Six in 10 oppose use of Macedonia in FYROM name

Six in 10 Greeks oppose the use of the word Macedonia in a composite name for the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), according to a new opinion poll while seven in 10 believe the delay in resolving the dispute between Greece and FYROM regarding the latter’s official name is harmful for Greece.

The poll, which was carried out by the University of Macedonia and the Hellenic Foundation for European & Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP) with the support of Columbia University’s Human Rights Institute, found that only 28 percent of respondents would support a solution involving a composite name containing the word Macedonia, with just 10 percent accepting the name used by FYROM, Republic of Macedonia.

Nearly eight in 10 respondents (77 percent) said they believed it was important for the longstanding name dispute to be resolved as soon as possible, while just over seven in 10 (71.5 percent) reckoned that the delay is damaging to Greece.

The same survey found that seven in 10 respondents thought Greece’s position on the international stage was worse this year than it was a year ago, with 52 percent reckoning that it will be even worse in a year’s time. Seven in 10 (69.5 percent) said they believed Greece faced an external threat. Of those, 76.5 percent cited Turkey as the key threat, with 11 percent mentioning Germany and 2.5 percent FYROM.