Hahn expects FYROM solution in two weeks, new round of talks tomorrow

In a surprise statement to the European Parliament, Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Commissioner intimated that there will be a FYROM naming solution in the next two weeks.

He said that the solution about which he expressed optimism will open the way to EU accession talks with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

He did not clarify whether this would be a comprehensive solution or an interim agreement on the name, but Athens has said that it will accept nothing less than a definitive settlement that resolves thorny issues such as Skopje’s irredentism and claims to a Macedonian ethnicity and language.

Hahn presented FYROM PM Zoran Zaev on 18 April with an EU report including an unconditional recommendation for setting a date to launch EU membership talks in Skopje.

Hahn said that everyone agrees that a settlement will benefit society, the country, and the broader Balkan region.

The Commissioner’s statements contradict recent press reports on an impasse in the talks, due to disagreements on Greece’s demand that Skopje amend its constitution to delete irredentist references, and due to what Skopje calls issues of “identity”, a reference to language and ethnicity.

Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias and FYROM Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov will be meeting tomorrow in Vienna with UN mediator Matthew Nimetz.