PM Gruevski Dislikes 'Republic of Northern Macedonia'

Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski has declared himself against renaming his state “Republic of Northern Macedonia.


Gruevski has expressed his position with respect to the latest solution put forth by Greece to the dispute between Greece and Macedonia about the name of the latter.


“If there is a proposal in favor of “Republic of Northern Macedonia,” if this name is presented to the UN envoy Matthew Nimetz, I am going to hold a referendum on it. If you are asking about my personal opinion, I am going to vote against it,” said Macedonian PM Gruevski in an interview for the Macedonian TV channel Sitel as cited by BTA.


The notorious name dispute between FYROM and Greece has pushed the latter to block Macedonia’s accession to NATO and the EU. Greece is uneasy about its northern neighbor using the name “Republic of Macedonia” because much of Northern Greece is an administrative region called Macedonia after the historic and geographic region where it is located.