Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias told reporters on Thursday, January 4 that he thinks “2018 will be the year when foreign policy issues that have been stuck in the mud for decades will be resolved.”
When pressed for additional information about the decades-long conflict between the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, he responded “On the name issue, the government is negotiating and supports a compound name that will be comprehensively used throughout,” without elaborating.
The small land-locked ex-Yugoslav republic of about 2 million people declared independence in 1991 and named itself the “Republic of Macedonia.” Greece has objected to the name it clearly identifies as a name from its own past, as well as the name of its existing northern province and has considered the country’s use of the name and symbols as objectionable.
A compromise name “Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” allowed the country to enter the United Nations. But since then, dozens of nations– including the United States during the Presidency of George Bush in 2004, have recognized the nation as the “Republic of Macedonia.”
But Greece has withheld support for the nation’s further integration into international bodies, including NATO and the European Union, until it agrees to change its name to one it says does not violate or infringe upon Greek history and territory.
In December, news reports shared leaked information that the current Greek Government under Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, had agreed on the name “New Macedonia” for the country. That information was never denied or confirmed, but it did lead to numerous public statements and dialogue from both sides about the willingness both from Athens and Skopje to solve the issue.
The junior partner in the coalition government of Tsipras, Panos Kammenos and his ANEL right wing party had previously ruled out any use of the name “Macedonia” in a solution.
That position, however, seems to be changing, according to a report in the Greek daily newspaper Kathimerini, which indicated a possible shift in their position.
Kathimerini states that Kammenos “hinted on Thursday that he may have shifted slightly from his hardline stance on the decades-old name dispute with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).”
Speaking to reporters on Thursday following a meeting on the issue chaired by Tsipras, Kammenos reiterated that the use of the “Greek term Macedonia” is a non-starter and expressed hope that “any solution given is one that will safeguard national interests and will be accepted by all in the political world.”
However, Kathimerini claims that analysts said this doesn’t necessarily rule out the possibility of his acceptance of a composite name that would include a Slavic spelling of the name “Macedonia.”
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3 comments
Fake news….The heads of the majority of the Greek parties in the Greek parliament will not vote for a composite name or the use for the word” Macedonia”…as well the Macedonian associations are mobilising both in Greece and the US with the Church’s help and aegis from Greeks abroad to stop any use of the word “Macedonia”..in the new name-whether Slavic or not..Identity is an issue, as is language and constitution. Panos Kammenos has always been consistent in his refusal to accept “Any Term or name “with the word “Macedonia” in it. The Greek media has always been wrong and always ferocious as to who gets it first-not who gets it right. The name “New Macedonia” as per Kotzias himself is NOT on the table and NO new names have been forwarded in the discussions-as all the statues are still up, school books have not been changed, names of air port and highway have not been changed, constitution has not been changed, flag and symbols etc..This is still in the 3-6-9 stage of discussions with the Skopje entity. The SYRIZA Marxists are trying desperately to give away our culture and heritage to the Marxists in Skopje-as a way of appeasing the Eurogroup and ascension into NATO and the poison EU-for hair cuts from the Eurogroup and creditors..The PEOPLE of Greece will decide this issue not the Crooked Politicians…REFERENDUM..!!!!…82% of Greeks oppose ANY name with “Macedonia” in it as per the latest poll..(10% did not answer, and 8% would give the name)…
The use of Macedonian in identity of official language, ethnicity, nationality, religion etc is the why this will never be solved. Officially changing the countries name to Vardar Macedonia or New Macedonia isn’t the biggest hurdle.
@ATHEN PARAS.
Don’t be so sure. The majority of Greeks are leftists these days..Lets not forget these leftist fanatics betrayed Greece to Skopians in a similar fashion during the Greek civil war.. Back then “Greek” leftists were claiming communist tyranny was “democracy” and. mass murderers like Stalin and Tito represented “human rights”
It means far more to treasonous leftist coward Tsipras to be popular with his foreign comrades then Hellenism. The gullible fool thinks the is “compromising” by giving into blackmailers manipulating names and history to promote irredentism against Greece. He as no idea that even if all the idiots in the Greek government agreed to a compromise name… the issue will not end. Skopians will continue to manipulate history and the name to promote irredentiusm,
On the plus side… the treasonous leftist cowards in our government can agree to whatever they wish.Greeks that still care about Hellenism will never call the antihellenic Slavs “Macedonians’.