Strong reactions not only in Greece and the Commission, but also within it North Macedoniacaused by the move of the country’s president, Gordana Silianowska, to refer to her country as “Macedonia“, during her swearing-in ceremony yesterday.

In fact, Silianovska ostentatiously ignored the text of the oath recited by the president of the outgoing Parliament, Jovan Mitreski, calling on the new President to repeat it. In it the country was referred to as “North Macedonia”.

The largest Albanian party in North Macedonia, Ali Ahmeti’s DUI estimated that the country’s new president violated the Constitution and “created a crisis in the relations between North Macedonia and Greece”.

For his part, with his post on Facebook, the Acting Minister of Justice of North Macedonia, Krenal Logar, raised validity issue of the swearing in of the new president, due to the violation of the country’s Constitution and the Prespa Agreement.

It typically states that “the disrespect of the constitutional name of the state renders Silianovska’s oath invalid” and that the process should either be repeated or the outgoing speaker of the parliament, Jovan Mitrefksi, should assume the duties of president of the country.

This move caused intense reaction of Athens but also of European officials. Ursula von der Leyen stressed that “In order for North Macedonia to continue its successful path towards EU membership, it is of the utmost importance that the country continues on the path of reforms and fully respects its binding agreements, including the Prespa Agreement” .

For his part, the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, described as “very disappointing” the fact that the new president of North Macedonia did not use the country’s constitutional name and pointed out that “the EU recalls the importance of the continuous implementation of legally binding agreements , including the Prespa agreement with Greece”.