Athens and Skopje would ideally agree on one of the names proposed by Nimetz, gov’t says
Athens said Monday it welcomed Skopje’s acceptance of a Greek demand that any name agreed between the two countries be “erga omnes,” i.e. to be used domestically and internationally, adding however that the two sides would ideally agree on one of the names proposed by UN mediator Matthew Nimetz.
Speaking on Real FM, government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said that “positive steps” have been made in talks between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), but “there is still a long way to go.”
Over the weekend, Greek party leaders rejected “Republic of Ilinden Macedonia” as a candidate name for FYROM. The name was reportedly put forward by FYROM Prime Minister Zoran Zaev to his Greek counterpart Alexis Tsipras during talks last week in Sofia.
In comments made earlier Monday, Greece’s Migration Policy Minister Dimitris Vitsas said that the specific proposal “is not so much on the [negotiating] table.”
