Greek FM confident name deal with Macedonia to be ratified

Greece’s foreign minister has said he is confident a preliminary deal to rename neighboring Macedonia will be fully ratified despite opposition in both countries. Nikos Kotzias says he hopes and believes Macedonians will back the name change to “North Macedonia” in a September 30 referendum, AP reports. If implemented, the agreement will end a decades-old bilateral dispute and ease Macedonia’s accession to NATO and the European Union. Kotzias said Thursday that once Macedonia’s parliament amends the constitution to accommodate the change, Greek lawmakers will also ratify the deal – even though most opposition parties reject it.