What’s in a name? For North Macedonia, seats at the EU and Nato tables
The new name still needs to be ratified by both countries’ parliaments, and pass a Macedonian referendum
Athens — Macedonia and Greece on Tuesday resolved a nearly three-decade row by agreeing to call it the Republic of North Macedonia, as Skopje hailed a "historic solution" to a dispute which had blocked its bid to join the EU and defence bloc Nato. Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said the two sides agreed to rename the former Yugoslav republic after months of intensive diplomacy. "There is an agreement. We have a historic solution after two-and-a-half decades. Our agreement includes Republic of North Macedonia for overall use," Zaev told reporters in the capital Skopje. Greece has long objected to its northern neighbour being called Macedonia because it has its own northern province of the same name. In televised comments, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras declared the deal "a great diplomatic victory and a great historic opportunity" for the region to have "friendship, cooperation and co-development". Macedonia hopes that resolving the name dispute will help clear the way for...
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