Greece blocks Macedonia NATO membership, Albania is waiting.....March 06, 2008 12:16 PM
BRUSSELS, Mar 6, 2008 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- Greece on Thursday refused to invite its neighbor Macedonia to join NATO due to a decades-old name dispute.
"As far as the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia is concerned, I stressed to our allies that unfortunately, the policy that was followed by the government of our neighboring country ... does not allow us to take the same positive stance as in the case of Croatia and Albania," Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyanni told reporters after a meeting with her counterparts of NATO members.
"As far as the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia is concerned, I stressed to our allies that unfortunately, the policy that was followed by the government of our neighboring country ... does not allow us to take the same positive stance as in the case of Croatia and Albania," Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyanni told reporters after a meeting with her counterparts of NATO members.
Together with Croatia and Albania, Macedonia is one of the hopefuls to be invited to join NATO at the military alliance's summit next month in Bucharest, capital of Romania but its bid has been overshadowed by the issue of the country's name.
Greece has long argued that Macedonia implies territorial claim to a northern Greek province which bears the same name as Macedonia.
The dispute began in 1946 when the People's Republic of Macedonia was established as part of Yugoslavia and escalated when the republic announced independence in 1991.
Bakoyanni said the past 15 years of fruitless negotiations under the auspices of the United Nations left Greece with no other choice.
Greece has long argued that Macedonia implies territorial claim to a northern Greek province which bears the same name as Macedonia.
The dispute began in 1946 when the People's Republic of Macedonia was established as part of Yugoslavia and escalated when the republic announced independence in 1991.
Bakoyanni said the past 15 years of fruitless negotiations under the auspices of the United Nations left Greece with no other choice.
"Greece was therefore unable to provide its consent to the invitation, as I stressed to my fellow colleagues," she said, adding her country is ready to use veto power.
The founding treaty of NATO provides that the member states can, through a unanimous decision, invite any other European state to join the alliance, which means Greece's veto could successfully block Macedonia's bid for NATO membership.
With less than one month to go before the summit, Bakoyanni said she still hopes for a mutually acceptable and practical solution, which should be implemented immediately.
Greece has insisted that Macedonia is properly known as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in international organizations such as NATO. But the majority of UN members have recognized Macedonia under its constitutional name -- the Republic of Macedonia.
U.N. envoy Matthew Nimetz has reportedly put forward a proposal, which identifies five name suggestions including Constitutional Republic of Macedonia, Democratic Republic of Macedonia, Independent Republic of Macedonia, New Republic of Macedonia and Republic of Upper Macedonia.
The founding treaty of NATO provides that the member states can, through a unanimous decision, invite any other European state to join the alliance, which means Greece's veto could successfully block Macedonia's bid for NATO membership.
With less than one month to go before the summit, Bakoyanni said she still hopes for a mutually acceptable and practical solution, which should be implemented immediately.
Greece has insisted that Macedonia is properly known as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in international organizations such as NATO. But the majority of UN members have recognized Macedonia under its constitutional name -- the Republic of Macedonia.
U.N. envoy Matthew Nimetz has reportedly put forward a proposal, which identifies five name suggestions including Constitutional Republic of Macedonia, Democratic Republic of Macedonia, Independent Republic of Macedonia, New Republic of Macedonia and Republic of Upper Macedonia.
"It will contain the name Macedonia, but it will not monopolize Macedonia," Bakoyanni said, referring to an acceptable choice for the new name.
Bakoyanni warned defiance by Macedonia would deny the Balkan country a future both in NATO and the European Union (EU), of which Greece is also a member.
The entry of Macedonia into NATO appeared to be one of the major sticky issues when foreign ministers of the 26-nation transatlantic alliance met Thursday.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he would like to see Macedonia join NATO together with Croatia and Albania, but the coming weeks of negotiations with Greece was crucial.
Bakoyanni warned defiance by Macedonia would deny the Balkan country a future both in NATO and the European Union (EU), of which Greece is also a member.
The entry of Macedonia into NATO appeared to be one of the major sticky issues when foreign ministers of the 26-nation transatlantic alliance met Thursday.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he would like to see Macedonia join NATO together with Croatia and Albania, but the coming weeks of negotiations with Greece was crucial.
"I would like all three countries to join," Steinmeier told reporters ahead of the meeting, "A lot depends on the question of whether these two states are going to be able to come closer together in the coming weeks."
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