Zaev says solution is coming on FYROM’s name
The name issue is about to be resolved between Athens and Skopje, with a concrete proposal to be made public shortly, said Zoran Zaev in an interview aired on Greek TV on Sunday evening.
The Prime Minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia told Alpha TV that a mutually acceptable solution is about to be found and agreed, and the next step is its announcement to his countrymen by himself and to the Greek people by his Greek counterpart, Alexis Tsipras.
Responding to a question on how we would consider a solution to be like, Zaev said: “I believe that the solution ought to be acceptable by both sides. There is such a solution.”
“I will not get into the details so as not to ruin the process of the upcoming negotiation between the two sides, but I am convinced that the real solution in the end will come and I am sure we will get to it. I am convinced there is such a solution,” he stressed.
Zaev also appeared prepared to discussing the renaming of Skopje airport, which Greece has insisted on. “In every way I would like to show friendship to my neighbors, the citizens of Greece and in this spirit, if this is so significant for Greece, I am ready to discuss on this issue too,” Zaev said.
The FYROM PM also rejected any talk of “red lines”: “If we are to refer to ‘red line’ or to ‘red frontiers’, I would not wish to use them, as such a thing would constitute an obstacle to the solution of the issue. I would rather use certain other methods, so that the ‘red line’ would turn into a shining path through the dark to lead us to the solution of the problem.”
He went on to express his desire for a meeting with Greek opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis and National Defense Minister Panos Kammenos.
