Athens, 23 October 2007

 In answer to a question regarding FYROM’s intransigence on the name issue, Deputy Foreign Minister Mr. Yannis Valinakis stated in his interview today on Alpha Radio 98.9: “It is up to Skopje to prove that it is dedicated to the European idea instead of remaining attached to Balkan obsessions. Intransigence severely damages international relations.” Mr. Valinakis pointed out: “This zero-sum negotiating reasoning will bear no results, in my opinion, and it is important for Skopje to understand that the sooner they realise today’s world is based on a logic of reciprocity, the sooner they will have the position of an equal in this world”. Mr. Valinakis also made it clear that “NATO or European Union membership signifies becoming part of a code of conduct, a European political culture, and the more Skopje scorns the Alliance’s values and the value of solidarity, the further away it is from its objective.”

In answer to a question on Greece’s stance vis-a-vis the neighbouring country’s intransigence and the possibility of exercising a veto, Mr. Valinakis reiterated that: “Our country has not relinquished any of its rights, and does not intend to forgo any of its rights. We do not intend to give up on exercising our rights, and I would like to stress that in our capacity as a NATO and EU member state, we can judge whether a candidate country fulfils the criteria to become our partner and ally. We, therefore, enjoy all the rights of a NATO and EU member state, and we intend to exercise these rights.

We think that now is the time to make decisions. Mr. Nimetz must – and we are happy to see that he is responding – take action for a new round of negotiations. This year – up until the decision in principle as to whether NATO will enlarge or not, which is due to be made at next April’s summit meeting - is a crucial year for us. The sooner this problem is resolved pursuant to UN decisions, the better for the region’s stability; the better for NATO,” stressed Mr. Valinakis about Mr. Nimetz’s statement yesterday regarding the resumption of negotiations on FYROM’s name, making our country’s position clear once again. “There has to be a discernable international name. This is our position and we believe that Mr. Nimetz will have to move in this direction. A mutually acceptable solution means that Skopje will have to give up its intransigent position and absolute inertia of the past few years. This is the fundamental thing that Skopje has to do, if it indeed adopts Europe’s political culture.

Finally, in reference to the results of the recent Lisbon informal summit, Mr. Valinakis said:  “Europe is beginning to get back to its old self. It emerges from introversion in order to become a strong international player. It has realized that it can and must be something more than an economic giant that only dreams of things while asleep. Now is the time for an institutional and political awakening, so that the European dream can become a tangible reality, first and foremost, for Europe's citizens themselves. If I were to elaborate this thought, I would say that this awakening does not only concern the 27 member states, but also the countries in the Union’s waiting-room, the ones that are of particular interest to us given that they are in our neighbourhood. It is a time of awakening for them as well to confirm their respect for and tangible compliance with European prerequisites.”