Kotzias: No solution to FYROM name dispute without Prespes deal

There can be no solution to the decades-old name dispute between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) without the ratification of the agreement achieved between the two countries earlier this year, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias said on Monday.

The deal, which takes its name from the region it was signed by Prime Ministers Alexis Tsipras and Zoran Zaev in late June, foresees that FYROM will be renamed Republic of North Macedonia.

“I explained that it must be made clear to Skopje that there is no solution [to the name dispute] without the acceptance of the Prespes agreement and that it is impossible to do what the two opposition parties in Greece and FYROM say, that they can secure a better – for each side – deal, because this just doesn't add up,” he told journalists after the end of the Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg.

The comment came as FYROM's parliament started debating on Monday changes in the country's name and constitution which are required by the deal.

Zaev urged lawmakers to ratify the agreement to secure FYROM's entry into NATO and the EU.