Vlado Buckovski, Macedonia's new prime minister, took office on Wednesday after issuing a sharp rebuke to fellow reformers in the former Yugoslav country and promising a new governing style of tough decisions and resolute action.

"Today we must be honest to ourselves, face the facts and admit that all previous governments, including the one I belonged to, did not fully meet the expectations of our citizens and did not improve their lives," Mr Buckovski, a former defence minister, told the FT in an e-mail sent shortly before MPs voted to back his new centre-left government.