“The Abolition of the North…” is the title with which the long article of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and refers to the insistence of the new President of North Macedonia, Gordana Silianovska-Davkova, to omit “North”. The article refers to the Prespa Agreement but also to the reactions, not only of the Greek government, but also of the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, who underlined that North Macedonia’s path to the EU goes through its reforms, but also respecting the agreements it has signed. However, the columnist points out: “von der Leyen’s warning also has its own weak point. The majority of the population in North Macedonia no longer believes in a “successful path towards EU membership”, as described by the head of the Commission. In 2018, it was said that the renaming of the state would be followed by the start of EU accession negotiations. But then France and then Bulgaria vetoed it. Mikoski and VMRO were already warning in 2018 about such a scenario.”

For the same issue, TAZ of Berlin notes: “The eye now turns to how VMRO-DPMNE will deal with the sensitive issue. He won a big victory in the parliamentary elections in Skopje after seven years in opposition. The Social Democrats who previously held the government in Skopje and brought the Prespa Agreement were punished by the voters. VMRO leader and future head of government in Skopje Kristian Mykoski does not want to mention the new name of the state. However, it is unlikely that he would dare to unilaterally denounce the Prespa Agreement. The accession of North Macedonia to the EU is also a strategic goal of the conservatives.”

Reapproachment of Athens and Ankara

The Spiegel he refers to the meeting between Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and notes: “Just two years ago, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said about Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis that he never wanted to meet him again. Those times are in the past. After years of tension both countries are trying for a better relationship. Erdogan now welcomed the Greek prime minister in Ankara. Both were full of good words for each other but the Hamas issue reached the limits of rapprochement. For Mitsotakis, the group that controls the Gaza Strip is a terrorist organization. Erdoğan said that he was sorry for this position. “Let’s agree that we disagree on this,” Mitsotakis said at a joint press conference Monday afternoon in Ankara. We don’t agree on everything about the war in Gaza, but we do agree that the violence must stop and there must be a long-term ceasefire.”

And the publication concludes that “With the meeting, Erdogan is now sending a message to Brussels as well. There have also been recent signs of a rapprochement between Turkey and the EU. Turkish Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek is expected in Brussels this week to promote the foreign investment the country urgently needs.”