EPP fumes at Macedonian member, says it tops list of upcoming ‘house cleaning’

North Macedonia’s election-winning nationalist VMRO-DPMNE party has sparked reactions across Europe and from its own EU family, the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), after President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova refused to use the country’s official name during her inauguration on Sunday (12 May).

Siljanovska, a member of VMRO-DPMNE, called the country “Macedonia” instead of North Macedonia, the official constitutional name after the 2018 name-change deal with Greece, otherwise known as the Prespa Agreement.

On Monday, Siljanovska-Davkova’s office further stated that “in her public appearances, the president of Macedonia has the right to use the name Macedonia as an act of individual right to self-determination.

The Greek ambassador to Skopje left the swearing-in ceremony, and the Foreign Ministry said Greece categorically declares that further progress in its bilateral relations with North Macedonia and its European journey depends on the full implementation of the Prespa Agreement and, above all, on the use of the constitutional name.”

The refusal to use the agreed country name also upset the EPP, whose Secretary General, Thanasis Bakolas, a Greek, did not congratulate the party or the president for their triumph in a double parliamentary-presidential election.

“Their intentions were fully revealed with this incident,” an EPP source told Euractiv, adding that after the EU elections in June, a general “house cleaning” will take place regarding some parties’ membership and that the VMRO-DPMNE party “tops the list”.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, also from the EPP, warned Skopje that to continue on its EU path it is “paramount” that it fully respects binding agreements, including the Prespa Agreement.

EU Council chief Charles Michel also described the incident as “disappointing”.

An EU source familiar with the matter commented: “It is bad to start in office by rejecting one of the key preconditions for the country to move forward [on the accession process].”

Berlin’s warning

The issue was also raised in Germany, where the Federal Foreign Office spokesperson said the situation was clear: “There is an agreement under international law, the so-called Prespa Agreement with Greece, and North Macedonia is also bound by it under international law”.

Asked by Euractiv Germany if there could be consequences after the initial signals from Skopje, the spokesperson replied:

“It is quite clear that the Western Balkans belong in the EU and that we, as the German government, are very active in this area because we cannot tolerate grey areas in Europe, and if we leave these grey areas, they will be occupied by others. In this respect, we are also committed to the Western Balkans policy.”

Greeks up in arms

Athens immediately called on Skopje to stick to the Prespa Agreement.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, whose ruling New Democracy party (also EPP) strongly opposed the Prespa Agreement when it was in opposition but then accepted it, said Siljanovska’s statement was “illegal”.

“[She] violated the Prespa Agreement as well as the Constitution of her own country,” he said.

Greek lawmaker Makis Voridis explained that if the context of North Macedonia is questioned, “tomorrow morning, you have a country that has no name because all the other countries have recognised it with the name it has. They shoot themselves in the foot with what they do.”

However, the main opposition, the Syriza party, which had negotiated and signed the Prespa Agreement under then prime minister Alexis Tsipras, accused Mitsotakis of hypocrisy, considering his initial opposition to the name change.

In an attempt to pressure Mitsotakis, Syriza will submit a proposal to vote in parliament on the three pending protocols of cooperation that are part of the Prespa Agreement, which the ruling party has avoided due to opposition by some hardliners in its ranks.

Sofia: You will not enter the EU this way

Bulgaria, which has held up North Macedonia’s EU path due to arguments over common history, demanding that it includes the Bulgarian minority in the constitution, also waded in.

President Rumen Radev said Bulgaria does not accept statements and behaviour that contradict “both the 2017 Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighbourhood and Cooperation and other international treaties that the Republic of North Macedonia has signed”.

Albanian PM: Balkan habits die hard

Asked for a reaction to the stance that has left Athens fuming, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama used a phrase similar to one he has used to describe spats with Greece in the past.

“Old habits die hard, and old Balkan habits even harder,” he said in exclusive comments to Euractiv.

“Albania is just the exception. We will continue to fight for more Europe and less Balkan in our neighbourhood’s life. This means contemplating the common past with the eyes of the future and not blurring the common future with the eyes of the past.”

*Alexandra Brzozowski contributed to this article 

[Edited by Rajnish Singh/Zoran Radosavljevic]

Read more with Euractiv