Macedonia to approve new coalition

Macedonia is forming a unity government following months of fighting with rebels

SKOPJE, Macedonia -- Macedonia's parliament is expected to ratify the make-up of a new national unity government on Sunday.

The parliamentary session will convene at 5 p.m. (1500 GMT) to approve new ministers coming from four main parties -- two Slav-dominated and two ethnic Albanian -- and some affiliated smaller parties.

CNN has learned the ethnic Albanians, who often say they are treated as second class citizens, are to be given four Cabinet positions.

VIDEO CNN's Chris Burns reports on political talks to end the continuing violence. Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   AUDIO Chris Burns: Tanks firing into rebel positions. 646K/60 sec. AIFF or WAV sound    IN-DEPTH Macedonia: Hurdles to peace   •  Balkan hotspots   •  Interactive map   •  Macedonia's military   •  News search   •  Audio/video archive   •  In-Depth: Yugoslavia   •  In-Depth: Kosovo

The Democratic Party of Albanians (DPA) are to be in charge of the economic and labour ministries while justice and local government move from the DPA to the Party for Democratic Prosperity (PDP) -- the last party to join the coalition.

The deal to form the new government was first reached on Tuesday, but was stalled by the PDP, who refused to cooperate until a ceasefire was in place.

Prime Minister Ljubco Georgieveski's Slav-dominated party, VMRO, will keep the interior ministry along with transport and three other portfolios.

The SDSM -- another Slav-dominated party -- will take charge of the defence and foreign affairs ministries. Two other smaller Slav parties get environment and health.

The broad-based government is expected to have the two-thirds majority necessary to approve constitutional reforms demanded by the ethnic Albanian minority, which makes up about one-third of the country's two million people.

Leaders of the rebel National Liberation Army, or NLA, were not invited to the bargaining table.

Macedonia's government refuses to negotiate with the militants, describing them as terrorists bent on carving up the country and creating a larger ethnic Albanian state in the Balkans.

The rebels said conditions "for sincere dialogue" would be tough to create and instead called for a ceasefire with government forces as a prelude to talks mediated by international officials.

Western officials, however, threw their support behind the coalition government and Macedonia's efforts to quash the militants.

The 15-nation European Union said the coalition agreement sent a "strong message of unity" and called for an end to the violence.

CNN Correspondent Chris Burns says ethnic Albanians have been pushing for reforms to give them more rights and improve their access to education and jobs.

Ethnic Albanian insurgents have been battling government forces for several months. In the last two weeks, rebels have been in a standoff with government forces, who have been trying to flush them from a dozen villages in the country's north.

Macedonian officials said Sunday they could no longer confirm earlier reports that their forces had killed up to 30 rebels in fighting in several northern towns a day earlier.

Its forces say they have now halted fighting to allow civilians to leave the area. The Red Cross entered villages in the north on Friday during a dawn-to-dusk ceasefire, and evacuated 69 people -- some pregnant and others ill.

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Macedonian Government
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