Page 14 - bne_newspaper_June_22_2018

Southeast Europe
June 22, 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 14
Macedonia and Greece sign heroic name deal amid fierce opposition
Valentina Dimitrievska in Skopje
Macedonia and Greece signed a historic deal on June 17 to solve the bitter name dispute between the two countries, despite fierce resistance by opposition parties in both countries.
The deal sets the new name for the tiny Balkan country as Republic of North Macedonia, even though this is unacceptable for many at home
and also in Greece. The new name is aimed to distinguish the country now called Macedonia from a province in northern Greece that has the same name. The deal was the result of six months of intense talks and comes after a more than two decades of dispute between Skopje and Athens.
For the authorities in both countries the agreement is a triumph as it will put an end to the long dispute, while for Macedonia it will pave the way for Euro-Atlantic integration as Greece has been blocking its membership of the EU and Nato due to the unresolved issue.
The deal was signed in Prespes, on the Greek side of Prespa lake, which is split between the two coun- tries, at 10.40 am Macedonian time, by the foreign ministers of Macedonia and Greece, Nikola Dimitrov and Nikos Kotzias. Before the signing, prime minis- ters of Macedonia and Greece Zoran Zaev and Alexis Tsipras delivered speeches at the ceremony attend- ed by EU High Representative Federica Mogherini, EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn and UN mediator in the dispute Matthew Nimetz.
“A beautiful and magnificent day,” said Zaev before the signing ceremony.
For Zaev this is an historic opportunity to enhance cooperation between the two countries in the economic sphere and to ease trade and the flow of people as well as to build a strong partnership with Greece.
“We are proud of this agreement as it is about a solution that unites,” Zaev said, adding that isolation will benefit no one.
Nimetz congratulated both sides on the strategic agreement, saying that only politicians with courage and vision can find such a solution.
“Today is my birthday. I told my family this year I don’t need any gifts because two prime ministers are going to give me a big gift,” said Nimetz, who turned 79.
The ceremony ended with the symbolic gesture of Zaev by giving his necktie to Tsipras as a gift.
A day earlier, Tsipras survived a no-confidence motion over the deal, filed by the country's main opposition party, New Democracy. The motion was rejected in a 153-127 vote, which paved the way for the historic signing on June 17.
Before the vote, protesters gathered for the second day in a row in front of the Greek parliament to oppose the deal. Riot police fired tear gas at one point to disperse demonstrators. Many in Greece see the name issue as a bid
by Skopje to hijack Greece’s ancient cultural heritage.