The preconditions are in place to find a solution to the long-standing dispute over the name of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos reportedly told Euronews on Wednesday.
“It is a problem that has plagued Greece and our neighbouring country for about 25 years. I think that in 2018, some preconditions have been created so that we can be optimistic that we will be able to find a mutually acceptable solution in the name issue, as the neighbouring country has retreated from some extreme positions it had adopted in the past,” he was quoted as saying.
“From the Greek side, there is the willingness to proceed to resolve the issue, as there is no reason not to remove as many problems as possible in a region that is generally destabilized,” he added.
“It is a problem that has plagued Greece and our neighbouring country for about 25 years. I think that in 2018, some preconditions have been created so that we can be optimistic that we will be able to find a mutually acceptable solution in the name issue, as the neighbouring country has retreated from some extreme positions it had adopted in the past,” he was quoted as saying.
“From the Greek side, there is the willingness to proceed to resolve the issue, as there is no reason not to remove as many problems as possible in a region that is generally destabilized,” he added.