Skopje expects Athens' "draft document on name issue"

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias will arrive in Skopje this month for a meeting with counterpart Nikola Dimitrov.

A new round of the Macedonia name dispute talks mediated by UN envoy Matthew Nimetz is expected by the end of the month or the beginning of April, Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev has announced.

"According to announcements, Kotzias will arrive at the Skopje airport in the third or fourth week of March, in order to make efforts to bring positions closer, while the negotiating process will resume under Nimetz's mediation," Zaev said, according to MIA agency.

The report said that Zaev "expects Kotzias to present the Greek draft-document for the name issue settlement during the Skopje visit," adding he was "still an optimist, expecting a solution to the problem, while preserving dignity and identity of both sides."

Meanwhile, several thousand people demonstrated in Skopje against changing the name of (the Republic of) Macedonia, and asking the government to abandon the negotiations with Greece.

The protesters, who shouted, "We are Macedonians," accused the government and the largest opposition party, VMRO-DPMNE, of "betraying the national interest."

At the same time, members of the country's diaspora held protests in Europe, the US, and Australia, torching Greek flags and Zaev's photographs.