Zaev did not propose names for Macedonia

Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev did not say that our country is ready for minor changes in the name in the Constitution, the government’s cabinet said, reacting to parts of his interview with the Reuters agency undertaken, as noted by some of the Macedonian media.

“The Cabinet of the President of the Government categorically claims that Prime Minister Zaev has not made such a statement in an interview with Reuters,” the statement said.

Instead, as Zaev said, according to a Reuters reporter, the Republic of Macedonia is ready to make a change regarding the name, but it can not go too far because it is a very difficult issue.

In the continuation of the conversation on this subject, as the Prime Minister’s office explains, Zaev added that there remains an open question whether there is a “real need” for changing the Constitution of Macedonia, something Greece has been seeking in recent months.
Also, the cabinet points out the misinterpretation in the introduction to the agency’s interview with Zaev, stating that “Macedonia has offered four options for resolving decades of misunderstanding with Greece on the name.”

“The public in Macedonia and the world knows that these are the proposals of mediator Matthew Nimetz, who, on behalf of the United Nations, mediates in the talks between the Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Greece. That means that those proposals exist, as Prime Minister Zaev said, but they are not proposed by Macedonia,” reads the explanation from Zaev’s cabinet.