Republic of Macedonia

The President of the European Council, António Costa, expressed his personal commitment to addressing bilateral issues between countries as part of the EU enlargement process. Speaking after the EU-Western Balkans summit in Brussels, Costa emphasized that the evaluation of progress toward EU accession should be based solely on a country's own merits, not hindered by bilateral disputes.

Former prime minister and leader of leftist SYRIZA, Alexis Tsipras, was awarded the Nikos Nikiforidis Peace Prize on Tuesday for the Prespa Agreement that was reached in 2018 between Greece and the then Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), resolving a long-standing dispute between the two countries./p>

US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James O'Brien hinted on Tuesday that Washington is exerting pressure on the new government of North Macedonia to respect the Prespa name agreement signed in 2018 with Greece.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' trip to the US for the NATO anniversary summit was dominated, if anything, by his strong messages to North Macedonia, both during his speech at the meeting and in the press conference that followed, where he took it one step further, leaving all possibilities open. 

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis made statements in the early hours of Friday (July 12, 2024) following the NATO Summit, addressing among other things North Macedonia, Cyprus, and aid to Ukraine.

Regarding North Macedonia’s disregard for the Prespa Agreement, Athens’ response:

Greece has once again warned North Macedonia that failing to respect the name deal between the two countries will jeopardize the Balkan state's path to European Union membership.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis addressed the issue of the Western Balkans and the need to respect the Prespa Agreement during his speech at the first session of the NATO Summit in Washington.

Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski of North Macedonia expressed doubts about the certainty of starting EU membership negotiations even if Bulgarians are included in the country's Constitution, according to reports from local media.

The meeting, expected to be brief, was not originally on the leaders’ agendas due to their busy schedules. The primary focus will be to review recent developments in Greek-Turkish relations.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are expected to meet Wednesday during the NATO 75th anniversary summit in Washington, DC. The meeting between the two leaders is anticipated to be brief.