AP News, December 5th, 2007
Greece and Macedonia will resume direct talks in January over a name dispute between the two Balkan neighbors that could hurt Macedonia's efforts to join NATO.
U.N. special envoy Matthew Nimetz said on Wednesday that Foreign Ministry negotiators from the two countries would meet in the Macedonian capital, Skopje, in January and that a second meeting in Athens was expected shortly afterward.
"I think everyone recognizes ... that stability in the region and cooperation is extremely important and can't be achieved without this issue being resolved," Nimetz said after talks with Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis. "The next meeting we'll have will go into depth on the issue."
"I believe this is a solvable problem ... some international issues cannot be solved. But this is one that cries out for a solution," he said.
The dispute broke out after the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia gained independence in 1991. Greece says its neighbor's name could imply territorial claims against its own northern region of Macedonia.
Athens has threatened block Macedonia's entry into NATO unless the name issue is resolved.
"Our government has sent a very clear message to the other side. We hope that Skopje will abandon its basic position of intransigence and will come to these upcoming talks with constructive positions," Bakoyannis said.
Croatia, Albania and Macedonia are all hoping to receive invitations to join the alliance at a NATO summit in April in the Romanian capital, Bucharest.
Nimetz, who visited Macedonia this week, said he had spoken to the United States and several European governments about the dispute and that there was a "heightened interest" in finding a solution.
Nimetz and Greek officials have refused to give any details on proposals being considered.
"We did talk about ideas about names," he said. "If the dispute is about the name, then you've got to talk about the name, right?"
