Kotzias has positive talks in FYROM

Greece's Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias and his counterpart in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Nikola Dimitrov, told reporters Thursday at a joint press conference that they are laying the groundwork of the process that will allow negotiations to resolve the decades-old dispute over the tiny Balkan country's name.

Not much more was expected from Kotzias's one-day visit to Skopje as substantial negotiations are expected to take place in the period stretching from October, after local elections are held in FYROM, until 2019, when national elections are expected to take place in both countries.

However, given the region's volatility and the rise of irredentist rhetoric, analysts believe that negotiations will pick up speed in 2018. Both men said yesterday they were committed to working on good relations and regional cooperation.

Both...