Referendum in Macedonia: What is a name?

The lights that oppose the name of Macedonia turned into "Northern Macedonia" earlier this year in front of the parliament in Skopje, Macedonia. (AP Photo / File)

What's in a name? This is the question to which Macedonians will be called on Sunday in a referendum on whether their country should be renamed Northern Macedonia, ending a decades-long conflict with neighboring Greece and opening the door to the future. NATO.

Greece, a member of NATO and the European Union, has long blocked Macedonia's efforts to join the alliance, arguing that the use of the term "Macedonia" implies ambitions on his own province of the same name.

The dispute over the name broke out in the early 1990s when the small Balkan country declared its independence from the former Yugoslav federation. It quickly degenerated, Athens imposing a crippling embargo on the new nation.

After decades of negotiations stalled by the United Nations, the changes in the Macedonian government in 2017 have revived the hope of finding a solution. Under an agreement reached in June, Macedonia will change its name to North Macedonia and Greece will drop its objections to the country joining NATO.

HOW DOES THE DISPUTE HAVE STARTED?

The term "Macedonia" refers to the ancient kingdom formerly ruled by Alexander. The Greeks, who see this as one of the highlights of their history, see the use of this name by their northern neighbor as an attempt to usurp their history.

The geographical area covered by the former kingdom now includes Macedonia and parts of Greece and Bulgaria.

For the new country emerging from the breakup of Yugoslavia, the name of Macedonia was a way for politicians to instil a sense of national pride. Macedonian nationalists began producing maps, including Thessaloniki, the second largest city in Greece. Nikola Gruevski, a Conservative Prime Minister in power from 2006 to 2016, participated in a frenzy of buildings, erecting statues of ancient Greeks in the center of the Macedonian capital of Skopje and designating the main highway and Alexander International Airport. great.

The Greeks were horrified.

In the absence of a solution in sight, the new country has continued to be officially known as the "United Nations" as the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia or FYROM.

WHAT IS THE ISSUE?

On Sunday, voters will be asked: "Are you in favor of joining the European Union and NATO by accepting the agreement between the Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Greece?

If Macedonians vote "Yes", then their country can become the 30th member of NATO.

Skopje and Athens made concessions in the June agreement. Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev has agreed to add "the north" on behalf of his country, while his Greek counterpart Alexis Tsipras has promised to drop objections to Macedonia joining NATO. The agreement sparked strong opposition in both countries, from those who accused the prime ministers of over-conceding.

Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov called the agreement a "flagrant violation of sovereignty". Opponents of the agreement called for a boycott of the referendum.

WHAT ARE THE POSSIBLE RESULTS?

If the "yes" wins and the turnout exceeds 50%, the Macedonian government will move on to the next step of the June agreement, which is to amend parts of its constitution.

Even if the participation rate does not reach 50%, the government could interpret the result as an indication of public opinion and act accordingly.

Zaev announced that he would resign if the vote "no" won and that the agreement with Greece would be dead.

WHAT HAPPENS IF "YES" WINS?

If "Yes" prevails, Macedonia will have to change some parts of its constitution to make sure that it contains nothing that can be considered irredentist against the Greeks. This will have to be ratified in Parliament by a two-thirds majority of the 120 seats. Zaev has now received pledges of support from 73 legislators, he would need another seven to pass the amendments.

Once the parliament of Macedonia has voted, the ball is in the camp of Greece. The name agreement will have to be ratified by the Greek parliament, where Tsipras will face personal problems.

Its ruling coalition partner, Panos Kamenos, leader of the right-wing independent Greeks, promises to vote against the agreement in the Greek parliament. It is unclear whether Tsipras will be able to gather enough votes from independent legislators and opposition parties to get it passed.

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