SkopjeDiem Macedonia in English
FM Nikola Dimitrov delivered an address at the Fourth Delphi Economic Forum in Greece. “There is nothing more natural than our two countries being friends, being close, opening the future,” he said. As Dimitrov added, compared to his first visit to Athens on 14 June 2017, now, after the Prespa Agreement, he has more friends in Greece. On the sidelines of the Forum, the FM met his Greek counterpart, George Katrougalos, the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, Matthew Palmer, and the US Ambassador to Greece, Geoffrey R. Pyatt. Dimitrov and Katrougalos also participated in a working dinner at which issues related to the region’s and Macedonia’s European perspective were reviewed in the period leading up to the June Council. Romanian Minister Delegate for European Affairs, George Ciamba, and Greek Deputy FM Terence Quick were among the participants. Within the frameworks of his stay in Delphi, Dimitrov also met To Potami leader Stavros Theodorakis and former Greek FM Niks Kotzias. Alexis Tsipras, too, participated in the Forum. As he said, he will soon become the first Greek PM to officially visit Skopje, accompanied by a business delegation. According to him, his government is determined to continue to build on what’s been achieved with the Prespa Agreement. In that regard, the Greek PM added that the high Council for Cooperation between the two countries would be formed. In Delphi, Serbian FM Ivica Dacic congratulated Skopje and Athens on the Prespa Agreement. “You had a dispute with Skopje over the name, not over territory, which is much easier,” he said. According to him, every problem can be resolved if there is political will. New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis, too, participated in the Forum. Asked whether his party, if it had been currently in power, would open issues from the Prespa Agreement it disagreed with, he said the deal was now internationally recognised, adding that he would respect it. However, Mitsotakis stressed that 70% of Greeks consider the deal to be bad. New Democracy disagrees with the part concerning Macedonian language and identity. At the Forum, Greek Defence Minister Evangelos Apostolakis said deepening the relations with the northern neighbour was a strategic interest for his country.
