According to the last report issued by International Crisis Group, Skopje and Athens should step up efforts to prevent the conflict over Macedonia's name -officially the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia- having a negative effect in other Balkan states. The organization considers that solving the matter will boost stability in Macedonia and the rest of the Balkans.

The report calls for both parties to show the political will required to settle the matter. ICG argues that Greece should stop blocking the neighboring country in international organisations -it vetoed Macedonia's integration into NATO in April 2008 and it could block its accession to the EU in a near future. Skopje should then desist from moves to provoke Athens, such as renaming its airport after Alexander the Great -one of the most revered symbols of Hellenic heritage in Greece-, and accept one of the names that have been proposed.

Macedonian Prime Minister, Nikola Gruevski, calls for the name of Republic of Macedonia to be maintained for official purposes except for bilateral relations with Greece. In the latter case, a different name could be adopted so that Greece does not take offence. However, Athens rejects the dual formula and insists that the single name must include a geographical component, such as, for instance, ‘Northern Macedonia'. United Nations envoy, Matthew Nimetz, who is currently acting as a mediator, is also backing the solution including a geographical component.

Only yesterday the United Nations news centre revealed that the date in which further talks will be taken place between both parties will be on 11 February, in New York's headquarters. The meeting could play a key role to unblock unsuccessful negotiations held in 2008, in which Greece hindered talks by blocking its neighbor's entry to international organisations and Macedonia did not show readiness to compromise on the name of a country.

A threatened identity
International Crisis Group also emphasizes that Macedonians' fragile sense of identity is challenged by Bulgaria, which has questioned the existence of a Macedonian nation or language; Serbia, which denies the autonomy of its church, and Greece, which disputes the country's name and deny the existence of a Macedonian minority within its borders.

The Greek state has always rejected the idea of the former Yugoslav republic monopolizing the name of Macedonia. In fact, the historical territory of Macedonia is currently divided not only between Greece and the Republic of Macedonia, but also Bulgaria. Athens fears that if the name is declared official, Skopje might appropriate part of the Hellenic heritage and that it could imply territorial claims over the northern Greek province of Macedonia.

Photo of Macedonia's PM, Nicola Gruevski, and Kostas Karamanlis, Greek PM.

Map of the region, the shaded area representing the Macedonian territory in Greece (International Crisis Group).

Further information:

• ICG: Macedonia's Name: Breaking the Deadlock [informe en pdf]
• Balkan.Insight.com: Macedonia Name Row Destabilises Balkans -ICG
• UN News Centre: Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia name talks set for next month - UN
• Nationalia:No progress in Macedonia-Greece conflict