Greek press on the Macedonian issue (news in English)

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© 2008 H KAΘHMEPINH All rights reserved.


FYROM leader urges concession
The president of the the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) yesterday suggested that his country adopt a more flexible approach to talks on the Macedonia name dispute with Greece but insisted that his country would not budge on issues of language and national identity.

“Macedonia must reassess its stance on the dual name formula and make some kind of concession if it wants to pursue its bid for Euro-Atlantic accession,” Branko Crvenkovski. Crvenkovski referred to a “new reality” in the Balkan region that demanded concessions, noting that “only the legal representatives of both sides can decide on the extent and substance of these concessions.”

But FYROM’s president stressed that Skopje would not accept any change to its language and national identity – “the foundation pillars of any nation.”

United Nations mediator Matthew Nimetz is due to visit Athens and Skopje by the end of next week for talks with government representatives. Washington is pressing for a settlement by early next month.

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© 2008 H KAΘHMEPINH All rights reserved.


FYROM MOVEMENT

UN mediator set for a new round of talks this week

The United Nations mediator in the Macedonia name dispute, Matthew Nimetz, is preparing for a new round of talks with government officials on Thursday in Athens and on Friday in Skopje. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is expected to raise the issue with Greece's Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis today on the sidelines of a summit in Berlin. In a related development yesterday, the prime minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Nikola Gruevski, said he would not shift on the name dispute.

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N. Bakoyioannis-C. Rice's Discussions
24 Ιουν 2008 20:28:0


Greek Foreign Affairs Minister Dora Bakoyiannis as well her US couterpart Mrs. Contoleeza Rice discussed about the negotiations on the issue of FYROM, the Cypriot issue, Greek Turkish relations as well as The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) that will enable Greek citizens to travel to the U.S. for short-term business or tourism without obtaining a visa. As Mrs. Bakoyianis stated after the completion of her meeting with Mrs. Rice, the name issue will not be resolved until July 9th. The discussion on the issue was mostly for briefing reasons at the sight of Mr. Nimetz's visit in Athens on Thursday and in Skopje. Finally, Mrs. Bakoyiannis stated: "I expressed the hope that these negotiations will have a favorable end and that Skopje will abandon its pre election rhetoric and will realize the essence of the negotiations".

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ANA-MPA Copyright © 2008 All rights reserved.


Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakaoyannis held talks "in a very friendly atmosphere," as she said, with her U.S. counterpart Condoleezza Rice in Berlin on Tuesday, focusing on the course of negotiations on the issue of the name of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), the issue of Cyprus, Greek-Turkish relations and the so-called "Visa Waiver," the exemption of Greek citizens from the process of entry visas to the United States.

The talks were held on the sidelines of an International Donors Conference on boosting law and order in the Palestinian territory that took place in Berlin.

Briefing Greek reporters after her meeting with Rice, Bakoyannis clarified that on the name issue there is no ground for resolving the problem by July 9 and that such an issue was not even raised by the American side.

The character of the discussion in this respect was an "informative" one, the minister also said in light of the arrival of special envoy Matthew Nimetz in Athens on Thursday and afterwards in FYROM.

"I expressed the hope that these negotiations will have an auspicious conclusion, also hoping that the side of FYROM will also abandon pre-election rhetoric and will enter the essence of the negotiations," Bakoyannis said.

Replying to a question on what was Rice's contribution during the discussion, the minister said that "Mrs. Rice is well aware of the issue of the name (of FYROM) and of the Cyprus issue, which we also discussed... She is well aware of the issues, she has involved herself a great deal and, as you know, she is an experienced minister who is also aware of the essence of the problems."

Bakoyannis, who has already departed for Athens, concluded by saying that "the discussion was sincere and, as you know, Greek-American relations are good and are based on strong foundations."

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Nimetz-Bakoyannis Meeting

Karamanlis Message to Skopje 26 Ιουν 2008 15:08:0


Sources: ΝΕΤ-ΝΕΤ 105.8-ΑNA

Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis urged FYROM (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia) to end its provocations in order to join NATO and the EU. His advice followed a meeting with Bosnia-Herzegovina PM Nicolas Spiric.
Mr Karamanlis urged the new government to leave behind its pre-election provocations, so that a joint solution is found, adding that what matters is not when the solution will be found but whether there is political will for that. He also added that the European Commission would join the EU only if a mutually accepted solution with Greece was found, stressing that Greece supports the western Balkans’ European prospect consistently, provided good neighbourly relations are respected. From his side, Mr Spiric stated he favours a compromising solution on the Skopje issue. At the same time, special UN mediator Matthew Nimetz met with Minister of Foreign Affairs Dora Bakoyannis in Athens and discussed the FYROM name issue. Mr Nimetz is visiting FYROM on Friday. Both stated that they discussed a number of ideas on the FYROM name issue.






M. Nimetz in Athens


Mr Nimetz stated that no timetable had been set on reaching a solution until 9 July, reiterating Greece’s will for a mutually accepted solution.

The UN mediator stated that only the name issue was discussed today and not FYROM’s national identity. Finally, Ms Bakoyannis pointed out that the final solution should be clear and without retractions. Mr Nimetz is expected to meet with FYROM leadership in Skopje. At 14:00 he will meet with PM Nikola Gruevsky and at 15:30 with President Branko Crvenkovski.

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ANA-MPA Copyright © 2008 All rights reserved.


PM: Time for FYROM to end rhetoric, eye solution

Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis on Thursday reiterated Athens' direct and clear message to Skopje regarding the still unresolved "name issue", in statements after his meeting with Bosnia-Herzegovina's Chairman of the Council of Ministers, Nikola Spiric, in the Greek capital.

"We hope that the new government will abandon the provocative rhetoric of the pre-election period, so that we can together arrive at a solution," Karamanlis stressed. He also emphasised that political will was more important for finding a solution than time, speaking on the same day as a visit to Athens by UN mediator Matthew Nimetz.

The prime minister noted that the latest European Council meeting expressly referred to a need to find a mutually acceptable solution to the dispute between Greece and its neighbouring Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) over the "name issue", as part of good neighbour relations, and had included this among the criteria for FYROM's European prospects.

Karamanlis underlined Greece's consistent support for the European prospects of all the countries in the western Balkans but only on condition that they met the established terms and criteria for EU entry, among which respect for good neighbour relations was paramount.

In comments on bilateral relations between Greece and Bosnia-Herzegovina, meanwhile, the Greek premier said that his meeting with Spiric in Sarajevo a year earlier, when he had attended the inauguration of the Greek-Bosnian friendship building refurbished with the use of funds from the Greek Plan for the Reconstruction of the Balkans, had been a "landmark" in relations between the two countries.

He mentioned other projects in Bosnia currently being constructed with funds from Greece and bilateral agreements that had been signed or were in the process of being ratified by the two sides, such as one for bilateral defence cooperation and two very important economic agreements, one for economic and technological cooperation and one for avoiding double taxation.

The Bosnian premier praised what he called the leadership role played by Greece in the western Balkans and asked for this role to be further developed for the good of the region. He pointed out that Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis had asked the European Union to intensify the pace of rapprochement with the western Balkans.

He also thanked Greece for the 19.5 million euros that it spent on the Greek-Bosnian friendship building and the 3.5 million euros being spent on construction of a Sarajevo hospital.

Regarding the dispute with FYROM, Spiric said that Sarajevo "believes in a compromise solution".

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ANA-MPA Copyright © 2008 All rights reserved.


Nimetz on FYROM issue

In statements here in Athens on Thursday, the UN mediator in the name dispute between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) Matthew Nimetz said that he did not see the negotiations ending by a specific deadline at the present time.

"I don't consider July 9 or any other date significant in these discussions," he told reporters, answering questions after a meeting with Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis.

While confirming that the use of an "adjective" in the name for Greece's northern neighbour that would make it acceptable to the Greek side was among the issues that figured prominently in the discussions, he declined to give more details or specifics about which proposals had dominated the talks.

In response to other questions, Nimetz said that he had heard the views of the Greek side from Mrs. Bakoyannis and did not consider that direct talks between the Greek and FYROM foreign minister would help promote a solution at the present stage.

Greece objects to the use of the name "Republic of Macedonia" by FYROM on the grounds that it is shared by a northern Greek province that shares a common border with FYROM and may conceal or give rise to expansionist designs on Greek territory. There is also tension between the two countries over claims by FYROM's Slav majority to be direct descendants of the ancient Macedonian king and general Alexander the Great, who was born and ruled in a kingdom roughly coinciding with the present-day Greek province, and to adopt the symbols of the ancient Macedonian royal family as its own.

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© 2008 H KAΘHMEPINH All rights reserved.

Nimetz gets ball rolling on name
The United Nations mediator on the Macedonia name dispute yesterday discussed a new “package of ideas” with Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis in the first essential move toward a settlement since Athens vetoed Skopje’s bid to join NATO in early April.

UN envoy Matthew Nimetz, who is due in Skopje today for talks, said he was seeking to sound out government officials from both sides before making a new proposal for a name settlement.

According to sources, Nimetz has moved away from “double-barreled” names with hyphens. The Constitutional Republic of Macedonia is believed to be a new alternative, while New Macedonia, Upper Macedonia and Northern Macedonia are reportedly still on the table.

Following his talks with Bakoyannis, Nimetz stressed that talks were focusing on finding an alternative name for the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), “not on issues of identity and language,” which FYROM government officials have been attempting to raise in discussions.

Nimetz refused to set a deadline for a settlement, saying that Greece and FYROM are not yet ready for bilateral talks.

Earlier yesterday Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis called on the newly elected FYROM government “to leave behind the provocative rhetoric of the pre-election period so we can reach a mutually acceptable solution.”

Bakoyannis stressed that such a solution should be “without conditions” – an apparent reference to Skopje’s demand that any name agreed upon in UN-mediated talks should be submitted to a national referendum.

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© 2008 H KAΘHMEPINH All rights reserved.


FYROM pushes ‘minority’ issue

Kathimerini has learnt from sources and reports in Skopje that the Prime Minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) Nikola Gruevski has raised the issue of a «Macedonian minority» in Greece with United Nations mediator Matthew Nimetz. Gruevski is believed to have demanded that people who left FYROM during the Greek civil war should have their nationality and property restored.

Athens argues that there is no «Macedonian» ethnicity and that such demands reinforce its position that Skopje has irredentist claims against Greece.

In Skopje on Friday, Rosemary DiCarlo, the US deputy assistant secretary for European affairs, urged a speedy solution to the name dispute.

UN mediator Matthew Nimetz brought a new set of ideas to Athens and Skopje last week, based on variations of the epithets «Upper,» «New» and «North» that could be used with the name «Macedonia.» But diplomatic sources in Athens believe there will be no progress on the issue before Septem

[Paulos Melas]

Should Gruevski so openly brough the "macedonian" minority issue then he is no better than kerim. The reason is that whilst skopje have strted presenting the identity issue as a matter sourced by the self determination right, he managed now to place the name of their identity along with the name of country prooving beyond any doubt the irridentic intentions masked behind the "innocent' identity matter.
For better or worse ethnicity , identity and language are placed next to the country name issue an an erga omnes solution is more than necessary to included also the former as the forger "macedonian" identity is a bearer of irridentism and not an innocent right.
Thank you very much Mr Gruesvski about that. Shoud you continue like that with the forecoming change in the US gov I would expect the name to be:
Republic of Skopje
Nationality, identity and language: Skopian.
unless of coursr skopje is split along ethnic lines thus between the albanians of illyrida and the kuber bulgars of skopje.