Clashes Between Greek Police and Opponents of Macedonia Name Change Agreement

Greek police fired tear gas to disperse tens of thousands of people gathered outside the parliament building in Athens to protest next week's vote by representatives on the approval of the agreement between Greece and Macedonia regarding the name North Macedonia. Thousands of Greeks traveled from various parts of the country to participate in the protests on Sunday, January 30, holding the blue and white two-colored flag of their country. Alexis Tsipras, the Prime Minister of Greece, reached an agreement with Zoran Zaev, the Prime Minister of Macedonia, to end decades-long tensions over the name of this country, which was previously part of Yugoslavia. This agreement was signed last year in the border area between the two countries and is known as the 'Athens-Skopje Agreement.' According to this agreement, the name Macedonia will be changed to 'North Macedonia,' and after parliamentary approval, Greece will also remove obstacles to this country's accession to the European Union and NATO. However, many Greek citizens believe that the name Macedonia raises territorial claims over the northern region of Greece, which is also called Macedonia. Greeks have very strong national sentiments towards Macedonia, which was once part of the Kingdom of Greece and ruled by Alexander the Great. Nevertheless, the Greek government has accepted to refer to its northern neighbor, which has a population of two million, as 'North Macedonia,' a country that the United Nations recognized in 1993 as the 'Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.' Reuters reported that this agreement is considered a victory for Alexis Tsipras, who himself deemed the agreement with Skopje significant not only for the two countries and the region but also for all of united Europe. The United Nations and its representative, who mediated between the two countries in this matter, also welcomed the achievement of this agreement. Greek police announced that in the clashes between police and protesters throwing stones and homemade bombs, 10 police officers were injured.