Hristijan Mickoski

According to the results of the recent referendum in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia on its name deal with Greece, out of a total of about 661 thousand votes, 91.5 percent were in favor of the deal, compared to 5.6 percent who voted "no," while 2.8 percent of all ballots cast were invalid.

AFP - Macedonia's government vowed Monday to push ahead with changing the country's name to appease Greece and build ties with the West, but opponents said low turnout in a referendum on the move made it illegitimate.

Premier Zoran Zaev wants to rename the Balkan state North Macedonia to end a long-running row with Athens and open a path to EU and NATO membership.

The conservative opposition leader in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) indicated a subtle shift in his stance towards the Prespes Agreement achieved with Greece, based on comments made in a show on broadcaster TV21.

The conservative opposition leader in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) indicated a subtle shift in his stance towards the Prespes Agreement achieved with Greece, based on comments made in a show on broadcaster TV21.

Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said he hoped parliament would adopt a formal decision supporting the referendum on the country's deal with Greece by Monday - which he added would then be staged with or without the support of the main opposition VMRO DPMNE party.

Implementing the agreement with Greece is a condition for its accession to the EU and NATO.

In his public address after Monday's parlays, Macedonian Prime Minister and main ruling Social Democrats leader Zoran Zaev accused the opposition right-wing VMRO DPMNE chief Hristijan Mickovski of "lying" that he wants his country to join NATO and the EU, and of hiding his true intentions at the talks.

Talks between Macedonia's main ruling Social Democrats, led by Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, and the main opposition VMRO DPMNE party, led by Hristijan Mickovski, failed to clear the path on Thursday towards a referendum on the historic "name" deal with Greece.

The prime minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has announced the question his country's citizens will face in a referendum this fall on a recent deal with Greece changing the country's name to "North Macedonia."

A meeting of political leaders in Skopje on Wednesday evening to debate the referendum on the name deal with Greece was disrupted when VMRO-DPMNE leader Hristijan Mickoski stormed out, claiming that not all parliamentary parties were represented. 

The meeting had been expected to set a date for the referendum, which, according to last month's deal, will be held in the fall.