Greek PM, opposition at odds over Skopje talks

Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras (L) and president Prokopis Pavlopoulos
Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras (L) and president Prokopis Pavlopoulos
By Euronews
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Greece believes the name Macedonia implies a territorial claim over its own northern region of that name

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Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras failed to get backing from the main opposition leader on Saturday to build consensus ahead of intensified talks between Greece and Macedonia on resolving a decades-old name row.

Athens and Skopje have agreed to step up negotiations to reach an accord in a dispute which has stymied the ambitions of the tiny but strategically-placed ex-Yugoslav republic in joining NATO and the European Union.

Greece believes the name Macedonia implies a territorial claim over its own northern region of that name. Hundreds of thousands of Greeks rallied in the northern city of Thessaloniki earlier this month to protest against the use of the name “Macedonia” in any solution to the row.

There have been some suggestions there could be a two-name solution such as Northern Macedonia or Macedonia-Skopje.

“We will not divide Greeks to unite Skopje,” Conservative New Democracy party leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis said in a televised address after a meeting with Tsipras.

He said resolving the name dispute was not just a foreign policy matter but a serious issue relating to Greece’s history and “the very identity of Greeks”.

As a member of both, Greece’s assent is needed for its neighbor to join NATO and the EU, but the name “Macedonia” is perceived to denote irredentist ambitions against its own northern province of Macedonia.

It is an issue that sometimes mystifies foreigners, but which is deeply felt among many Greeks.

Mitsotakis, whose party is leading in opinion polls, blamed Tsipras for not asking for constitutional changes in Skopje as a “necessary precondition” for any talks, noting that the window of opportunity for a deal has closed.

A United Nations envoy, Matthew Nimetz, is due in both countries next week to further discussions. - (Reuters)

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