Macedonia says compromise with Greece over name dispute possible

October 9, 2009

Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov voiced expectations on Tuesday that the process of resolving the country's long-standing name dispute with Greece will receive a new impetus, given the new government in Athens. He said that a compromise is possible, if the process continues under the auspices of UN resolutions and talks focus only on the name, and not on the Macedonian identity and language.

Ivanov added that any compromise shouldn't "be offensive" to either Macedonia or Greece.

“A compromise is possible if the process is under the auspices of the UN resolution and only the name [of Macedonia] is discussed,” said Ivanov, as quoted by the MIA news agency. “A solution which is not insulting either for Macedonia or for Greece is a compromise.”

Greece and the Republic of Macedonia have been at odds over who has the right to the name of Macedonia &mdash; which is shared by a province in northern Greece &mdash; since 1991, when Macedonia declared independence from Yugoslavia.