North Macedonia's President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova said that Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis did not follow the spirit of friendly relations with his veto threats against Skopje's European path and "reminded" him that he could go to the International Court of Justice if he believed the Prespa Agreement had been violated, reports BGNES.
"I do not comment on Mr Mitsotakis' words. The Prespa Agreement has mechanisms ranging from an instruction to an address to the UN Secretary General. There is also the possibility of initiating a procedure before the International Court of Justice, whose verdict Greece's neighbour did not respect," Siljanovska told journalists before the start of the panel discussion "The European Union as a challenge and The challenges of the European Union: Europe 74 years after the Schuman Declaration".
The Greek prime minister recently said that he expects the prime ministerial candidate and VMRO-DPMNE leader Hristijan Mickoski to state publicly, in a clear and categorical way, that he will respect the Prespa Agreement and that his country's name is North Macedonia. Mitsotakis stressed that North Macedonia's European path goes through Greece and could remain closed if the agreement is not respected.
"I can't stop him from doing that. The Prespa Agreement is part of the Negotiating Framework. I don't think this (Mitsotakis' messages) is in the spirit of developing friendly relations. Perhaps we should pay attention to cultural diplomacy. I think we should also try to behave differently with our neighbours in a friendly spirit. Let us be a little bit "Scandinavian", the Macedonian President further said.
Gordana commented on her meeting with Italian President Sergio Mattarella in Rome on 25 May, when she asked her counterpart for "guarantees for the path to the EU".
Today Siljanovska explained that her words "were not conveyed in the right way".
"When I spoke about guarantees with Mr Mattarella, I meant those who might reach for the veto. We have changed the Constitution several times and we are again facing another change. It is high time to know that what is happening on the Bulgarian side is a request that may leave room for a veto tied to the Copenhagen criteria, but not for issues of identity or history," she said.
"The EU is a unity of diversity and must accept the identity and integrity of all. But we are discriminated on many issues and on many criteria. It is high time to put an end to it. Macedonia is a small country, but I think it deserves to be respected like everyone else," the head of state added. | BGNES
Translated with DeepL.com (free version) said today that she could not stop Mitsotakis' statements, but they were not in the spirit of developing friendly relations. | BGNES
