PM Tsipras, Greek business leaders arrive in newly renamed N. Macedonia

Greece’s Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras landed in Skopje on Tuesday for a landmark visit to the newly renamed North Macedonia. The one-day trip comes a month after Tsipras and his Skopje counterpart Zoran Zaev finalized the deal that added “North” to Macedonia’s name to distinguish it from a bordering province in Greece. It is the first official visit by a Greek prime minister since the former Yugoslav republic declared independence in 1991. The name row roiled diplomatic ties for nearly three decades over ownership of the name Macedonia. Skopje agreed to the change in exchange for assurance that Athens would stop thwarting its efforts to join NATO and the EU. Tsipras is joined by 10 ministers and more than two dozen Greek business leaders who will attend a business forum, AFP reported. Zaev hopes there would be new Greek investments worth more than €500 million in North Macedonia.