The use of the term “Macedonia” by the country’s new leadership is defended in an interview by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of North Macedonia, Timco Mutsunski, who claims that it is not a violation of the Prespa Agreement .

In particular, the Foreign Minister of North Macedonia, when asked in an interview about Greece’s reactions, stated that the use of the term does not constitute an attempt to introduce a “dual name” inside the country, while he repeated the characterization of a “shameful” agreement.

In his response to Voice of America, in the local language, Timcho Muchunski said, “This is not a double formula. As a party, we have expressed our position on the Prespa Agreement. From a political point of view, speaking on behalf of the VMRO-DPMNE party, we have stated that this is a shameful and undignified act. At the same time, however, we are aware of the constitutional, legal and political reality that accompanies this agreement, as well as the obligations undertaken by the state in terms of public international law. We cannot simply ignore these obligations. That is why we have stated that, yes, this is an undignified agreement, but it is an agreement that we have an obligation to respect. Therefore, we take all necessary measures to comply with it. The fact that the prime minister states that he will use the term Macedonia in public speeches within the country does not constitute a violation of the agreement. This is our interpretation of the agreement. Article 7 clearly defines how both parties can use both the term Macedonia and the term Macedonian, explaining that these terms have different meanings for each party. In this regard, we recognize that we have obligations, which we intend to respect and demonstrate in practice that we respect them, both at home and abroad. This is the usage erga omnes we are talking about.’

Earlier, both the president of North Macedonia and the prime minister continued their tactics of defiance and violation her Agreement of Prespa. The country’s president, Gordana Silianovska, in her post referred to a “Macedonian army” with the prime minister, Christian Mickoski, returning after the yesterday’s statements at the NATO Summit , again using the term unconstitutional. “Macedonia”.