Nimetz’s ‘new ideas’ worry Athens
Athens yesterday appeared bitterly disappointed by a set of new ideas proposed to diplomats from Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) by the United Nations mediator for the Macedonia name dispute, as the proposal contains a reference to a «Macedonian language and ethnicity.» Foreign Ministry officials, who perused the new proposal by UN envoy Matthew Nimetz yesterday, had not issued an official response by late last night, though sources spoke of «serious concerns.» Greece’s representative in the name talks, Adamantios Vassilakis, reportedly told Nimetz that Athens cannot accept the use of the expressions «Macedonian language and ethnicity» and instead proposed the use of the expression «Slav Macedonian.» Apparently this was immediately rejected by officials from Skopje. Speaking after a private meeting with Nimetz in New York, Vassilakis told reporters that he had stressed to the envoy that FYROM was maintaining a highly provocative stance while Greece had displayed good will to resolve the name dispute. He added that Nimetz’s mediation had been intended to focus only on the name dispute and that FYROM had been wrong to bring other issues to the table. Vassilakis also reiterated Greece’s insistence on «one name for all uses.» Opposition PASOK spokesman for foreign affairs Andreas Loverdos yesterday condemned the government for «failing to avert the degeneration of negotiations into the unacceptable proposals included in Mr Nimetz’s new ideas.» Foreign Ministry spokesman Giorgos Koumoutsakos said the government was studying Nimetz’s proposal in detail and would issue its official assessment in the next few days. According to sources, Nimetz’s proposal includes a new suggestion for a name to replace that of FYROM. This new name is believed to be a composite formula defining FYROM’s geographical position in relation to Greece, such as Northern Macedonia or Upper Macedonia.
