Politics of the Republic of Macedonia

The conservative main opposition in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) filed on Thursday treason charges against Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov and the Speaker of the House Talat Xhaferi, over the deal the country signed with Greece last month aiming to resolve the decades-old name dispute.

US Vice President Mike Pence will speak on the phone with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras at 10 p.m. (Greek time) on Thursday, and half an hour later with the Prime Minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) Zoran Zaev, Pence's office announced.

Macedonia's parliament on Thursday ratified the agreement with Greece for a second time and with the same ratio of MPs.

Once again, 69 of the 120 MPs voted in favour of the agreement while one abstained. No MPs voted against as the entire opposition bloc, led by  the former ruling VMRO DPMNE party, boycotted the session.

Macedonian Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov has promised a box of tomatoes for each country that will support the start of negotiations on the accession of the Republic of Macedonia to the European Union.

The Parliament of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) has ratified a deal with neighboring Greece signed last weekend to end a decades-long dispute over the Balkan country's name. 

Nine people were injured at the Sunday night protest staged by Macedonian right-wingers in Skopje, including seven policemen and two women; some 25 people were arrested.

The protest, organised by sports fan groups on social media and joined by nationalists and other right-wingers, turned violent at around 11pm.

Hundreds of protesters joined a rally Sunday in the city of Bitola - near the border of Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) with Greece - to protest an agreement resolving the two countries' dispute over FYROM's official name.

Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zeav talks to the media on a news conference in the Government building in Skopje, Macedonia, Tuesday, June 12, 2018.AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski

Neighbouring Macedonia and Greece announced on Tuesday they have reached a historic compromise solution to their decades-long name dispute, agreeing that Macedonia will use the composite name 'Republic of North Macedonia'.

"The chance is here and it must be seized, bravely, as this is the only patriotic way," Macedonian Prime Minisrter Zoran Zaev told a press conference in Skopje.

The prime minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Zoran Zaev, said on Monday Athens and Skopje are finalizing efforts to reach a compromise on the long-running name dispute that has soured the relations between the two countries for decades.