ATHENS, May 19 (Xinhua) -- Greece seeks a long-lasting solution in the name dispute with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said on Saturday while briefing President Prokopis Pavlopoulos on the latest developments of UN-mediated talks.
"We are at a crucial juncture in negotiations with the neighboring country as we seek a mutually accepted solution. We want a long-lasting solution," Tsipras said, according to an e-mailed press statement issued by the Greek Presidency.
Athens will insist Macedonia adopting a compound name which will be used internationally and domestically. It also wants the country to review its constitution to remove clauses Greece views as expression of irredentist ambitions.
The row between Athens and Skopje started in 1991 when FYROM declared independence from Yugoslavia choosing the name Macedonia, which is also the name of a northern Greek province.
Greece is worried that the use of the same name by the neighboring state could lead to territorial claims.
In recent months, UN-mediated talks to resolve the issue have intensified. On Thursday after talks in Sofia on the sidelines of the EU-Western Balkans Summit, the prime ministers of the two countries said that progress has been made.
Any agreement must be approved by the parliaments of the two countries.Tsipras will brief leaders of opposition parties the issues over the phone during the weekend, according to government sources.
Main opposition conservative New Democracy (ND) party President Kyriakos Mitsotakis was informed over phone by Tsipras on Friday that the name under discussion is "Republic of Ilinden Macedonia," which has been turned down as it remained "irredentist," ND sources told Greek national news agency AMNA.
The name commemorates an early 20th century uprising by nationalistic forces against the then Ottoman rule to establish a Slavic state in an area which included regions within the boundaries of the Greek state, Greek daily Kathimerini reported.
