NATO Enlargement -- The View from Athens

An important NATO summit will take place next week in Bucharest, Romania. Our discussion will focus on two main issues: the first, NATO enlargement and developments in the Western Balkans; the second, an evaluation of the Alliance's operations in Afghanistan (ISAF) and Kosovo (KFOR). In both of these U.N. mandated operations, there is an important Greek contribution of 2,000 men.

Greece, for over 15 years now, has held the position that the future of Southeastern Europe lies in its integration into the Euroatlantic Institutions. On the basis of this strategic choice, we support NATO's "open door" policy. An open door policy, however, must be based on the principles of good neighborly relations and allied solidarity.

Greece supports the enlargement of NATO in the Western Balkans, with the invitations to Croatia and Albania. Ιt is ready also to welcome the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), provided that our northern neighbor shifts from their nationalistic logic and agree to a mutually agreeable name for international use that differentiates the new Balkan state from the Greek province of Macedonia; a name that will not be a vehicle for propaganda and irredentism against a neighboring NATO member.

Athens has shown its good will towards Skopje in many ways. It has supported its neighbor, both politically and economically, ranking as the number one foreign investor in that country, with $1 billion invested capital that has generated 30,000 new jobs. Most recently, we went the extra mile, or rather the most important mile, when we expressed our readiness to agree to a composite name with a geographic qualifier. This is a major shift from Greece's initial position, which excluded any use of the term "Macedonia", in the name of our neighbor.

Some have questioned our stance on the name issue and the possibility of a Greek veto at the NATO summit, if the name issue is not resolved by then. Some are suggesting that we are re-fighting old battles, not seeing the "big picture", that we are drawn into the past.

My answer to these claims is that the name issue is not a bilateral one. It is an international issue, which concerns our broader region. Directly, or indirectly, it concerns NATO and the U.N. And, if not resolved now, it may fester to poison future generations, undermining stability and cooperation in the 21st century.

We hope that with active U.N. mediation and U.S. involvement, a resolution of this issue will be achieved before the Bucharest summit.

On this issue, we are not alone. 115 members of the U.S. Congress, from both parties, support House Resolution 356, expressing the "sense of the House of Representatives that FYROM should stop hostile activities and propaganda against Greece, and should work with the United Nations and Greece to find a mutually acceptable official name".

A similar resolution, S.R. 300, was introduced in the Senate by Senators Menendez, Obama, Snowe.

The immediate settlement of the name issue before the NATO Summit in a mutually agreeable way, will allow Greece, the U.S.'s strongest ally in the Balkans, to support FYROM's membership to NATO and ultimately to the European Union, a strategic goal also shared by the U.S.

A prerequisite for a proper relationship as allies and partners is that of good neighborliness. We have lived together through good and bad times, we have shared tragedy, but also share hope for a bright future. Let's leave behind the former and invest in the latter.

Greece has called upon FYROM's leadership to act responsibly and show political courage and meet Greece half way. It will be a responsible move on the part of an aspiring candidate, a move that will win them a European future, a future of stability, peace and economic prosperity, based on the principles upon which NATO and the European Union are founded.

Alexandros P. Mallias is Ambassador of Greece to the United States.

Comments

[briza007]

I'm from Macedonia Thessaloniki. My job is to produses cheese, and my brand name of my company is "macedonian cheese" from 1912. If Bardaska (this is the name before 1946 of skopia)) will named macedonia then many costumers they will confused about the origin of my product.
This is an argument of the Americans and Europeans, because you have no history so we do not understand the value of history and the names, and everything is calculated on the basis of your interests. But for us the biggest argument to not labeled Skopje to Macedonia, is that history is our greatest wealth and Nations without a past did not have a future.

[Ellinas]

U.S STATE DEPARTMENT
Foreign Relations Vol. VIII
Washington D.C.
Circular Airgram
(868.014/26 Dec. 1944)
US Secretary of State Stettinius
The Secretary of State to Certain Diplomatic and Consular Officers*

The Department has noted with considerable apprehension increasing propaganda rumors and semi-official statements in favor of an autonomous Macedonia, emanating principally from Bulgaria, but also from Yugoslav Partisan and other sources, with the implication that Greek territory would be included in the projected state. "This Government considers talk of Macedonian "nation", Macedonian "Fatherland", or Macedonia "national consiousness" to be unjustified demagoguery representing no ethnic nor political reality, and sees in its present revival a possible cloak for aggressive intentions against Greece".

The approved policy of this Government is to oppose any revival of the Macedonian issue as related to Greece. The Greek section of Macedonia is largery inhabited by Greeks, and the Greek people are almost unanimously opposed to the creation of a Macodonian state. Allegations of serious Greek participation in any such agitation can be assumed to be false. This Government would regard as responsible any Government or group of Governments tolerating or encouraging menacing or aggressive acts of "Macedonian Forces" against Greece.
Vlatko: Is the US State Dpt a Nazi force too?

[Vlatko]

Ellinas,

As I said,I am not going to engage with you on prooving and discprooving the historical details. It is pointless. We have very different views on history. I will stick to the present day. Greece is heading toward becoming a second Serbia on the Balkans: a foreign policy based on ancient myths and legends and an internal policy based on turbo-natonalism, disrespect toward its ethnical minorities and threats toward the neighboring nations. At the same time that is combined with opposing its NATO and EU allies and taking counter-productive decisions based on irrational emotions. This is Serbia today. Will this also be Greece tomorrow?
Greece has been huge dissapointment for young Republic of Macedonia. The people in Macedonia expected from Greece as the oldest and reachest Balkan member of NATO and EU to be a regional leader and living example of European values. Instead...look at this blog? Look at the stance of the honorable Greek Ambassador! Greece has swamped itself into the Balkan mud and transformed into something very ugly. Instead of looking at Macedonian heritage as a bridge between the two states, Greece has trasformed the Macedonian heritage today as a serious NATO and EU problem. Greece should turn its view around. The fact that the Macedonians has historical bonds with the Greek Macedonia should be used as a connection on which mutual trust should be build on. Just like Holland and Belgium, Just like Germany, Austria and Croatia; just like Italy and Slovenia ...

[Ellinas]

Dear Vlatko,
Let's agree to disagree then. However I don't think that Italy would have liked it if Slovenia called itself Piemonte-Trieste and claimed that Italy has oppressed Piemontais people. I also disagree with you that Greece is like Serbia and that Greece has a Slavic minority which does not consider itself Greek. We have a slavophone community which identifies itself as Greek. My grandparents also spoke this language which was imposed on them by Bulgarian paramilitaries. They never said that they were anything but Greek. Anyway, if we were like Serbia, we would have killing squads who wear masks and kill whole communities. In fact, isn't that what FYROM did in 2001 to its disgruntled Albanian community? FYROM's government fell because the Albanians pulled out last week. Sorry but we are not Serbia. I hope that our two countries will find a MUTUAL solution to the problem.

[Ellinas]

I wonder why you think that Greece has been a disappointment to your country when we are the largest foreign investor in your country's economy and have helped create thousands of jobs in support of your economy.
Anyway, have a good day.

[Ellinas]

HERE ARE SOME COMMENTS FROM FYROM"S POLITICIANS:
1) We are not related to the northern Greeks who produced leaders like Philip and Alexander the Great. We are a Slav people and our language is closely related to Bulgarian."
[FYROM's Ambassador to Canada, Gyordan Veselinov in an interview with the Ottawa Citizen, 24 February 1999]

2) "We are Slavs who came to this area in the sixth century... we are not descendants of the ancient Macedonians."
[FYROM'S President Mr. Kiro Gligorov, Foreign Information Service Daily Report, Eastern Europe, February 26, 1992, p. 35.]

3) "We do not claim to be descendants of Alexander the Great. We are Slavs and we speak a Slav language."
[FYROM'S Ambassador in Washington, Mrs. Ljubica Acevshka, 22 January 1999]

Enough revisionist history from a people trying to find themselves. Vlatko, are your people Nazis too? It is lie that Greece renamed its northernmost province Makedonia in 1988. Simply a lie. The region has been known since antiquity as Makedonia and officially a province since independence from Turkey in 1913.

[Ellinas]

LET"S READ WHAT SOME OTHERS HAVE WRITTEN ABOUT THIS:
Henry Kissinger

Management Centre Europe

18-19 June 1992, Paris
2/10/92
This is an abstract of the minutes kept during the annual meeting of Management Centre Europe held in Paris on June. During the questions time at the end of Henry Kissinger's presentation one of the questions was:

"What is your opinion for the problem which Greece have to accept the name Macedonia which the Scopia Government is trying to implement?"
Mr Kissiger asked the man who asked the question:
"Are you Greek ?"
Reply "Yes"
"Look, I believe that Greece is right to object and I agree with Athens. The reason is that I know History which is not the case with most of the others including most of the Government and Administration in Washington.
The strength of the Greek case is that of the History which I must say that Athens have not used so far with success."
Vlatko: Is Henry Kissinger a Nazi too?

[Ellinas]

For Vlatko from an article in Wikipedia written by Slavs:
Although IMRO was predominantly ethnic Bulgarian since its establishment, it favoured the idea of an autonomous Macedonia and preferred to disassociate itself from official Bulgarian policy and was not under Bulgarian control. Its founding leaders believed that an autonomous movement was more likely to find favour with the Great Powers than one which was a tool of the Bulgarian government. When, in addition to these advantages, the Bulgarophil Macedonians started their marvellous­ly-organis­ed revolutionary committee in 1893, the Servian cause received its death-blow. By way of emphasising her antagonism to Bulgaria, official Servia now adopted an openly Turcophil policy, and nothing could be more fatal to the prospects of any Christian race in Turkey. The Macedonian peasantry will bestow their allegiance only on a propaganda which promises them some speedy prospect of release from the Ottoman yoke.
What is more, some of its younger leaders espoused radical socialist and anarchist ideas and saw their goal as the establishment of a new form of government rather than unification with Bulgaria. Eventually these considerations led the organisation to change its statute and accept as members not only Bulgarians but all Macedonians and Odrinians regardless of ethnicity or creed. In reality, however, besides some Vlach members, its membership remained overwhelmingly Bulgarian Exarchist.

[Ellinas]

Oh boy Vlatko...where do I start? The Slavs that were coming to Ellis Island at the turn of the century were Slavs from the region of Macedonia. They were an amorphous group of Slavs who had no nation. It was Turkey at the time as the Ottoman Empire was still in the Balkans. Greece didn't even exist beyond Athens in the 1800s but a majority of Greeks lived in the region of Macedonia along with Bulgarians and Serbians who had moved South. After Greek Independence, and a large struggle between Greece, Serbia, and Bulgaria, Turkey was removed from the Balkans and Greece was awarded its current borders. Unfortunately Greater Bulgaria had another dream and the VMRO was created to take all of Macedonian lands under Bulgaria. There was no concept of a Macedonian nation then. The leader of the VMRO Goce Delcev was Bulgarian. The coat of arms of the VMRO was a lion-same as the Bulgarian coat of arms. I don't make ridiculous claims.

[Viking10]

Ambassador Mallias talks about the principle of "good neighborly relations." I would like to ask Mr. Mallias if in his opinion Greece's ongoing persecution of minorities counts as good neighbourly relations? Does the cultural genocide that Greece systemically practices meet the criteria of good neighbourly relations? Historically and legally, the Greek arguments with regard to Macedonia, fail that is why Greece is reduced to using political terrorism wherever it can.
Athens should reconsider its behaviour toward Macedonia. Greece as a NATO member may have the technical right to veto Macedonia's membership, but this won't mask its grotesque rights abuses, in fact it will exacerbate the situation and make people redouble their efforts to expose Greece and the European Union in this debacle. Greece is about to initiate a dynamic in the Balkans that has absolutely nothing to do with regional security or allied solidarity.
Mr. Ambassador, it's time for Greece to stop denying the existence of its Macedonian and Turkish minorities - which everyone knows are there. Stop falsifying the history of today's Modern Greeks, which every historian knows are not related to the ancient Greeks or the ancient Macedonians. Stop using bully tactics to cover up your abuses because I promise you such behaviour will come to no good.

[adamvlachos]

Here it is again, people that have never been to Greece are making statemnts that are without Merit. Like i wrote earlier I live in Connecticut and have been to the Vlach minority villaes and the villages speaking Dopia, Bulgarian or macedonia if yo want to call it that. Please go for yourself and find the suppresion you are talking about. THEY ARE PROUD TO BE GREEK even if they were not ancient greeks it does not matter they are PROUD to be Greek now. Just as you Bulgarians are Proud to call yourselves Macedonia it is your right. But speaking without knowledge only proves that ignorance and nationalistic powers and not Moderate powers are running your country. I still wish peace to our Orthodox brothers but stop the ignorant statements and GET REAL.

[Viking10]

I don't need advice from Albanian Arvanite and Hellenised Vlach nor do I need the advice of Christians from Asia Minor who were settled in the Aegean part of Macedonia a few decades ago and now claim to be the descendants of Alexander the Great. You're all a bunch of fanaticised kooks as far as I'm concerned, and that's just how Athens wants it.

There is not one reputable historian who will support the idiotic notion that today's Modern Greeks are the descendants of the ancient Greeks and ancient Macedonians. That's like saying Hosni Mubarek and today's Egyptians are the descendants of Tutankhamen. Such nonsense is just not on. Ignorant Greek racists.

Stop persecuting your minorities and leave them be. You can start by acknowledging their existence and granting people some basic human rights.

[Ellinas]

Viking10: Please pick up a history book and while you are at it, read a geography book. You might learn something more than ignorance like: Modern Greeks have nothing to do with Ancient Greeks and Greeks don't rcognize their Turkish minority. There simply is no slavic minority in Greece that claims to be slavic and not Greek. This is an outside fabrication.

[Vlatko]

Dear Mr. Ambassador,

The Greek argumentation aginst the name of the Republic of Macedonia is highly confusing to the rest of the world. the situation between Greece and the Greek province of Macedonia and the Republic of Macedonia is not unique. There is a country calle Luxemburg and a Belgian province of Luxemburg. There is a country calle Brittain and a French province of Brittany.
There is a nation that call themselves "Americans" although technicaly the people of Canada na Mexico are also nations from the continent called America.
The name "Republic of Macedonia" is already differenciating the state from the Greek provinces.
The Greek attempts to put a localize on the civilizational heritage of Ancient Macedonia into the modern-day Greeg state and nation and at the same time to disallow any other modern day nation to praise and share this antient heritage is also highly irrational.
If the word follows Greek logic, then Italy should veto Croatia, because Croatia was once a Roman province. Italy should also ask France to be renamed because Francia was another Roman province. And what should Italy say about a country called "Romania" and a nation "Romanians".

That is why Mr. Ambassador the world cannot "buy" your story and has large difficulty to understand the logic of it. In your text you have failed to mention that the aformentioned resolutions have never been accepted neither by the House of Representatives nor from the Senate.

[adamvlachos]

As an American with a Vlach father from Samarina, Greece I would like to point out that YES there are minorities in Greece. But I have visitied the Vlach villages of Metsovo and Samarina, (have you?) and it would be hard to find a people more proud of being Greek then the Vlachs!!! I have also visited villages where the people spoke Dopia or Bulgarian around Kilkis and Serres, (Have you?) and they are more proud to be Greeks then Athenians that I have met!!! I have no problem with Slavic Macedonia being called Macedonia but to make statements that are unfounded, irrational and downright Ignorant only fuels the fire for Greek Nationalists. I hope there is a solution to the name even with Macedonia being the name, but statements about suppresion are ridiculous, assimalation does not mean suppresion. I was not taught Vlach or Greek in Connecticut was I being suppressed? Assimalition is strength, it is what America is about, and what Greece is somehow achieved to their benefit.

[adamvlachos]

yes but the issue is that England does not show maps of Brittany in France as being English? neither do the Belgians!! But the Macedonian do!!! They are also not rewriting history and talking about a suppresed people!!! Please look at the maps and history books that are being provided and tell me if there are not any nationalistic tendecies.!! How would America feel if Mexico was talking about their suppressed brothers in New Mexico and making new Maps with New Mexico and Texas as being theirs and telling their school children we have to free our brothers in Dallas and Sante Fe? These are the real problems not the name!!!! FYI I think it should be called Macedonia I think the name issue is riduculous and that the people on both sides of the border should live in peace as good neighbors.

[Vlatko]

Hi Mr. Vlachos,

On the contrary, I lived in Holland and visited Dutch, Belgian and Luxemburg museums. There are different maps all over the place showing different stages of that region and aspirations of each side. No hard feelings today at all. That was history and past. Same goes for Macedonia. The maps that you are refering are historical maps from 1800s and 1900s and I can't see what is the problem. Greek part of Macedonia was part of the national history of Republic of Macedonia. The Macedonian Internal Revolutionary Organization was created in Solun (Thesaloniki) at the end of the 19th century. All famous Macedonian revolutionary figures, poets, intellectuals and activists are born in what is today Greek Macedonia. This is part of Macedonian history, something that happened 100 years a go. Nobody teaches the children today that Macedonia should invade and "liberate" the Greek teritory. It is ridiculos to say that. Republic of Macedonia has an army of 7000 people and 2 (two) planes. It would be like Estonia attacking Russia:-))).

[Ellinas]

Oh no Vlatko. The United Kingdom was admitted into the UN with the name United Kingdom and not Great Britain because of Bretagne in France.
There is no international law that states anyone can call themselves anything they please.
Greek attempts to localize as you call it the heritage of Macedonia is the historical right of Greece and no other country. This is the legacy we leave our children. If we don't protect history then what is there to pass on to our children? Just because FYROM spans a small part of Ancient Macedonia gives it no right to call itself Republic of Macedonia and its citizens Macedonians. What about the Greek Macedonians then? What heritage do they have?

[briza007]

So why you slavs insist to name your country macedonia and not slavomacedonia. What is the problem can you explain this to me. No don't explain nothing, because if you want to be a country you must to find a history for your country. In the other way one part of you it will be albania and the other part Boulgaria.

[Apokis]

I wish the Greek Government listen much more carefully to the advise of the Ambassador and his staff, instead of sending mixing signals during the negotiating process. Because of these mixing signals the rightful position of Greece will face a very tough audience in the upcoming NATO Summit if at the end the Greek Prime Minister is obligated to veto an invitation for FYROM to become a member. That is what is happening when countries have a Prime Minister and a Foreign Minister who speak to close and powerful allies like the United States with two different languages. Let's hope that at the last minute the deadlock in the negotiations will be broken and a mutually accepted solution to the name issue is going to be achieved. In any other case, Greece will find itself in a very unpleasant diplomatic position and the government will be responsible for the loss of a tremendous amount of diplomatic capital for an issue that should be easily resolved long time ago.

[Alexandros]

I am from the Florina region (not Lerin). In terms of a 'sizable' ethnic minority of Slavs in Greece why does the Slavic political party (Ouranio Toxo - Rainbow Party) not have enough supporters to gain a seat in Parliament? Greece is a democratic nation that was founded by our forefathers millenia ago. In the 2004 election Rainbow could barely gather 2000 votes, whereas in 2007 they could not get funding to stand at the election. If there were hundreds of thousands of them why wouldn't they be able to vote in a party into Parliament. It is because the so called 'Macedonian' minority does not exist - in fact it NEVER existed. The Slavs up until WW2 considered themselves Bulgarian - but even now there are very few Bulgarians left - due to population exchanges the areas on both sides of the borders have become ethnically homogeneous.

Greece HAS come to the party - we will accept this new nation with a name that includes 'Macedonia' but they need to also come to the party and distinguish their country from the northern Greek province of Macedonia. They need to stop nationalistic propaganda (e.g. renaming their airport after Greek hero - Alexander the Great) against Greece. Macedonia exists in Greece (in fact over 90% of Ancient Macedonia is within Greece) and it would trample on the rights of the Greek-Macedonian population to allow a foreign country to monopolise the name Macedonia at the exclusion to the rightful airs of the

[RumiSouth]

Coming from the banks of the Tennessee River, just a few miles south of the state known as Tennessee, in a state called Alabama, I fail to understand what the big hairy deal is. Don't you Europeans ever just look at each other and say, "Y'know, we really ought to get over this crap"?

[cognate]

You mean do like the Americans and just let fly a cruise missile or two into the far corners of the Earth?

[tkape]

This article fails to mention that The Ancient Macedonia claim to be Greek, which have Greek names, worship Greek Gods and speak Greek. The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia(FYROM) used to be called Southern Serbian and then was change to Vardar Banovina and then in year 1949 change to The Peoples Republic Of Macedonia. FYROM speak a Bulgarian Language, have a slavic history which immigrated into Europe in the 6th century AD. Ancient Macedonia have a Greek history which has lasted for 4000 years. Today Greece have every right to object to FYROMs uses of Republic of Macedonia.
No ethnic Macedonian existed until after the 1940s, when Tito and Stalin created this idea of a Macedonia state to claim Northern Greece for Yugoslavia and to control the Aegean Sea. FYROM need to apologies to Greece for all the wrongful propaganda and lie they are teaching students in FYROM, and to come together with Greece to find a solution and not to great more problems.

[ArchAngel]

Instead of looking at this as a problem, why not see it as the true opportunity that it really is?

Why not welcome these people into a larger confederation like Switzerland?

They want your family name so why not make them a part of your family?

Think of all of the wonderful possibilities!

[peterg76]

They should just go for North Macedonia and South Macedonia. Everyone will just say 'Macedonia' unofficially and everybody can be happy.

[makedonka]

I am an ethnic Macedonian from the Lerin region of Macedonia (currently under Greek occupation). I wish for no changes to be made to the Republic of Macedonia's name. I wish for the Greek government to recognize the ethnic Macedonian minority that lives in Greece. I wish for a formal apology from the Greek government to the ethnic Macedonians living in the aegean portion of Macedonia that is Greek occupied. One of those ethnic Macedonians was my grandfather. Til the day he died he was proud of his Macedonian roots. It is a shame that the Greek government never allowed him to visit his home one last time before his death. The tears he shed for his village, home, mother and those left behind will never erase from my memory and soul. Your government's propaganda, forced assimilation and cultural genocide towards the Macedonians is something that the Macedonian people will never forget. Your disgusting policies did destroy the spirit of many Macedonian families. Unfortunately, for you and your government, it did not work on me, my family, and millions of other ethnic Macedonians around the world. Our blood, our souls, our hearts, our passion and our identities will always remain 100% Macedonian and that will never change!

[adamvlachos]

I can only say that your comments prove that that there are people with territorial claims. statements like Greek Occupation and forced assimalation are exactly the kind statements that Greeks use to show their disapproval of the name of Macedonia. In fact if there were no statements like yours there would be no issue at all. Thank you for proving my point from the comments above, please read them and you will see that I do not disagree with the name, but your statemnts are completely ignorant I feel sorry for you for not knowing the truth. Please go these towns like Florina and Edessa and meet the people there and tell me then if they are surpressed. I don´t know what your Grandfather told you but I can tell you one thing if you find this minority being surpressed then I will help you free them.

[Ellinas]

You know that up until the 1940s the Slavs of Macedonia considered themselves Bulgarian and fought on the side of Bulgaria in WW1 and WW2? Perhaps your grandfather fought against Greece with the Communist rebels in WW2 which sought to split Greece in 2? Maybe this is why Greece never allowed him back into the country after he fled into Southern Yugoslavia when the Communists lost?

[briza007]

Why you dont do anything when your place named Bardaska???