Greece a ‘loyal friend’ since name deal, says North Macedonia’s ex-PM

Former prime minister of North Macedonia Zoran Zaev refers to the benefits of the Prespes agreement for his country, Greece, and the wider Balkan region, in an interview with Kathimerini. Zaev, who traveled to Greece recently on the occasion of the Delphi Economic Forum, talks about the close cooperation that now exists between the two countries and expresses his gratitude to the Greek government both for the assistance it offered North Macedonia during the pandemic and for the support it offers for its full NATO membership and its European perspective.

How would you describe the situation in your country after the implementation of the Prespes agreement?

It is more pleasant than before because the people saw the benefits of the agreement. Normally, our countries, even before the agreement, had some kind of economic cooperation. But now, after the Prespes agreement, everything is open. There has been a lot of investment from Greece in North Macedonia, especially in energy, while during the coronavirus period Greece helped us by providing us with vaccines. Now we are building a common market of energy and trying to be resilient and to be more prepared for future energy crises. We are a small region and if we cooperate, we will be really stronger

Do you still have internal tensions about the new name or about ancient Macedonian history?

Some right-wing parties still do not accept it, but now it is in our Constitution. It is not only the adoption of the agreement in the Parliament, but we changed our Constitution through this agreement. I know that no matter what will happen in North Macedonia in the future, the Constitution must be followed. Even the leader of the opposition commented publicly that there are no backward steps. Therefore, we need to continue for the future. Just as the Greek opposition at the time was opposed, today, as a government, we are finding ways and continuing to work together because nobody wants to destroy something that is beneficial to both sides.

‘Our countries, even before the agreement, had some kind of economic cooperation. But now everything is open’

So the VMRO opposition will respect the agreement and not overturn it?

I believe so, yes. They must respect the agreement; they must follow the Constitution because they are one of the biggest parties in the country. No matter if they remain in opposition or are in government someday, they must respect our Constitution, because the Constitution is the biggest legal act of the country. Beyond that, they must be smart to continue the cooperation, because, at the end of the day, people want to have a better economic life. It should be noted that the region is changing after the Prespes agreement, and not only in the energy sector but also in agriculture, textiles, in the metal industry, everywhere. It is a very visible cooperation, and there are over €2.5 billion of pending investments from Greece in North Macedonia, in energy and other sectors. That is 25% of our GDP. I am very grateful also to the new Greek government – they are not so new now because you have the elections – which supports North Macedonia’s full membership in NATO. That means stability and security. Prime Minister [Kyriakos] Mitsotakis, [Foreign] Minister [Nikos] Dendias, and others were so positive in fighting for North Macedonia in the European Union, in the European Council, in the Committee of Ministers. That is what friends do and we are very grateful and our citizens know that.

Today, because of the war in Ukraine, Greece is becoming an energy hub. Do you see North Macedonia serving as a corridor for the transport of energy?

Yes, of course, especially through the interconnection with Greece. We can be an important part of the grid connection from Western Europe to Southern Europe, Africa and Asia.

Before the agreement, your citizens saw themselves as closer to Turkey than to Greece. Has this feeling changed?

After the Prespes agreement, they see themselves closer to Greece. We were very close to Turkey and we still are, as there is a connection with citizens of Turkish nationality. But after Prespes, because Greece is our first neighbor, while Turkey is not our neighbor, it became very visible that Greece is one of our most loyal friends and we see that in the polls. Now the polls show Greece as one of the top five best friends of North Macedonia, whereas before Prespes, it was one of our top three political enemies. Today, I am very happy when I see families communicating with each other, visiting each other, coming for shopping, for medical care, e.g. to a dentist, while we come for coffee, for food, for shopping, especially in Thessaloniki. As a politician, I am very often in Greece, because my children study in Thessaloniki and I meet a lot of people. Everyone is so polite, and there are some who say, “Mr Zaev, I am against Prespes, but you are a good man, so let’s work together.”

How do you see your country in 10-15 years?

We believe that, no later than 2030, North Macedonia will be a member-state of the European Union. During the 17 years of the name dispute, we changed many laws, we used this time to harmonize our legislation with the European legislation, so we will have a faster accession process compared to other countries.