Zoran Zaev has voiced his intention to step down as prime minister of Macedonia if the majority votes against the agreement for the settlement of the name issue, in the upcoming referendum. However, the country’s prime minister, in an interview with a television channel in Skopje, appeared certain that the overwhelming majority of those who […]
The name Skopje and Athens will agree upon should at the same time become a constitutional name of the neighboring country, Greek Prime Minister Alaxis Tsipras told a press conference late Friday, after an informal meeting of EU leaders in Brussels. Greece considers that the long-standing name dispute should be a subject of ‘sustainable and […]
The leader of the largest political party in Greece, New Democracy, after a meeting with the Greek PM on Saturday rejected any possibility of providing support to the current administration to muster a wide national consensus over the name issue. Opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis after meeting PM Alexis Tsipras lambasted the way in which the […]
By definition we are optimists and we need to push the process forward so as to find a solution, Macedonia’s Ambassador to Greece says Monday, MIA reports. In a short interview with the Greek news agency ANA-MPA, Darko Angelov notes that the parties should be careful because there are risks that could threaten the process. […]
Athens, 14 January 2018 – Georgios Katrougalos, Greece’s Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs, has said the possible name solution should not be a tool for irredentism, MIA reports from Athens. “We are negotiating a name that will make a clear distinction between the historical Greek Macedonia and the country which capital is Skopje, a name that will […]
Skopje/Thessaloniki 11 January 2018 – The Macedonian, Greek Foreign Ministers, Nikola Dimitrov and Nikos Kotzias respectively, expect for UN mediator Matthew Nimetz to offer an initial framework that will make substantial progress in surpassing Skopje-Athens differences over the name. Dimitrov and Kotzias discussed Thursday in Thessaloniki on the methodology, approach of the two countries and the […]
A name dispute that lasts for (25) years is a painful story for the involved sides and a stroke of luck when things change, politicians make efforts and the solution feels closer than before. But when this is jeopardised by extreme behaviours could the situation avoid looking murky? “Right-wing nationalist and diaspora organizations in both […]
Prime Minister Zoran Zaev believes in the possibility for the name dispute to be resolved, Macedonia to obtain a date for opening the EU accession talks and an invitation for NATO membership in the first half of 2018. ‘I am just a common citizen with a feeling of doubt about certain matters, including the name […]
Greek government spokesperson Dimitris Tzanakopoulos in the interview with the state broadcaster ERT expressed hope that 2018 could be the year when name issue would be closed, MIA reports from Athens. He said this year a window of opportunity exists for a solution and called the opposition New Democracy to recall on inter-party disagreements in […]
The conflict in Greece between the government and the opposition on the name issue is continuing. Greece’s Defense Minister Panos Kammenos, who is a leader of junior ruling coalition member ‘Independent Greeks’ (ANEL), reaffirmed Wednesday his opposition to a possibility for the name dispute solution to include the term ‘Macedonia’. In a press conference , […]
Name talks still lack substance, however there is commitment to solving the name issue, Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said Tuesday adding that the most favorable time to settle the row would be the first half of 2018. Commenting about a statement of Koco Angjusev, Deputy PM for economic affairs, involving the name issue, Zaev said […]
Skopje-Athens name dispute must be settled with a compromise, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias says in an interview with the state-owned ERT (Hellenic Radio-Television). ‘It is necessary for fyRoM to demonstrate a culture of consensus and compromise, which means neither we nor them could get everything. We must come to a compromise that is acceptable […]
