Relationship dossier
North Macedonia
United States
Relationship assessment
NATO allies with a close political and security partnership
North Macedonia toward United States
+65North Macedonia has supported US-led security cooperation and works with the United States as a NATO ally. Its NATO membership, achieved in 2020, anchors substantial defense cooperation with Washington.
United States toward North Macedonia
+70The United States supported North Macedonia’s NATO accession and recognized the country under its constitutional name in 2004. Washington also maintains a bilateral strategic dialogue and supports defense cooperation.
Overall relationship
+70The relationship is structured by North Macedonia’s NATO membership, sustained US support for its Euro-Atlantic integration, and bilateral political and defense cooperation. These durable arrangements underpin a close partnership, while the detailed scope of some bilateral initiatives is less clear.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
North Macedonia and the United States maintain a close security and political partnership. The United States supported North Macedonia’s NATO accession and recognized it under its constitutional name in 2004. North Macedonia became a NATO ally in 2020 and has cooperated with the United States on defense and wider security matters. The partnership is reinforced by a bilateral strategic dialogue, though its precise scope and implementation are not fully clear.
Key developments
The United States recognized North Macedonia under its constitutional name.
North Macedonia joined NATO, becoming a US treaty ally.
The United States and North Macedonia launched a bilateral Strategic Dialogue.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of bilateral strategic-dialogue commitments are unclear.
- The extent of North Macedonia’s current contributions to specific US-led security initiatives is uncertain.