Foreign Relations Of The Republic Of Macedonia

INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION

The Republic Of Macedonia became a member state of the United Nations on 8 April 1993 , eighteen months after its independence from the former Socialist Federal Republic Of Yugoslavia . It is provisionally referred within the UN as the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia or '''FYROM''', pending a resolution to the long-running dispute about the country's name. Other international bodies, such as the European Union , European Broadcasting Union , and the International Olympic Committee have adopted the same convention. NATO also uses the refference in official documents but adds an explanation which member countries recognize the constitutional name.

The UN's Member States all recognise the Republic of Macedonia but are divided over what to call it. An increasing number of countries recognise the country by its constitutional name – the Republic Of Macedonia – rather than the UN provisonal reference, notably three of the five permanent UN Security Council members (the United States , Russia , and the People's Republic Of China ) and 110 other UN members.

Given that both names are rather lengthy, the state is often referred to simply as ''Macedonia'' by non-Greeks.

INTERNATIONAL DISPUTES

Albania

The Albania n government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians in the Republic Of Macedonia , where they form 25.2% of the entire population according to official statistics, while continuing to seek regional cooperation. The 2001 Conflict In Republic Of Macedonia between the majority ethnic Macedonians and the minority Albanians caused some tensions between the two countries. However, the subsequent peace agreement and the implementation of greater rights for ethnic Albanians has helped to stabilise the situation.

Bulgaria

s of the two states - Bulgarian Language , according to the Constitution Of The Republic Of Bulgaria and Macedonian Language , according to the Constitution Of The Republic Of Macedonia ".

Bulgaria gives the Macedonians the right to obtain Bulgarian citizenship and a Macedonian newspaper, ''Vecher'', has claimed that 63,000 of them have taken advantage of this.

Macedonia has very good relations with Bulgaria in the political, economic and military spheres. The governments of the two countries work to improve business relations. Bulgaria supports the Macedonian bid to enter the EU and NATO. Bulgaria has also donated tanks, artillery and other military technology to the Macedonian Army.

Greece

The indeterminate status of the Republic of Macedonia's name arises from a long-running dispute with Greece , which criticizes the use of what it considers to be an Hellenic name and symbols. The main points of the dispute is:

The name: the Republic of Macedonia is only part of the wider region of Macedonia , much of which is now in Greece.

The naming issue was "parked" in a compromise agreed at the United Nations in 1993. However, Greece refused to grant diplomatic recognition to the Republic and imposed an economic blockade that lasted until the flag and constitutional issues were resolved in 1995 .

Naming issue

Greek concerns over the name arise from a number of factors:

The name is historically associated with Greek (or at least Greek-speaking) cultures, notably that of the kingdom of Macedon . Greeks consider that the inhabitants of the neighbouring republic – most of whom are descendants of Slavic tribes who moved into the region around the 6th Century AD – have no moral or historical right to claim the name "Macedonia" for themselves. Some Macedonian nationalists and communist-era Yugoslav propagandists have tried to associate the republic with ancient Macedon, making a number of historically dubious claims.

The territory of the Republic of Macedonia was not called as such until 1944 , when it was split off from Serbia and made into a separate republic. Thus, although it is certainly part of the historical region of Macedonia, there is no political continuity between ancient Macedon and the modern Republic of Macedonia.

Greece suspected that the Republic of Macedonia had territorial ambitions in the northern Greek Provinces Of Macedonia . This has been a Greek concern for decades; as far back as 1957, the Greek government expressed concern about reported Yugoslav ambitions to create an "independent" People's Republic of Macedonia with the Greek city of Thessaloniki as its capital. 'Greek Macedonia "not a problem"', ''The Times'' (London), August 5 1957

The naming issue has not yet been resolved, but it has effectively reached a stalemate. In 1993, the members of the United States , Russia , and the People's Republic Of China , and the former Yugoslavia n republics of Serbia And Montenegro , Croatia , Bosnia-Herzegovina and Slovenia . In addition, the Republic of Macedonia's two other neighbors, Bulgaria and Turkey , have also recognised the nation by its constitutional name. However, all UN member-states have agreed to accept any final agreement resulting from negotiations between the two countries.

The dispute continues to excite passions in both nations, but in practice the two countries deal pragmatically with each other. Economic relations and cooperation have resumed since 1995 to such an extent that Greece is now considered one of the republic's most important foreign economic partners and investors.^{{Link without Title}}

Within Greece, most Greeks reject any use of the word "Macedonia" to describe the Republic of Macedonia, instead calling it '' solution has not been adopted by non-Greeks and many inhabitants of the Republic regard it as insulting. Greek official sources sometimes use the term "Slavomacedonians" to refer to the Republic's inhabitants.

The United Nations set a target of September 13 , 2002 for reaching a solution to the issue. This date passed without any solution being found and it is unclear how the issue will be resolved, given the apparently irreconcilable positions of the two sides. The Republic of Macedonia says that it will not abandon the name "Macedonia", while Greece says that it will not accept any permanent name that includes "Macedonia".

The March 2004 application of the Republic of Macedonia for membership of the European Union may help to speed efforts to find a solution; in a meeting of 14 September 2004, the EU noted that the difference over the name of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia still persists and encouraged parties to find a mutually acceptable solution, but stated that it is not part of the conditions for EU accession.

In 2005 , Matthew Nimitz , UN Special Representative for the country, suggested using "Republika Makedonija-Skopje" for official purposes. Greece did not accept the proposal outright, but characterized it as "a basis for constructive negotiations". Prime Minister Vlado Buckovski rejected the proposal and counterproposed a "double formula" where the international community uses "Republic of Macedonia" and Greece uses "former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia". [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4425249.stm [http://www.balkan-info.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/features/2005/04/14/feature-02]

In October 2005 Matthew Nimitz made a new proposal. It proposes that the name “Republika Makedonija” should be used by the 106 countries that have recognized the country under that name. It proposes, also, that Greece should use the formula “Republika Makedonija – Skopje”, while the international institutions and organizations should use the name “Republika Makedonia” in Latin alphabet transcription. While the government of the Republic of Macedonia accepted the proposal as a good basis for solving the dispute, Greece rejected the proposal as unacceptable. {Link without Title}

Flag issue

Republic of Macedonia's first post-independence flag caused a major controversy when it was unveiled. The use of the Vergina Sun on the flag offended Greeks, as they regarded the symbol as being associated with King Philip II Of Macedon and by extension with his son, Alexander The Great . The Greek viewpoint was summed up in an FAQ circulated on the Internet in the late 1990s:

The Vergina Sun, the emblem of Philip's dynasty, symbolizes the birth of our nation. It was the first time (4th century BC) that the Greek mainland (city-states and kingdoms) with the same language, culture, and religion were united against the enemies of Asia in one league. At the same time the fractured Greek world grew conscious of its unity. And, in this sense, we have never been apart since then. The "Sun" was excavated in Greece in 1978, and it is sacred to us.

The symbol was removed from the flag under an agreement reached between the Republic of Macedonia and Greece in September 1995. The Republic agreed to meet a number of Greek demands for changes to its national symbols and constitution, while Greece agreed to establish diplomatic relations with the Republic and end its economic blockade.

Constitutional issue

The Republic of Macedonia's first post-independence constitution, adopted on November 17 , 1991 included a number of clauses that Greece interpreted as promoting secessionist sentiment among the Slav-speaking population of northern Greece, and making Irredentist claims on Greek territory. Article 49 of the constitution caused particular concern. It read:

(1) The Republic cares for the status and rights of those persons belonging to the Macedonian people in neighboring countries, as well as Macedonian expatriates, assists their cultural development and promotes links with them. In the exercise of this concern the Republic will not interfere in the sovereign rights of other states or in their internal affairs.

(2) The Republic cares for the cultural, economic and social rights of the citizens of the Republic abroad.

In the Greek view, this was effectively a license for the Republic to interfere in Greek internal affairs. The offending articles were removed under the 1995 agreement between the two sides.

Serbia and Montenegro

A February 2001 agreement with Serbia And Montenegro settled the alignment of the boundary between the two countries, mandating implementation within two years. However, ethnic Albanians on both sides of the border have expressed opposition to the agreement due to the imposition of tighter border controls and the transfer of some territory to the Macedonian side.

TRANSNATIONAL ISSUES

The country is a major transshipment point for Southwest Asia n Heroin and Hashish . It is also a minor transit point for South America n Cocaine destined for Europe .

Although most criminal activity is thought to be domestic and not a financial center, Money Laundering is a problem due to a mostly cash-based economy and weak enforcement (no arrests or prosecutions for money laundering to date).

REFERENCES

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Foreign Relations Of The Republic Of Macedonia