In the early 1990s Greece blocked the international recognition of the Republic of Macedonia under that name and is currently blocking accession of this country to NATO and EU demanding name changes, which the government of Skopje refuses to adopt. The Macedonia name dispute is a clash over historical narratives and the right to claim origins of the Macedonian ethnic group and nation today and in the ancient past. For Greece, the key element is winning the argument over the legitimacy of ancient Macedon as a Greek state and not having the name Macedonia used by its northern neighbour. For the Republic, the intricacies of the ancient history are only instrumental to the recognition of the country under its constitutional name and the unblocking of the Euro-Atlantic integration. Consequently, the only way to resolve the seemingly intractable name dispute between Greece and Macedonia is to deal with the historical and identity issues that both sides care most for and ignore those that are not important for the resolution or could be left aside to be disagreed upon without political consequences. A political solution with an agreed international name for the country ‘Republic of Makedonija’ is likely to solve the dispute and improve the relations between the two countries.
Documents and newspaper sources
Bakoyannis Dora. “The view from Athens”. International Herald Tribune March 31, 2008.
“Greek Naming Dispute Reply Not Positive”. Balkan Insight August, 23, 2009.
“UN Mediator: Gaps Remain on Greece-Macedonia Name Deal”. Balkan Open Report 13 September 2013, Business Insider, op. cit.
“Macedonia may change its name to settle a decades-long dispute with Greece”. Business Insider December 16, 2015.
CRPM, Survey, 2008. Changes of the name or NATO admission?
Declaration on Principles of International Law Concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation Among States in Accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, GAOR Res. 2625, U.N. GAOR, 27th Sess., Supp. No. 18, at 124, U.N. Doc. A/8018 (1970).
ELIAMEP Survey. Ioannis Armakolas, George Siakas. Greek Public Opinion and Attitudes towards the ‘Name Dispute’ and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Athens, 2016.
EurActiv. “UN mediator tables new proposal for Macedonia’s name”. 16 April 2013.
EurActiv. “Macedonia to hold referendum on new name”. 1 March, 2011.
General Assembly Resolution 2625 (XXV) of 24 October, 1970.
Greek Reporter, “President Says Will Defend Greek Identity of Macedonia: “Nobody Has the Right to Claim Things That Don’t Belong to Them””, 22 October, 2016.
Interim Accord (with related letters and translations of the Interim Accord in the Languages of the Contracting Parties), signed in New York 13 September 1995; entered into force 13 October 1995, 1891 U.N.T.S. I-32193; 34 I.L.M. 1461.
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Article 1.
IPRS, Foundation Alliance of Civilizations, ISHR, Survey of Public Opinion on the Name Dispute, Greek Macedonian Relations and EU and NATO integration, 2016.
Letter of 200 classical scholars to President Barack Obama, 18 May 2009. Available online at <http://macedonia-evidence.org/obama-letter.html>. Accessed on October 16, 2017.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece, 2016 “The FYROM name issue”, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece. Available online at <http://www.mfa.gr/www.mfa.gr/en-US/Policy/Geographic+ Regions/>. Accessed on October 16, 2016.
Thema News, “Greek President sends strong message to Turkey and FYROM” Oct, 18 2016.
UN Doc. A / CONF. 67/16 (March 14, 1975)).
Vienna Convention on the Representation of States in their Relations with International Organizations of a Universal Character, UN Doc. A/CONF. 67/16 (March 14, 1975).
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