EU and NATO should give complete support

If public and political approval can be secured on both sides, the deal between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) is a transforming accomplishment. It can re-energize the process of Euro-Atlantic enlargement at a time when regional and transatlantic relations are under real stress.

It also pushes back against a regional and global tide of nationalism that threatens peace and security. For Greece, it further offers the possibility of greater stability and strategic depth, against a backdrop of renewed geopolitical competition in the Western Balkans and the Aegean. The tentative deal between Athens and Skopje that was announced on Tuesday deserves the full support of Greece’s European and transatlantic partners.

Ian Lesser is foreign policy vice president at the German Marshall Fund of the United States.