UN mediator says Prespes deal should return to FYROM’s parliament

Veteran UN negotiator Matthew Nimetz, who has been overseeing talks between Athens and Skopje on the name issue for almost 30 years, said the results of the referendum in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) on the deal achieved with Greece should be discussed again in Parliament.

Nimetz told Greek radio station ANT1 FYROM's political leadership should take into consideration the consultative referendum and discussed it in Parliament, noting that the government has some “very important decisions to make.”

The UN mediator said he considered the Prespes Agreement the best way forward for the region and the two countries, noting that those who oppose it do not seem to have an alternative solution to offer.

“My reaction is that we must pay special attention to the people who voted and voted 'yes'. Ninety percent of the voters voted yes,” he reportedly said.

Asked whether he expected this result, Nimetz said he believed there was support on the deal but made no assumptions on the result.