Da sea gleam. Eve go celiot tekst od Financial Times
Macedonia will consider changing its name in an effort to unlock Greek opposition to its Nato membership, the country’s foreign minister has said.
Membership of the alliance would help calm the wider Balkan region after months of political
tension that occasionally spilled into bloodshed, Nikola Dimitrov will tell senior Nato officials in Brussels on Monday.
Mr Dimitrov said it was too soon to discuss any specific name proposals but he would meet Greek ministers on Wednesday to restore trust between the two neighbours after Athens vetoed the Balkan republic’s Nato application in 2008.
“I will ask Greece to reconsider what kind of neighbour they want — do they want a stable, friendly country that offers hope for democracy and justice?” he said in an interview. “If we are a good neighbour, then hopefully political forces in Greece will realise this is a historic opportunity.”
Macedonia, which calls itself the Republic of Macedonia, infuriates Greeks who believe the name implies a territorial claim to the northern Greek province with the same name.
Nikola Gruevski, former prime minister, further antagonised Athens by renaming airports and motorways after Alexander the Great, the ancient Greek warrior reimagined by his party as its own national hero.
A name change has been floated in the past and previous suggestions include Upper Republic of Macedonia. The country gained admission to the UN as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia but evidence of
Russian meddling in the Balkans has bolstered western determination to settle the dispute and extend Nato membership.
Montenegro joined the alliance on June 5, months after an alleged coup attempt reportedly backed by Moscow, which has denied the claims.
Western analysts said progress on Nato membership would also help Macedonia’s new government
bridge a political divide that EU officials have sought to mediate for nearly two years. “The new government needs shoring up and nothing would be a better sign of success than a breakthrough in the name dispute,” said Florian Bieber, political scientist at the University of Graz.
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Greece’s Syriza government has greeted the government in Skopje as a more co-operative partner than its strongly nationalist predecessor and officials gave Mr Dimitrov’s remarks a cautious welcome. “There are grounds now for more optimism [on the name issue] and we’re hoping for progress when our foreign ministers meet in Athens next week,” said one Greek official.
But he ruled out setting a timetable for reaching a compromise: “This is an issue that has been on the table for more than two decades and it would be rash to make any prediction.”
Mr Dimitrov said any new name would be subject to approval in a referendum and the government would seek cross-party consensus before putting the issue to a vote. He added an agreement, which some analysts believe could be achieved within a year, would help sideline calls to redraw the region’s political map and risk reopening explosive political and ethnic disputes.
“The Balkans is not a very happy place; in many places, people feel there is a chance to change the status of the post-Yugoslav war settlements,” he said. “By welcoming Macedonia, Nato could have a calming effect on the region.”
In opposition, officials from Syriza, Greece’s leftwing internationalist governing party, spoke openly of agreeing on a composite name chosen by Macedonia. But in government, Alexis Tsipras, prime minister, must tread carefully. His coalition partner, the small rightwing Independent Greeks, or Anel, is fiercely nationalist.
“It’s hard to be optimistic [about a solution] when you consider that nationalist rhetoric is what defines Anel for its voters,” says Thanos Veremis, emeritus professor of history at Athens University. “There is also a quietly nationalist faction within Syriza to be taken into account.”[DOUBLEPOST=1497253586][/DOUBLEPOST]
Ne ne , pod Macedonia da vlezeme