Mitsotakis says he wouldn’t call someone who supports Prespes deal a traitor

Main opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis reiterated on Friday evening his view that the Prespes accord will create more problems for Greece than it solves, during a talk at the annual Economist conference held in Athens.

Greek lawmakers earlier on Friday ratified a landmark accord that changes the name of the neighbouring Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) to North Macedonia, ending a decades-old dispute and opening the way for the country to join the European Union and NATO.

Explaining his negative position on the name deal, Mitsotakis said he will do all he can to mitigate the damage caused to the country, adding however that “once an accord has been ratified, there is little that can be done to change it.”

The same deal was offered to Greece in 2008 but was rejected by the then conservative government because it recognized the Macedonian ethnicity and language, he added, noting the deal is highly unpopular among the people.

He clarified however that he would never call someone who supports the agreement a traitor, and condemned the violence that occurred during the protest rallies held outside Parliament in the last few days.

Mitsotakis also warned that, if elected to government, he will veto FYROM's accession to the European Union if “Greek interests are not satisfied during the accession process.”