Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is expected to discuss the name dispute with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) during his meeting today with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the informal summit of 27 European Union leaders in Brussels on Friday.  

Panos Kammenos, the leader of Greece's junior coalition partner Independent Greeks, said on Wednesday that he disagrees with the leftist-led government's handling of ongoing name talks with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).

German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday hailed progress in talks between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, noting that a solution appeared "close."

"I am very pleased and relieved that... there is movement in the talks," Merkel told a press conference in Berlin with FYROM's Prime Minister Zoran Zaev.

The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) is closer than any time in the last decade to settling a long-standing dispute over its name with Greece which has thwarted Skopje's ambitions to join NATO and the European Union, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday.

As talks between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia on the latter's name slowly progress, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday discussed the matter by phone.

Authorities in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia have taken down a street sign pointing to the capital's "Alexander the Great" airport.

The decision taken by Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and his cabinet to rename the country's main airport and a main highway has been made official.

The alterations are meant to be a goodwill gesture as talks over the name issue with Greece continue.

Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia have achieved convergence on three of the seven topics being discussed in the negotiations aimed at settling the name dispute between the two countries, FYROM Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said on Wednesday.

Zaev also said that he is hopeful Athens and Skopje will soon agree on the four other issues being deliberated.

Skopje Mayor Petre Shilegov has voiced his support for renewed efforts to settle the name dispute with Athens, while admitting that Alexander the Great was never part of the history of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).

Greek firefighters say a man and woman from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) have been found frozen to death at the summit of Mount Kaimaktsalan.

The man, 35, and the woman, 28, had been missing since Saturday morning. They were a part of a group of 40 people who were staying at the Greek ski resort of Voras.