ANEL will not agree to term ‘Macedonia,’ MP Kammenos says

Independent Greeks (ANEL) lawmaker Dimitris Kammenos on Tuesday reiterated claims that the nationalist party would not back its leftist coalition partner in the Greek government if talks with Skopje come down to a composite name that contains the term “Macedonia.”

Kammenos was speaking on Skai TV just hours before the leader of his party, Panos Kammenos, was to address the media in an unscheduled press conference where he is expected, despite a party announcement to the opposite effect, to present ANEL’s position on the talks.

The press conference was announced on Monday night, shortly after Prime Minister Alexis Tsiras spoke with his counterpart from the Former Yugoslav Republic (FYROM), Zoran Zaev. The two men held a phone conversation in a “good atmosphere” and will speak again Tuesday.

“If we give Skopje the term ‘Macedonia’ and the ‘Macedonian’ language this will be a historical and monumental defeat for Greece,” Panos Kammenos said.

“It goes without saying that we would vote against such an agreement,” he added, saying that this issue could be among those on a list that eventually separate the two coalition partners.