Macedonia is running out of blank passports, said interim Interior Minister Nake Culev today. Other identity documents which are issued by the Interior Ministry are also running out, but the situation with the passports is a dramatic one, Culev warned, saying that supplies will last for only five more days.

We are reducing the issuing of passports, and this has been going on since before I was appointed. We are talking bad planning and poorly done analysis. The next shipment arrives as late as mid March.

This is a serious problem, Culev said, adding that he is in talks with the German Veridos company.
Besides the bad planning, Ministry officials were also allegedly rigging a contract with Veridos, the opposition VMRO-DPMNE party warned recently.