The United States has recognized the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia as "Macedonia," the name strongly disputed by Greece for the past 13 years, a senior Macedonian government official said on Thursday. "Yes they have recognized Macedonia by its constitutional name," he told Reuters in Skopje, on condition of anonymity. The decision was the first major policy move to be announced by Washington following the re-election of President Bush on Wednesday, and it was greeted with joy in Macedonia. "It's a huge gesture, the first political gesture made by Bush after his victory, which is bizarre, but however bizarre we welcome it," said Ljubomir Frckovski, an ex-foreign minister. But the move sparked outrage in NATO ally Greece, where broadcasters broke into normal programing with the news and Foreign Minister Petros Molyviatis called in U.S. Ambassador Thomas Miller to lodge a formal protest. "Apart from our protest, I noted the many negative effects that this unilateral U.S. decision will have," Molyviatis said. | Let me look around, nope, don't see any. |
Greece blockaded the Macedonian border for 18 months until October 1995, cutting off trade with its northern neighbor until an agreement to change the Macedonian flag and alter the constitution thawed their relations. But the name, the appellation for northern Greece down through the millennia, remains one of the most emotive issues in Greek foreign policy because of its historic association with Alexander the Great. Yet it is equally cherished in Macedonia. "This is a question of identity, not just the name," said Macedonia's Frckovski. Macedonians are a Slav people whose language is similar to that of their Bulgarian and Serbian neighbors, but who claim they are also descendants of Alexander the Great. Athens opposed adoption of the name since the republic of two million won independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. Until now it had the support of all NATO allies, except Turkey, for refusing recognition. They refer to it in all documents by the acronym FYROM, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Washington's move short-circuited deliberations by the United Nations, which has been mediating talks between Skopje and Athens to find a mutually acceptable name. | Bahahahahahaha!!! A two-for bitch slap! |
But the gesture to Macedonian nationhood may defuse tension that is building in Macedonia ahead of a nationwide referendum on Sunday to overturn a law giving the ethnic Albanian minority more local autonomy. This law is backed by NATO allies and the European Union, who would like to see the nationalist-inspired referendum fail. Macedonia is also a member of the U.S.-led military alliance in Iraq and was recently visited by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld for a medal award ceremony. The vast majority of Greeks, by contrast, opposed the U.S. invasion of Iraq. |
