President of North Macedonia leads commemoration ceremony for Alex Salmond

The President of North Macedonia led a commemoration ceremony in memory of former first minister Alex Salmond after his sudden death.

President Gordana Siljanovska Davkova expressed her condolences to the Alba Party leader’s family after he suffered a suspected heart attack while having lunch at an event in the city of Ohrid.

“My thoughts are with his family and loved ones during this difficult time,” she said.

Salmond had taken part in a panel discussion at the Forum on Cultural Diplomacy on Friday.

President of North Macedonia Gordana Siljanovska Davkova attends commemoration ceremony for former first minister of Scotland Alex Salmond. Gordana Siljanovska Davkova

High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations Miguel Ángel Moratinos speaks at commemoration ceremony for former first minister of Scotland Alex Salmond. Gordana Siljanovska Davkova

Academy for Cultural Diplomacy said he then participated in meetings during the late morning of Saturday and “became ill and suddenly collapsed” in the afternoon.

A leader of the conference where Salmond spent his last few days said the forum is “in a state of shock” over his death.

Mark Donfried, director of the Academy for Cultural Diplomacy, said: “He was here the last few days, he gave excellent participation two days ago at the panel discussion.

“He was really in the best of spirits, the best of health, and I was sitting across from him at lunch yesterday when all of a sudden he just went out and fell into the arms of a colleague of mine on the other side of the table. I immediately got up and ran to call an ambulance and when I came back, he was on the floor.”

Mr Donfried added: “We’re all completely shocked – the entire hotel, the conference, it’s been very difficult for all of us.

“He was a great man who we all looked up to and so we’re still all in a state of shock.

“Last night, we had a brief moment of reflection on his legacy.

“There was a humility with Alex, he had an authenticity, it was amazing to see how he’d touched individuals he had only known for a few days.”

Former North Macedonia President Gjorge Ivanov sent his condolences to Salmond’s “family and loved ones in this difficult time”.