Process of Ratification of the Name of Macedonia Begins

In the Greek Parliament, the ratification procedures of the Prespa agreement with Skopje are underway.

Police fired tear gas to disperse protesters outside parliament on Sunday (20 January) as tens of thousands of Greeks rallied in Athens to protest ahead of a parliamentary vote to ratify a name deal with Macedonia due this week, reported Euroactive.

However, according to sociological data, about 70% of Greeks do not approve the name of Northern Macedonia. 

Central Athens turned into a sea of people holding blue and white Greek flags as thousands came from all over the country to rally against the accord to name the ex-Yugoslav state North Macedonia.
Many Greeks believe the name Macedonia implies a territorial claim over their country’s own northern region of that name.

The issue evokes strong emotions among Greeks who consider Macedonia, the ancient kingdom ruled by Alexander the Great, to be an integral part of their homeland and heritage.

The accord, signed by the two governments, unblocks the ex-Yugoslav republic’s desire to join NATO and the European Union once it is ratified by Greece’s parliament.

“We cannot stomach this deal, to give away our Macedonia, our history,” said pensioner Amalia Savrami, 67, as she waved a large Greek flag on Athens’s Syntagma Square.

“Macedonia is Greek, period.”

Macedonia declared independence in 1991, avoiding the violence that accompanied much of the break-up of Yugoslavia. Prime Minister Zoran Zaev has sought to accelerate the country’s bid to join the EU and NATO and to work on resolving the decades-old name dispute with Greece.

Greece calls its northern neighbor “FYROM” – Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. That is the name under which the country was admitted to the United Nations in 1993.

Settling the issue would be hailed as a geopolitical success by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, whose left-right coalition came to power in 2015. He won a confidence motion this month after the junior partner in his coalition pulled out.