusive as ever. Meanwhile, the world has dramatically changed due to the complex multipol transformation. This article highlights North Macedonia's (hereafter in the text, Macedonia) inability to craft an independent foreign and domestic policy. The key premise is that the country has aligned itself with the declining and militarized West, often against its national interests. This alignment places Macedonia in a confrontational stance toward the Rest, again at a high cost to its national interests. It appears to be a lose-lose situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]