FYROM parliament to vote on referendum on name deal
Lawmakers in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) will vote on a government’s proposal setting down details for a referendum over a deal with neighboring Greece to change the country’s name to Republic of North Macedonia.
The proposals are expected to be approved Monday. Prime Minister Zoran Zaev’s coalition holds 67 of parliament’s 120 seats, and a simple majority is required.
Zaev has suggested the referendum be held Sept. 30 with the question: “Are you in favor of European Union and NATO membership by accepting the agreement between the Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Greece?”
The two countries have been at odds for decades over the smaller country’s use of the name “Macedonia,” which Greece says implies territorial claims over its own province of the same name. [AP]
