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Macedonia: Prime minister urges to approve name deal
Referendum is an opportunity to make a "historic decision".
31 July, 20:54
(ANSA- AP) SKOPJE, 31 JUL - Macedonia's prime minister is
urging his countrymen to vote in an upcoming referendum in favor
of a deal with neighboring Greece that changes his country's
name to "North Macedonia".
Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, speaking in the capital of Skopje on
Tuesday, said the Sept. 30 referendum is an opportunity for
people to make a "historic decision." The agreement ends a
decades-old dispute with Greece that had prevented Macedonia, a
former Yugoslav republic, from joining NATO and the EU.
Zaev urged Macedonians to "say 'Yes!' and to grab the
opportunities offered by the European Union. Let's say 'Yes!'
for guaranteed stability and security through NATO membership."
Greece has long argued that the name Macedonia implies
territorial claims over its own northern province of the same
name. (ANSA).
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