The Republic of Macedonia (ROM) remained peaceful during the violent breakup of Yugoslavia. However,
the 1999 Kosovo refugee crisis, combined with a large, disgruntled ethnic Albanian minority, triggered an ethnic
conflict between the Macedonian security forces and Albanian rebels in February 2001. Hostilities ended with the
signing of the Ohrid Framework Agreement in August 2001. It proposed a power-sharing system between the
Macedonians and the minorities, along with greater cultural and educational rights. Since Ohrid, the republic has
worked to implement the Framework Agreement and reform its institutions, all in hopes of joining the European
Union. This thesis examines the factors that led to the 2001 conflict, the status of the Framework Agreement
implementation, and the political, economic and security reforms the ROM promised to the EU. Factors supporting
success in executing the reforms will be examined, as well as factors impeding progress. Finally, this thesis discusses
what roles the international community plays in the development of the ROM