LOCAL PRESS

Brnabic, Leancă: Friendly relations between Serbia and Moldova (Tanjug/RTS)

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic spoke today with Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration of the Republic of Moldova Iurie Leancă about the improvement of the overall bilateral relations of the two countries and Serbia’s experiences in the process of European integration. The two officials assessed that relations between the two countries are friendly and that there is room for improvement of political dialogue and cooperation, primarily in the field of the economy. Leancă praised the reforms that Serbia has pursued steadfastly and stressed that the exchange of experiences, in this domain, as well as the process of Serbia’s EU accession would be of exceptional significance for his country. The Deputy Prime Minister of Moldova confirmed the support of his country to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia, the commitment to respecting international law and finding a solution for Kosovo and Metohija through a dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina. He stressed that Moldova will continue to support Serbia in the future. The EU perspective is of particular importance to our country, but the speed of implementation of reforms and their effect on the standard of living of citizens is more important to us than the speed of opening negotiation chapters, Brnabic underlined. Leancă conveyed to Prime Minister Brnabic the invitation by Moldovan Prime Minister Pavel Filip to visit that country.

Vucic: Thank you for not recognizing Kosovo (Tanjug/B92)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met in Belgrade on Tuesday with Deputy Prime Minister of Moldova in charge of European Integration Iurie Leancă. Vucic emphasized that it was necessary to encourage improvement of political dialogue and economic cooperation between the two countries, since bilateral relations are friendly, but not sufficiently developed. Vucic also expressed his gratitude for the principled position of Moldova not to recognize the unilaterally declared independence of Kosovo, and for the country’s support on this issue in regional and international organizations. He also emphasized that Serbia supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Moldova, advocating the principle of respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of internationally recognized states. Vucic informed his interlocutor about the deadlock in the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, triggered by taxes on products from Serbia proper, which is contrary to the CEFTA agreement, signed also by Moldova. Vucic presented to the Moldovan official the foreign policy of Serbia, which implies the intention of our country to become a EU member, but also to continue to promote its traditional friendship and cooperation with Russia, as well as development of relations with other countries, the president’s press service said in a press release. According to this, the interlocutors agreed that the level of economic cooperation does not correspond to the possibilities and that the strengthening of trade, investment and any other economic cooperation is a common interest.

They invited businesspeople of the two countries to establish new modalities of cooperation within the CEFTA agreement, as well as to participate in economic events and fairs organized in Serbia and Moldova. It was also stated during the meeting on Tuesday that it was necessary to accelerate improvement of the contractual and legal basis of bilateral cooperation, in particular the signing of the Agreement on Mutual Promotion and Protection of Investments. Leancă expressed gratitude to Serbia for the policy of respecting Moldova’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. He expressed the interest of his country, as a participant in the European Union’s “Eastern Partnership” program, whose foreign policy priority is EU membership, to use Serbian experiences in the European integration process, said the president’s press service.

Djuric on Haradinaj’s statement: This is not 1999 (TV Pink/Tanjug)

The Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric has stated on the occasion of Ramush Haradinaj’s statement – that the issue of correction of Kosovo borders suits only the Russian President and that anyone who opens the border issue will be considered an enemy of the Albanian nation – that this is not 1999. “I would like the Albanians to be led by more responsible and reasonable people, it seems that Albanian representatives do not lack irresponsibility…This is not the year 1999 and more and more people in the world know the truth, about what kind of creation is the so-called Kosovo and what is their origin of dealing with politics,” Djuric told TV Pink. Still, he says, we cannot choose who is representing the Albanians, but we need to pay attention that our interests are protected and for Serbia to continue to strengthen economically and politically. Djuric says that only several years ago the issue of Kosovo and Metohija was permanently closed for the most part of the international community. He says that, only in the past several years, we have managed to turn around the negative trend of recognitions and that now we have a double digit number of withdrawals of Kosovo recognitions. Speaking about the protest of the opposition in Gracanica, he says that it experienced a debacle and that the irresponsible opposition is trying to use the difficult life of our fellow-nationals in Kosovo.

Jeremic: SzS against delineation and Kosovo’s UN membership (Beta)

The Chiarman of the Alliance for Serbia (SzS) Vuk Jeremic warned that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic would try to break up the ranks of the SzS, but said he would not succeed, Beta reported. Jeremic said Vucic would for sure try to make a secret deal with some opposition leaders and warned that should not happen. “We must not betray the people who persistently protest across the country; we must not gamble with their confidence and energy. Any separate talks with the dictator are inadmissible. I trust my colleagues, and I’m convinced that the regime would not manage to split us,” Jeremic said in a live interview broadcast on the SzS Facebook page late on Monday. Jeremic said he heard from “relatively credible sources” that Vucic had already tried to contact some opposition leaders, but since he could not be sure, he chose not to trust the information. “It is of utmost importance for us to show solidarity and that no one communicates with Vucic, not even with the best intent,” Jeremic added. He reiterated the opposition stand it would boycott elections under the current conditions. “I would like Vucic to miscalculate and call early vote because that would homogenize the real opposition and make the crisis the regime is facing even more obvious. That’s why I think he won’t do that,” Jeremic said. Asked about the SzS opinion on how to solve the Kosovo issue, Jeremic said the Alliance was “categorically against ‘delineation’ with the Albanians and Kosovo’s UN membership what both Vucic and Hashim Thaci advocate.” He added a solution should be found through dialogue but that the Constitution must be honored.

SNS to discuss elections next week (Politika)

The decision on whether parliamentary elections will be held in the spring will be made most probably next week, when the Main Board of the ruling SNS has been announced, Politika writes. Citizens will most certainly head for elections if Washington and Brussels do not convince Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj to abolish 100 percent taxes, which is the condition for resuming the Belgrade-Pristina Brussels dialogue.

REGIONAL PRESS

Sarajevo opens European Youth Winter Olympic Festival; Propaganda as the only truth (N1/Srna)

To the tune of Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, a musical performance that introduced Bosnia’s national and cultural heritage and fireworks, Sarajevo opened on Sunday evening the 2019 European Youth Olympic Winter Festival (EYOF). After participants from 46 countries marched into the stadium in alphabetical order, the program continued with a musical spectacle. Mayor of Sarajevo, Abdulah Skaka, and mayor of East Sarajevo welcomed the participants and the guests.

The games were officially opened by the Chairman of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Presidency Milorad Dodik. “Under the flags of their countries, youth from all around the world is fighting in a knightly and honorable way, defending the honors of sport and their nations and of all people,” he said. Dodik thanked the youth “which enabled the OIympic flame to return here.” “We have the Flame of Peace again, which was lit here, in the city where several decades ago the Olympic Games took place” he said. “We all won. This organization, the opening of this event is a victory for all of us and for those who did not believe in it,” he added. A speech of the B&H Presidency Chair Milorad Dodik at the opening ceremony of the winter has caused an expected and an unexpected reaction – boos from the consumers of the Bosniak media and a glaring absence of triumph in those media. The level of demonization of Dodik in the Sarajevo political sphere and then in the society too has long crossed the red line of tolerance so the public display of intolerance was expected, but sweeping the whole thing under the rug and quick oblivion is a whole new thing. One day after the EYOF 2019 opening ceremony, the focus of the Sarajevo media shifted on the memory of the Winter Olympics 1984 and a theory of B&H unity and other propaganda topics. That is why the public display of intolerance (a mild form of hatred) against a legitimate representative of one of the three constituent peoples does not fit in the whole story at all. The news about an attempt at humiliating the Russian Ambassador Petr Ivantsov, who was trying to get into the stadium through several entrances but was prevented by the security, echoed widely. The unprecedented scandal which ended with the Ambassador asking (according to the Sarajevo media): “Do I have to call Dodik to enter the stadium normally?” was immediately removed from the list of information along with a propaganda comment that the “Sarajevo guys” helped the ambassador. When you add to the mix the fact that yet another runaway Mujahideen is searched for around the ravines of the “multi-ethnic” Federation of B&H, as well as the total crisis and chaos between the Bosniaks and Croats concerning the formation of government, it is clear that the stadium embarrassment was not desired by those who had caused it – the Sarajevo politicians. Amid some kind of media attention, the world has for B&H, usually a place of bad news, the latest demonization of imaginary opponents as a permanent weapon of Sarajevo politicians turns on its creators.

In an enthusiastic creation of a false social idyll and seeking a backing in what was dismantled 25 years ago (in which act the Sarajevo politics played a major role), any manifestation of long-lasting propaganda strategy, like intolerance of others, is not desirable because it is true.

But, the truth and its horrible consequences on what is called the “B&H society” (if that’s what you can call a long-divided country) have long been banished from the Bosniak politics, closed up in national ideas which died with the disintegration of Yugoslavia. The pathetic and insincere currying favors with foreign reporters who finally had a look at the “forgotten planet” called Sarajevo in articles reading that Dodik was “booed as well as applauded” at the stadium, is going to be replaced by everyday doses of “hating on” just a day after the student competition ends.

Short-term and insincere media crawling out of its own political skin will end with going back to the safe comfort of a routine anti-Serb hysteria.  As soon as the sports flame goes out, the flame of political games and orchestrated hatred will be lit. And that is something that reminds one of the Winter Olympics 1984. Then, a few years after the athletes left, the state left too.

Majkic: Very bad message sent to world (Srna)

Serb delegate in the B&H House of Peoples Dusanka Majkic told Srna the booing of B&H Presidency Chair Milorad Dodik and every mention of Republika Srpska (RS) during the opening ceremony of the European Youth Olympic Festival /EYOF 2019/ on Sunday sent a very bad message to the world. “Unfortunately, we can only make a conclusion that the Federation Sarajevo failed to use a single chance it had at the EYOF opening ceremony to show it was a city worthy of such an event,” said Majkic.  In her opinion, instead of Dodik’s words pronounced at the Stadium Asim Ferhatovic Hase representing a victory of all and the Olympic flame contributing to the maintenance of peace in B&H, young athletes from Europe will carry the memory of B&H as a country without enough self-respect. Majkic notes that the country which is obviously unable to present itself at a gathering of young athletes in the best possible manner does not deserve to host it either. “All those boos are also a message to RS, despite its good intentions of sending a message about a B&H better than what it actually is, the other and different will never be accepted by the Sarajevo ‘casbah’,” said Majkic.  RS Prime Minister Radovan Viskovic has said that there is no need to comment on the behavior of those who booed the Chairman of the B&H Presidency, Milorad Dodik, because, he says, where the reasons stops, B&H starts. Viskovic has said that such a gaffe speaks for its self and there is no need to comment on it. “I thought that EYOF was a good opportunity for B&H to show that joint projects can be implemented and that all our potentials can be affirmed, but unfortunately, it seems that we are self-sufficient,” Viskovic has said. At the EYOF 2019 opening ceremony, Sarajevo once again showed it is disdainful and unable to accept an extended hand and realize there are times when it should not show its bad side, says President of RS Zeljka Cvijanovic.

Commenting on an incident where Dodik was booed while giving a speech, Cvijanovic pointed out that Dodik did his job the way serious statesmen did, unfazed by what was going on around him. “That is the reason the people from RS resist the disregarding Sarajevo because the city does not accept anyone different or other,” Cvijanovic told the press on Monday. She is pleased that such an event was organized where both the local and entity agencies were mobilized to cooperate with the State level. “That is a good formula for mobilizing all structures in order to organize such a major event, despite all the differences and everything that divides us in B&H,” noted Cvijanovic.

Council of Ministers’ Chairman calls for adoption of B&H’s program for NATO (N1)

Peace, stability, socio-economic development and the rule of law are the goals that all B&H officials and political parties are tasked with, head of B&H’s government Denis Zvizdic said on Monday, adding that these goals can be achieved only if essential reforms on the road to European and NATO integration are implemented. Zvizdic’s statement came amid the political discussion on whether B&H Council of Ministers will adopt the country’s first Annual National Program (ANP), which means a step forward on B&H road to the alliance. Adoption of this document does not mean B&H’s full membership in NATO and those saying it are misinforming the public, Zvizdic warned. “This misinformation is aimed to strengthen the policies which object the NATO integration and to push to the background the discussion on benefits that Bosnia and Herzegovina would get if the ANP is adopted, if the MAP (Membership Action Plan) is activated and if further progress towards the NATO integration is made,” he said. Zvizdic recalled of the NATO officials’ statements, quoting them as saying that “the Annual National Program is yet another step in providing assistance to B&H in improving the situation in many sectors, involving more efficient and economical defense and security capabilities, improving response to natural disasters, increasing interoperability with other NATO partners and raising contribution to overall regional stability.” The outgoing Council of Ministers’ Chairman urged “pro-European” policies and those “advocating cooperation, compromise and joint work for the common good” to pass a “courageous” decision and vote for the first ANP, in order to create conditions for a stable and prosperous future of the new generations. As a result of RS’ objection to give its consent for the ANP, the post-election appointments in Bosnia’s state-level government is on hold. “There’s a chance for the appointment. As soon as the ANP for the NATO is adopted, the Chairman of B&H’s Council of Ministers (CoM) can be appointed,” Croat Zeljko Komsic said last month. RS President promptly reacted, warning Komsic that by doing that he might bloc the country’s EU integration, which is among the rare foreign goals that all sides in the countries support. Komsic should not block B&H’s EU accession process with his condition for B&H’s NATO accession Zeljka Cvijanovic said.

Cooperation between SNSD, Freedom Party and Northern League agreed (Srna)

Representatives of the SNSD, the Austrian Freedom Party and the Italian Northern League agreed in Vienna to intensify cooperation, particularly as part of mutual support regarding the EU enlargement, migrant crisis and protection of European values, as well as in the economic and social sphere. The meeting was attended by Milorad Dodik, the president of the SNSD president, Maximilian Kraus, a member of the Vienna City Parliament from the Freedom Party, Johann Gudennus, the Head of the Freedom Party Caucus in the Austrian Federal Parliament, Dante Cattaneo, the Mayor of the Italian City of Ceriano Laghetto and Andrea Monti, the deputy president of the Northern League and a member of the Lombardy Provincial Parliament.

A meeting between SNSD president Milorad Dodik and the president of the Freedom Party, Heinz Christian Strache, was also held, sources from the SNSD told Srna.

Croatian politicians condemn remarks made by President of European Parliament (HRT)

During a speech in Basovizza, part of the municipality of Trieste, the President of European Parliament Antonio Tajani, ended his address with: Long live Trieste! Long live Italian Istria! Long live Italian Dalmatia! Long live our refugees and the values of our homeland! The event marked the departure of Italian optants from Croatian and Slovenia territories after the fall of fascist Italy. Optants were Italian nationals who chose to leave the Croatian territories of Istra and Dalmatia when the Italian occupation ended. Italy however, maintained control over the Slovene town of Trieste and its surrounding areas. Reactions to the outrageous comments were fast and furious, coming from Slovenian Prime Minister Marjan Sarec and Croatian members of European Parliament. MEP Dubravka Suica (HDZ), called the statements unacceptable. “I can understand people commemorating those who came before them, but to speak of the Istrian peninsula and Dalmatia as being Italian territories, I think this is a relic of times long past.”

She did, however, try to argue that Tajani’s comments should be taken in the context of the ongoing election campaign in Italy. “We should, however, take into account that Tajani is in the middle of an election campaign, in which his Forza Italia is massively losing votes to the right-wing Lega Nord Party, so I would look at his statement in that context. I think it was a statement made for the Italian public. I also know that Tajani has strong ties with the Italian minority in Croatia, and that minority has its representative in Croatian Parliament, and that he has contributed constructively to Croatia’s democracy, so, even though his comments are out of line, they should be taken in the context of the election campaign and the loss of support by his party,” Suica said. Another Croatian MEP, Biljana Borzan (SDP), was less forgiving. “I strongly condemn Mr. Tajani’s statements, I think they are absolutely inappropriate, primarily because of the office he holds, and because when he was running for the post of President of the European Parliament, he campaigned on the idea of being a representative of all EU citizens. To make matters worse he has buckled under to pressure from the extreme right-wing in his country, and he is now repeating exactly what he stood against as the president of European Parliament. My colleague Tonino Picula and I are starting an initiative in which we will seek out the support of our fellow MEPs in demanding that Tajani apologize for his statements, and to show exactly what Croatia thinks about this kind of rhetoric.”

Prime Minister Plenkovic rung Tajani over his controversial statement (Hina)

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Monday he had rung European Parliament President Antonio Tajani over his controversial statement about “Italian Istria and Italian Dalmatia” and told him that Croatia was extremely displeased with it and wanted an explanation. Plenkovic condemned the statement in the strongest terms, saying it “has elements of territorial claims and revisionism” and that the government and his HDZ party were against it in the strongest terms. The HDZ is part of the European People’s Party like Forza Italia, the party in which Tajani is a key figure. “I spoke to Tajani. I told him we were extremely displeased with such a statement, which is inappropriate, and we requested an explanation,” Plenkovic said, adding that he expected Tajani to issue a statement on the matter. “The Croatian government and the HDZ will always strongly oppose any statements which could have either territorial or revisionist pretensions,” Plenkovic said, adding that he had not expected such a statement from Tajani, with “whom I’ve had a very good relationship in every possible cooperation situation. We’ve known each other very well for six years now and there’s never been even the smallest hint of such a position, nor could it have been guessed,” said Plenkovic. “I don’t want to justify him at all, it’s very important that you understand that. However, putting into context the event at which this happened, in Basovizza, with the heirs of the people who left Croatian territory as well as the defendants of those whose lives, unfortunately, ended in the foibe, he was addressing them. But this doesn’t exculpate him in any way from formulations which in Croatia, to all political stakeholders, I believe, especially the government, me personally and the HDZ, are absolutely unacceptable, and we made it very clear to him.” Plenkovic said Tajani’s statement about “Italian Istria” and “Italian Dalmatia” left no other interpretation other than one of revisionism, adding that he assumed Tajani would say in his explanation that he meant the people he was addressing, not the territory, and that he told him so. The leader of Croatia’s strongest opposition Social Democratic Party (SDP), Davor Bernardic, said on Monday that the idea that Istria and Dalmatia were Italian was “a basic idea of fascism” which had been fought against by Croatian antifascists in the Second World War. The Istrian Democratic Party (IDS) and the SDP’s Pula branch expressed regret that “the fate of this region is again being manipulated by people who do not live in Istria and Dalmatia.” “At a time that called for resistance to fascism as the common enemy, the people of Istria uncompromisingly joined the victorious side regardless of their Slovenian, Italian or Croatian background. What gives Mr. Tajani, and his ilk, the right to use historical revisionism, which is not in the spirit of the European acquis communautaire and our values, to reopen divisions in this region where antifascism and convivenza (co-existence) are the foundations of today’s society, the society of the 21st century,” the SDP said. “Unfortunately, statements like this are nothing but the consequence of an irresponsible policy, both in Europe and in Croatia, because they did not promptly respond to historical revisionism but are testing the limits of democracy and freedom of speech for the purpose of getting cheap votes,” it added.

The SDP said it was particularly worrying that messages like this came from a person who was supposed to promote European values, wondering: “In what direction is the European People’s Party group, of which the (ruling Croatian party) HDZ and Mr Tajani are members and which has a majority in the European Parliament, heading?” The head of Istria County, Valter Felgo, said: “I condemn in the strongest terms such unreasonable and insane statements. Tajani is the current President of the European Parliament and as such he must respect historical facts, state borders and achievements on which the European Union is founded. To make such a statement in his capacity as European Parliament President is dangerous and disgraceful.” Flego said that Istria would never allow such statements to upset the co-existence of different ethnic groups that has been built for decades. “We have put in a lot of effort so that Istria can become a bilingual and multicultural region. Such brazen provocations cannot jeopardize this,” Flego told Hina.

Tajani: No territorial claims on Croatia and Slovenia (Hina)

European Parliament President Antonio Tajani said at a plenary on Monday that in his statements in Basovizza, Italy on Sunday there were no territorial claims on Croatia and Slovenia and that he was sorry they were misinterpreted. “My statements do not mean territorial claims in any way. I was talking about Istrians and Dalmatians who speak Italian, whose many sons and grandsons were present at the commemoration. The Italian, Croatian and Slovenian peoples and states have strong ties and I’m sorry if the meaning of my words was misinterpreted. I didn’t intend to offend anyone. I wanted to send a message of peace to everyone so that what happened then doesn’t happen ever again,” Tajani said at the start of the plenary after Croatian MEPs Ivan Jakovcic and Ruza Tomasic asked for an explanation. Tajani said he was commemorating the victims on the Italian side as well as all the victims of that unfortunate period, Slovenians and Croats, and that he was talking in a historical context. Speaking of thousands of innocent victims, he underlined that it was not a matter of retaliation for the wrongs of fascism because, he said, among the Italian victims of unacceptable hatred, which was ideological, ethnic and social, there had been many who had nothing to do with the fascists and their persecutions. With my presence, I wanted to remember thousands of victims, notably Italians, but also Croats and Slovenians, Tajani said, adding that in his address at Basovizza he wanted to highlight the path of peace and reconciliation between the Italian, Croatian and Slovenian peoples as well as their contribution to the European project. By re-establishing the historical truth, it was possible to make a turnaround in the relations between Italy, Croatia and Slovenia, countries bound by a firm friendship today, Tajani said, adding that lasting peace between former enemies was the best example of how the EU was a success story.

Zaev raises NATO flag; President Ivanov’s office received an invitation for the NATO ceremony only after it was over (Republika)

Prime Minister Zoran Zaev stated that Macedonia is moving fast toward NATO and the EU at a NATO flag raising ceremony in front of the Government building. “We raise the NATO flag, which determines our destiny, along with the EU flag. It is not just symbolism, it is reality, a new page in our history,” Zaev told the small group of attendees. Few citizens came to the event, which was attended by politicians from the government and several past Prime Ministers like Ljubco Georgievski and Vlado Buckovski. “We waited for decades to be out of the Balkan side roads and to be back on the main highway to Europe. We are now direct participants in the most important period since our independence, and we choose our future and the speed with which we meet it” Zaev added, referring to Macedonia as “our country” and “North Macedonia”. The event was held in front of the government building, from which the letters “Government of the Republic of Macedonia” were removed on Zaev’s orders, likely to be replaced with “North Macedonia”. President Gjorge Ivanov was not present. His office informed that he was not invited to the ceremony. Dispute arose between President Gjorge Ivanov and the government, over whether the President was invited to the NATO flag raising ceremony on Tuesday. The President’s office informed that the government did not invite him and this is the reason why he was not there during the ceremony. Government spokesman Mile Bosnjakovski insists that an invitation was sent by email and courier in time, but Ivanov’s Office responds that it was sent only after the ceremony was over. There was no chair left available for the President, indicating that he was not being expected. Zoran Zaev mentioned all former presidents by name, but left Ivanov out of his speech. Former President Branko Crvenkovski also did not attend the event, but there was an empty chair left for him. Opposition leader Hristijan Mickoski did not attend, and neither did DUI leader Ali Ahmeti. The rest of the attendees included current ministers and the diplomatic corps.

Albanian Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee supports Macedonia’s NATO Accession Protocol (ADN)

The Foreign Policy Committee of the Albanian parliament on Tuesday unanimously approved the protocol for Macedonia’s accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization NATO.

“In a broad consensual atmosphere, members of the ruling majority and the opposition green-lighted the accession of a neighboring and friendly Republic of North Macedonia to NATO”.

On Monday, the Albanian Parliamentary Legislative Committee unanimously voted in favor of the Macedonia’s NATO Accession Protocol. The Albanian parliament, at its session scheduled for 14 February, is to ratify the NATO Accession Protocol for Macedonia. Macedonian parliament speaker Talat Xhaferi is also to attend the session.

DP seeks pre-electoral agreement (ADN)

The Democratic Party is reportedly aiming to reach a pre-electoral agreement with the allies, before the 16 February protest. According to a draft agreement published by the local media, opposition allies have received a cooperation platform where the Democratic Party, as the biggest opposition party, is charged with implementing individual election agreements with all the signatories of the cooperation platform. “We declare that we have decided to join a united opposition coalition at the upcoming elections. The only way to guarantee free and fair elections is the formation of a transitional government with a special mandate for the preparation of free and fair elections in Albania; the realization of the Electoral Reform and the pursuit of its implementation, with a particular focus on the separation of politics from crime, the fight against the massive phenomenon of vote buying, the criminal intimidation of the voters; as well as eliminating the inequality between the political parties participating in the elections,” reads the statement.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA SOURCES

Gains and Losses for Greece After the Birth of North Macedonia (Greek Reporter, by Philip Chrysopoulos, 12 February 2019)

As of Monday, February 10, the little Balkan country north of Greece is officially named North Macedonia and has gained membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. For the majority of Greek people, the Prespa agreement, which sealed the change of the name of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to North Macedonia, was a bad deal, a sell-out. Some even went to the extreme of calling Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras a “traitor.” Since June 17, the day the Prespa Agreement was signed, the Greek government began a campaign to tell its people that the deal would be beneficial for Greece and would resolve a problem that irritated both countries for over a quarter of a century. The Greek foreign ministry issued a pamphlet explaining all the benefits the deal entails. The list of benefits is debatable, however. Greece’s neighbors, and especially North Macedonia’s Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov, have always failed to put the “North” in Macedonia in public statements at home and abroad ever since the deal was signed. Considering that the new change should apply erga omnes – for all purposes, both in the country’s interior and internationally – officials at Skopje have not complied as of yet. Greek Alternate Foreign Minister Giorgos Katrougalos will try valiantly to ensure that this practice will stop after the country’s accession to NATO.

Name change benefits for Greece, according to the Greek government

According to the prime minister and the Greek cabinet, the most important advantage Greece gained from the agreement is that the United Nations and the international community – about 130 countries – must begin calling the country “North Macedonia” instead of just “Macedonia”.

Out of the nine benefits the foreign ministry lists, the above – the first on the list – is the only acceptable one. Nevertheless, any use of the word “Macedonia” by their Balkan neighbors still leaves the majority of Greeks feeling dissatisfied and even betrayed. The rest of the arguments presented in favor of the name change and the supposed benefits for Greece are weak, arbitrary and easily deconstructed. The supposed second benefit listed by the Greek government says that by enhancing the Republic of North Macedonia’s European prospects, the danger of third powers threatening Greece’s northern border is eliminated. But the European Union could have taken the country into its fold under a different name. Greece did not have to back down on the name. At the same time, if North Macedonia was so eager to join the EU and NATO, they could be the ones to back down and accept Greece’s position to not use the word Macedonia at all. The same applies to the EU, which campaigned in favor of the Prespa deal knowing that the majority of Greek people are very unhappy about it, some opposing it vehemently. The third benefit, according to the foreign ministry, is that the Prespa Agreement frees up valuable diplomatic capital which could be used to deal with other nationalistic challenges and threats which Greece faces. This is a very weak argument. With the name issue, Greece had veto power — and gave it up. Overall, Greek diplomacy appeared very soft and conciliatory. The prime minister and (then) foreign minister Nikos Kotzias agreed to give up a great deal, getting next to nothing in return. So the nationalistic threats and challenges previously mentioned could even worsen from now on, now that Greece appears weak and lenient on the diplomatic table. As for the other powers which challenge Greece’s borders it is crucial to mention that the foreign minister of North Macedonia went to Ankara and “declared his allegiance” during his Turkish visit right after the Prespa Agreement was passed in Skopje. At the same time, Albania has begun – quietly but steadily – to raise irredentist issues such as claims on the North Epirus borders and Greece usurping Cham lands after World War II. The claims are groundless; nevertheless, they are an indication that Greek diplomacy appears weak at the moment. The fourth argument in favor of the deal is that the Macedonia and Thrace regions are upgraded and northern Greece becomes a strong economic hub in the Balkans since new trade deals can be signed and Greek companies can export to its northern neighbor. Thessaloniki – and northern Greece overall – is already a powerful economic hub in the Balkans. Greeks already invest and have businesses in Skopje. Furthermore, North Macedonia is a rather poor nation, and it is extremely optimistic to believe that the tiny country with the new name will boost the Greek economy in any way. The fifth benefit of the Prespa Agreement, according to the Greek government, is that North Macedonia will have no claims whatsoever in regards to ancient Macedonia’s cultural heritage and history. In particular, its citizens must recognize that the people of the new country are not descendants of Alexander the Great. Constitutional changes in North Macedonia will ensure that historical fact by enshrining it into law. This, indeed, is a good thing. Provided of course that no future government of North Macedonia will reverse the constitutional amendments agreed to with Greece. In number six there is the argument that the Balkan country will change the names of all state and public organizations, agencies and institutions. This benefit is also sometimes mentioned as the most important benefit, since the name change is erga omnes. In their seventh point, the Greek government argues that the constitutional changes agreed to with Skopje will eliminate all the Balkan country’s revisionist and irredentist claims. This is debatable, because with the acceptance of the “Macedonian language” and “Macedonian identity”, people who come from Northern Macedonia and currently live in Greece, can easily claim that they form a “Macedonian minority” in Greece. Already there is a non-governmental organization established in Macedonia which teaches the supposed “Macedonian language” to North Macedonia natives living in Greece. The eighth benefit, the Greek foreign ministry says, is that a bilateral scientific and academic committee will examine North Macedonia schoolbooks to ensure that any irredentist references are eliminated. Again, even if this committee agrees to remove all such references, who is to guarantee that the chapters in question will be removed from the books. And if so, who can guarantee that they will not appear again in the future? Two generations of North Macedonian residents have grown up being taught that they are descendants of Alexander the Great. How can that be removed from the national consciousness? Finally, the foreign ministry says that it is beneficial for Greece that North Macedonia will never claim rights of North Macedonian nationals living already in Greece, therefore the new country will never be able to interfere with Greek internal affairs. This is a variation of benefit number seven and it is part of the constitutional changes required by the deal. Previously, the neighboring country’s constitution stated clearly that the country will support “all Macedonian people living in neighboring countries”.

The losses of the Prespa Agreement

In accepting the Prespa Agreement, the Greek government acknowledged two things that could have – and should have – been avoided: That there is or was such a thing as the “Macedonian language” and “Macedonian nationality”, or citizenship. Both concepts enhance the neighboring country’s nationalism and possible future irredentism. First of all, why did Tsipras and Kotzias acknowledge  a language which does not exist? The so-called Macedonian language is a Bulgarian dialect and belongs to the Slavic language group. Why did they concede? Second, Greek officials agreed to the concept that there was a “Macedonian nationality”. Macedonia was only a region of Yugoslavia, much like Macedonia is a region of Greece. It  never was a nation. Therefore, a “Macedonian nationality” is a rather arbitrary definition. After all, the country is inhabited by Slavs, Albanians and Bulgarians, so “Macedonian citizenship” is not something even all of the country’s citizens identify with. It is true that the small Balkan country is searching for an identity. With a population of two million people having mixed roots, they have been trying to forge a national identity since Yugoslavia split up. In both cases, Greece agreed to help the small country gain an identity. And received absolutely nothing in return, while incurring major losses at the same time. A third major loss was the trademark issue. North Macedonia has been branding products as “Macedonian” for years now. Unfortunately, the Prespa agreement does not clarify whether the northern country’s products will be re-branded as “North Macedonian” from now on. Only days ago there was a “Macedonian Cuisine” stand at a Berlin hotel and restaurant fair where moussaka was presented as a traditional “Macedonian dish”. Since there is no clause in the Prespa Agreement which will ensure that the Balkan state will amend the origin of place-of-origin products to “North Macedonian,” Greek Macedonian products will face serious problems in international markets. Overall, the Prespa Agreement will generate many more serious problems in Greece in the future than the minor ones which existed before the deal. As a NATO member, North Macedonia will be considered an equal to Greece.

No one can foresee whether future governments will comply with all the prerequisites of the name change deal. And if that happens, Greece will not have any rights whatsoever to veto acts passed by North Macedonia which are against the interests of the nation of Greece.

After the Prespes accord: Turkey’s presence in FYROM (ekathimerini.com, by Iraklis Gerogiokas, 11 February 2019)

The Prespes agreement has – one way or another – successfully been ratified by the parliaments in both Skopje and Athens. The general view in the Western world is that the end of the long-term dispute will bring stability to the area as well as establishing a bond between the NATO countries and “North Macedonia,” eliminating the risk of entente with Russia, which now has eyes only for Serbia in the Balkans. The subject of this article will not be the positive and negative repercussions of the agreement on Greece, although they will definitely be giving us food for thought for years to come. In the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia today there are an estimated half a million Muslims, which is about one-third of the total population. There are 600 mosques in operation, while approximately 300,000 people attend Friday prayers. The religiosity of the population makes it more amenable to the politics of Turkey’s ruling AKP party, since religion is its driving force toward recruiting the Muslim world to a common cause: making Turkey a peripheral power. Indeed, as the first president of FYROM visited Turkish President Turgut Ozal in the wake of the birth of the republic, in another historic moment for the struggling state, Foreign Affairs Minister Nikola Dimitrov took the first plane to Ankara. The flagship organization among the plethora that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has set up using soft power politics and has played an important part in Turkish foreign policy is the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), with a presence in more than 150 countries. TIKA set up its Skopje office in 1997, completing 600 projects over the next 20 years.

The essence of public diplomacy lies in playing a role in ordinary people’s lives, and this is what the organization tries to achieve. I happened to be in Centar Zupa, a town in the west of the country near the Albanian border. It is a place whose people are more than grateful to TIKA. “Without Turkey, we would be impoverished,” the mayor says. TIKA has been running a beekeeping project in the town for 12 years, training and equipping the locals. Six hundred beehives were distributed to 60 families just last week. TIKA was instrumental in providing humanitarian aid during the floods two years ago, as well as equipping and renovating the maternity ward of the Mother Theresa Hospital in Skopje. TIKA has been setting up, renovating and providing financial backing for schools, museums and mosques. It has established the now-thriving International Balkan University in FYROM’s capital. More culturally oriented is the Yunus Emre Institute, named after the famous Turkish poet. It is housed in a lavish building in central Skopje. Turkish language lessons are offered, making Turkish more popular than English among military personnel. Publications and summer schools in Turkey are quite appealing to the general public too. Turkish writers are invited quite often, promoting Turkish literature. Anadolu Agency is present in the country as well as TRT World, which broadcasts programs in both Turkish and Slavic. The Turkish minority enjoys more media choices than the Albanian one, despite the enormous difference in size. Turkish TV serials, the cornerstone of Turkish soft power, with an annual turnover of $465 million and 500 million viewers, are extremely popular and many travel to Constantinople to see the buildings where the serials are shot. Similarly, Turks travel to Bitola to admire the military academy Kemal Ataturk attended. There are of course limitations to Turkish soft power and they exist mainly on account of the authoritarian regime Erdogan has imposed. It has been ranked 66th in the world as far as internet freedom is concerned and the number of political prisoners is estimated at 50,000 by Amnesty International. Some 110,000 are estimated to have lost their jobs on charges of being affiliated to the Fethullah Gulen movement, once a leading exporter of Turkish neo-Ottoman culture. Gulen and Erdogan parted ways in 2013. The love affair between the AKP government and the Gulen movement turned sour in late 2013, after Gulen criticized the government’s response to the Gezi Park protests and its policy of closing down Gulen’s private “prep schools.” Today Turkey calls the movement the “Gulenist Terror Organization,” or FETO. The Turkish government insists that Skopje does not do much to fight FETO institutions. The relationship is not a bed of roses and had it not been for the attitude of “my enemy’s enemy is my friend,” things would have turned out differently. The absence of Greek soft power in FYROM is phenomenal. Planning long term has never been one of Greek politics’ strong points. Now that the day after the Prespes agreement has arrived, we have to start thinking about it. This takes broadmindedness, strategy and patience. If we are to argue about Alexander the Great, why don’t we talk to them about Aristotle first?

Iraklis Gerogiokas is a member of New Democracy’s political committee.