Government 'certain' Parliament will pass FYROM name deal

Government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos expressed certainty on Wednesday that the name deal with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia will be approved by lawmakers when it is brought to Parliament.

Speaking to Real FM radio, he said there is a "safe majority" in Parliament which will ensure the deal's passage.

Tzanakopoulos made his remarks amid speculation about possible snap elections in May sparked by Panos Kammenos, the leader of junior coalition partner Independent Greeks (ANEL), who said his party would not back the name deal if it comes to Parliament.

Meanwhile US Secretary of Defense James Mattis has expressed concern that Russia might interfere in the September 30 referendum in FYROM on the deal.

"The kind of mischief that Russia has practiced from Estonia to the United States, from Ukraine and now to Macedonia… it's always beyond the pale...