North Macedonia

Regardless of what one thinks about the name deal signed and ratified earlier this year by the Greek government and North Macedonia, the so-called Prespes agreement has left a number of serious issues unresolved.

The Prespes accord is a "model" for solving other regional problems, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said Friday, adding that the name agreement signed between Greece and North Macedonia will bolster stability and economic growth in the Balkan region.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras will meet with his counterpart of North Macedonia Zoran Zaev in Skopje on Tuesday, April 2, the state-run Athens-Macedonian news agency reports.
Talks between the two leaders will be followed by a meeting of the Hellenic-North Macedonia Cooperation Council. A joint press conference will follow.

North Macedonia's Prime Minister, Zoran Zaev, has said that he agreed to change his country's name and Constitution because PM Alexis Tsipras accepted the existence of a "Macedonian identity".

In a debate with opposition VMRO-DPMNE leader Hristijan Mickoski, Zaev also noted that Tsipras had initially accepted the name Republic of Ilinden Macedonia.

North Macedonia's lawmakers have passed for a second time a package of bills which the country's president has refused to sign into law in protest at a landmark agreement this year with neighbor Greece.

The only ethnic Albanian candidate for the presidency in North Macedonia elections will not win the election - but may well affect the plans of the main contenders.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras insisted on Friday after the European Union summit in Brussels that despite Europe's difficulties, Greece has, through the sacrifices of its people, upgraded its prestige and its role in international developments and has surprised its EU partners with the performance of its economy.

Transparency advocates in North Macedonia fear the country's secretive political parties will be able to use OSCE recommendations to evade pressure to reveal their finances.

Election authorities in North Macedonia say three people, including a law professor who is the country's first female candidate, will run for president of the newly renamed country in April 21 elections.

North Macedonia's attempt to reform its discredited secret service needs to focus on removing deeply embedded para-intelligence structures from within it.