Name Dispute: Greek Prime Minister Denies He Signed Document Containing Word 'Macedonia'
The office of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras denied he has signed to a joint declaration in which the Republic of Macedonia was referred to simply as "Macedonia", and not under the more complex names favored by Greek nationalists. MIA correspondent from Athens reports that Tsipras found himself under media attack after a report that during a meeting with French President Francois Hollande last week he approved a declaration mentioning the migrant crisis, that used the word Macedonia.
A member of Parliament from the opposition Conservative New Democracy party called out Tsipras in Parliament over the declaration, demanding to hear if he consulted with the Government before signing the document, or if he did that on his own. The Prime Minister's Office responded that the document contained a transcript of a statement President Hollande made, in which he said Macedonia, and does not represent Tsipras' view.
The Greek Government is hit by the long running Macedonian naming controversy after Migration Minister Ioannis Mouzalas said "Macedonia" when talking about the makeshift refugee camp on the northern border on Greek television. Nationalist leader and Defense Minister Panos Kammenos, whose Independent Greeks party props up the Tsipras Government, initially requested a resignation from Mouzalas, but later withdrew his request. Most opposition parties joined in requests for Mouzalas to resign, sensing an opportunity to bring down the Government that led Greece toward a financial showdown with Europe, imposed capital controls and failed at stopping the refugees and migrants at its maritime border with Turkey.
Greece has long refused to acknowledge Macedonia's name, and politicians often fight over who is a greater nationalist on the issue which has kept Macedonia out of EU and NATO. The controversy erupts as tens of thousands of migrants are stuck in Greece, over 10,000 of them on the very border with Macedonia, and the European Union is locked in talks with Turkey on their possible return there. At the same time, Greece and Turkey also rekindled their dispute over the WWI attacks on Armenians, which Greece considers a genocide, while Turkey disputes this characterization.
