Macedonian groups sue FM, accuse him of high treason
The Panhellenic Federation of Macedonian Cultural Associations has sued Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias and accused him of high treason over his handling of name talks with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).
Filed with a court in Serres in northern Greece by the federation’s president, Giorgos Tatsios, the suit expresses a sense of “anger” and “betrayal” over the fact that “Mr Kotzias gave away our name as head of a concessionary negotiating strategy.”
The action was in response to reports that have emerged over the past few weeks suggesting that the two sides are working on the basis of a solution that would include the term “Macedonia,” a proposal that many Greeks see as harboring irredentist ambitions over the northern Greek region of that name.
“We the native, indigenous, true Macedons are forced to take recourse to justice to seek protection from the historically ignorant and potentially dangerous surrendering of our name to the neighboring state of Slav-Albanians,” the complaint says.
“We are ashamed that the Greek foreign minister, Mr Nikolaos Kotzias, appointed to negotiate a name with the neighboring country that would be in the national interest, has shown disrespect for the struggles of our ancestors, who worked hard to preserve the Greekness of Macedonia, and has endangered peace in the broader Balkan region,” it added.
