In June 2018, Macedonia (known formally as the “former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia” in international diplomatic circles) and Greece reached a deal that would pave the way for the former’s integration with the European Union (EU) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) by renaming the Republic of Macedonia to the Republic of North Macedonia. For decades, Greece has blocked Macedonia’s potential accession to both international institutions due to Greece’s fears that the country’s name implies potential irredentist claims on Northern Greece, which is also known as Macedonia.

Before the treaty’s ratification, the Macedonian government conducted a plebiscite on the matter, with over 90 percent of votes being cast in favor of changing the name. However, the referendum did not meet the 50 percent turnout required to become legally binding. Nevertheless, the Macedonian parliament subsequently ratified the treaty.

Russia—who remains NATO’s main adversary even after the collapse of the Soviet Union due to its incursions into its smaller neighbors, former Soviet republics Ukraine and Georgia—openly opposes the treaty and North Macedonia’s accession to the EU and NATO. Russia has been accused of attempting to foster opposition to this agreement in hopes of preventing the formerly communist state from achieving further integration with the West.

On February 6, the Accession Protocol for North Macedonia was signed by dignitaries from all 29 NATO member states and North Macedonia. The treaty is now in the hands of the individual members, each of whom must ratify the treaty for North Macedonia to join the military alliance. As of February 20, four NATO member states have ratified the Accession Protocol: Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, and Slovenia.

Sources

Halasz, Stephanie. “Macedonia Officially Changes Its Name to North Macedonia.” CNN, Cable News Network, 13 Feb. 2019, edition.cnn.com/2019/02/13/europe/north-macedonia-name-change-intl/index.html.

Harris, Chris. “Greece and FYR Macedonia Name Dispute: the Controversial Feud Explained.” Euronews, Euronews, 24 Jan. 2019, www.euronews.com/2019/01/24/explained-the-controversial-name-dispute-between-greece-and-fyr-macedonia.

“Macedonia Referendum: Name Change Vote Fails to Reach Threshold.” BBC News, BBC, 1 Oct. 2018, www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-45699749.

“NATO Allies Sign Accession Protocol for the Future Republic of North Macedonia.” NATO, 6 Feb. 2019, www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_163078.htm.

“North Macedonia: Four Countries Have Ratified NATO’s Accession Protocol so Far.” Gazeta Tema, Gazeta Tema, 20 Feb. 2019, www.gazetatema.net/en/north-macedonia-four-countries-have-ratified-natos-accession-protocol-so-far/.

“The World Factbook: North Macedonia.” Central Intelligence Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, 1 Feb. 2018, www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/mk.html.