About: Zoran Zaev Archives

Greece and North Macedonia signed a number of crucial agreements to enhance their economic and military collaboration following a historic visit of Greek premier Alexis Tsipras to Skopje.

Greece's prime minister will on Tuesday (2 April) pay a historic visit to newly renamed North Macedonia to join in marking the end of a decades-long identity row between the two countries.

Macedonia's prime minister said Wednesday (30 January) that in addition to changing his country's name, his government was ready to enact further reforms to speed up the start of EU accession talks.

Manfred Weber, the Spitzenkandidat of the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), ended months of silence on the ongoing efforts to resolve the Greece-Macedonia name row with a couple of pithy comments on Tuesday (9 January) that appear to support the deal.

Macedonian lawmakers gather from Wednesday (9 January) to vote on changing their country's name to settle a decades-long dispute with Greece and open the way to NATO and EU membership.

The name-change deal reached between Athens and Skopje does not turn against any other country, including Russia, and its only objective is to establish peace and stability, the prime minister of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Zoran Zaev, said on Friday (4 January).

Bulgarian deputy Prime Minister Krassimir Karakachanov stated on Saturday (8 December) that he would not let Macedonia join the EU and NATO, reacting to recent statements by the Macedonian PM Zoran Zaev about the Macedonian language that have also infuriated Athens.

Macedonia's lawmakers moved closer on Sunday (2 December) to rename the country and remove a key hurdle on the road to breaking a decades-long stalemate with Greece.

The Macedonian parliament approved on Friday (19 October) a proposal to change the country's name, bringing a decades-old dispute with Greece one step closer to being resolved.

Macedonia's parliament will vote Monday (15 October) on whether to ratify a deal to change the country's name, in a bid to finally settle one of Europe's longest running disputes.

Following the recent setback in the referendum held in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Prime Minister Zoran Zaev’s decision to proceed with new elections might be the only way forward, writes Neophytos Loizides.

A big controversy is ongoing in Greece following reports that the country’s largest opposition force, New Democracy, which strongly opposes the name deal with Skopje, has had secretive contacts with the Prime Minister of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Zoran Zaev.

The prime ministers of Greece and Macedonia, Alexis Tsipras and Zoran Zaev, are among the favourites to become nominees for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize, according to a Swedish journalist specialised in covering the secretive decision-making of the Nobel committee.

Moscow on Monday (1 October) said low turnout in the referendum on Macedonia's name change renders it invalid, adding that lack of interest means that the population has boycotted a decision "forced" upon it.

Macedonian voters backed a plan to rename the country aimed at ending a decades-long spat with Greece and unlocking a path to NATO and EU membership, with the West welcoming the result although the referendum was marred by low turnout.

Two days before a crucial referendum that could open the doors of Macedonia to NATO and EU membership, an official from Skopje speaking in Brussels on Friday (28 September) made it clear that the authorities will declare the result as legitimate even in case of a low turnout.

Prime Minister of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) Zoran Zaev focused on the economic benefits of a “yes” vote in the upcoming referendum on the Macedonia name change, saying that the trade with Greece is going to double.

Several thousand Macedonians gathered in the capital Skopje on Sunday (16 September) to express their support for NATO and European Union membership bids and for a change in the country's name.

The Socialists and Democrats group (S&D) continue to criticise the negative stance of center-right opposition parties in Athens and Skopje towards the landmark name deal but also turn a blind eye to their member party in Greece, which disapproves of it.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on Macedonians on Thursday (6 September) to vote in a referendum to embrace a deal on its name with neighbouring Greece and join the defence alliance.

A Macedonian court on Wednesday (22 August) launched a trial of 33 men, including five opposition MPs and a former interior minister, accused of involvement in a violent attack on parliament last year.

Macedonia's parliament yesterday (30 July) set 30 September as the date for a referendum on changing the country's name to the Republic of North Macedonia, a high-stakes vote aimed at resolving a long-running row with Greece and clearing the path to join NATO and the EU.

Greek businessmen with close ties to Moscow have bribed citizens in Skopje to “commit acts of violence” ahead of the referendum on the name deal with Athens, Zoran Zaev, the prime minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), said on Monday (16 July).

As expected, Macedonia received an official invitation to join the NATO alliance yesterday (11 July), a month after it reached an agreement with Athens on its new name.