Tsipras to present Zaev with Greek position on name issue

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras will be meeting with his counterpart from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Zoran Zaev, on Wednesday afternoon, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

According to the ANA-MPA news agency, Tsipras will present Zaev with the Greek government’s official position on UN-brokered negotiations regarding FYROM’s name, which have been rekindled following the recent change of government in Skopje.

Zaev has on numerous occasions expressed his willingness to contribute to a mutually acceptable solution, though talks got off to an inauspicious start in New York last week after FYROM’s official negotiator said the initial proposals put forward by United Nations special mediator Matthew Nimetz were “far from dignified.”

The left-led Greek government has said that it is looking for a mutually acceptable solution based on a composite name with a geographical qualifier, which will be used by everyone (erga omnes), in every context, whether domestic or international.

Before his meeting with Zaev, Tsipras is due to participate in a panel on “Stabilizing the Mediterranean.”