Tag Archive
Belgian PM visits Macedonia on Balkan asylum issue
Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme travels to Skopje on Monday to discuss possible ways to stop the escalating number of Western Balkan citizens seeking asylum in his country. During his stay in Macedonia, Leterme is to meet his Macedonian counterpart, Nikola Gruevski, to visit the regions from which many of the immigrants originate. After lifting the... »
FYROM seeks EU mediation on name
Macedonia is going to ask for European involvement in its ongoing talks with Greece on its name, local media reported on Tuesday. Skopje believes Europe’s involvement will put Macedonia in a better position in dealing with the high-key demands by the Greek side, an unnamed high-ranking government official told the Utrinski Vesnik daily. The official, who... »
U.N. envoy to visit Macedonia over name dispute with Greece
A U.N. special envoy on the name dispute between Macedonia and Greece will pay a visit to Skopje on Feb. 23 for a fresh round of talks. The Macedonian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that U.N. envoy Matthew Nimetz has accepted this date proposed by the Macedonian government in a bid to step up efforts... »
Slovenia offers mediation in FYROM name
Slovenia has offered to mediate the 19-year-old name dispute between Greece and Macedonia that has led Athens to block Macedonia’s bid to join the EU and NATO. Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor, who is visiting Macedonia, said Sunday in Skopje that his country could help the two countries to find a solution to the dispute... »
FYROM urges Greece to be real
Macedonia’s foreign minister on Wednesday demanded Greece adopt “realism” towards his country’s accession to the European Union during the bloc’s upcoming summit. It would be counterproductive for bilateral relations if Greece blocked Macedonia’s EU drive due to the name dispute, Antonio Milososki told reporters after meetings with Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou and Alternate Foreign... »
FYROM, Kosovo separatists swap “ambassadors”
Macedonia’s decision to establish diplomatic ties with the breakaway Serbian province of Kosovo has raised Belgrade’s eyebrow, Macedonian local media reported Monday. Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said Sunday the move was “regrettable” and “there will be consequences.” He said the move would endanger Skopje’s good neighborly relations with Belgrade, but restrained from specifying further actions... »
Serbia, FYROM Put Kosovo aside of EU
The prime ministers of Serbia and Macedonia met here Wednesday, brushing aside differences over Kosovo and instead focusing on European Union integration and economic cooperation. “Our countries have the same goal, and that is membership in the E.U. Our goal is to one day find ourselves in a Europe without borders,” Macedonia’s Prime Minister, Nikola... »
UN optimistic on Greece, FYROM name
UN envoy Matthew Nimetz said on Wednesday that he was “more optimistic” about the solution to a name dispute between Greece and Macedonia, but rejected any timetable after meeting in Athens with Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis. Nimetz, who arrived in Athens on Tuesday night after talks in Skopje, said that he had brought ideas... »
Division of Kosovo bad for FYROM, PM
Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski warned that “any scenario that leads to a possible division of Kosovo along ethnic lines is dangerous and could result in grave consequences for the entire region.” In his annual address to the Macedonian Parliament, Crvenkovski added that the international community would need to bear this fact in mind, adding that... »
FYROM settles border with Kosovo separatists
FYROM has settled a border line with Kosovo Albanian separatists which were laying siege to territory of FYROM. FYROM recently recognized illegal declaration of independence by Kosovo Albanian separatists. »
