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Macedonia name dispute: PMs watch as ministers sign 'historic' deal | Macedonia name dispute: PMs watch as ministers sign 'historic' deal |
(35 minutes later) | |
Greece and Macedonia have signed a deal that aims to settle a decades-long dispute over Macedonia's name. | |
Under the agreement, Greece's neighbour will be known as North Macedonia. | |
Greek PM Alexis Tsipras said it was "a brave, historic and necessary step for our peoples". | |
Heated rows over Macedonia's name have been going on since the break-up of the former Yugoslavia, of which it was a part, and have held up Macedonia's entry to Nato and the EU. | |
Greece has long argued that by using the name Macedonia, its neighbour was implying it had a claim on the northern Greek province also called Macedonia. | |
The two countries' leaders announced the deal on Tuesday and have pressed ahead despite protests. | |
Mr Tsipras and his Macedonian counterpart Zoran Zaev watched as their foreign ministers signed the deal on Lake Prespa on Greece's northern border on Sunday. | |
The agreement still needs to be approved by both parliaments and by a referendum in Macedonia. | |
Nationalists on both sides say it erodes their identity. | |
On Saturday Mr Tsipras survived a no-confidence vote over the deal amid accusations he made too many concessions. | |
Picturesque ceremony | |
By Guy De Launey, BBC Balkans Correspondent | |
It looked like the setting for a wedding. A white marquee erected on the banks of a picturesque lake. And indeed, one of the participants was agreeing to change its name. | |
After almost three decades of dispute, the northern neighbour of Greece should soon become North Macedonia. | |
An elderly man in the audience nodded and smiled. This was Matthew Nimetz - the UN mediator who has spent a quarter of a century trying to find a solution acceptable to both countries. | |
He called the prime and foreign ministers "four outstanding leaders" with "political courage, vision and diplomatic skills". | |
What happens now? | What happens now? |
There is still some way to go before the name change becomes official. | There is still some way to go before the name change becomes official. |
Macedonia's parliament first needs to back the deal. That would be followed by a referendum in September or October. | Macedonia's parliament first needs to back the deal. That would be followed by a referendum in September or October. |
If voters there support it, the government would have to change the constitution, which is a key Greek demand. | If voters there support it, the government would have to change the constitution, which is a key Greek demand. |
Things have been complicated further as Macedonia's President Gjorge Ivanov is refusing to sign the agreement. | Things have been complicated further as Macedonia's President Gjorge Ivanov is refusing to sign the agreement. |
He has the power to veto the deal - but not indefinitely. | He has the power to veto the deal - but not indefinitely. |
If he refuses to sign it, it will be sent back to parliament for a second vote. If it passes again, President Ivanov would then be obliged to approve the legislation. | If he refuses to sign it, it will be sent back to parliament for a second vote. If it passes again, President Ivanov would then be obliged to approve the legislation. |
The deal will finally have to be ratified by the Greek parliament, a process which may also not be straightforward. | The deal will finally have to be ratified by the Greek parliament, a process which may also not be straightforward. |