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First phase of hearing on Macedonia's suit against Greece ends in Hague
26. March 2011. | 10:15
Source: MIA
The first phase of the public hearing ended with Greece's elaboration on Friday. Team representing Macedonia will have the opportunity to respond to Greece's defense on March 28, and the oral hearing will end with closing remarks by the Greek side on March 30.
Greece has met the obligations, deriving from the Interim Accord, and enabled Macedonia to join the political processes in the Balkan and wider region, Maria Telalian, the Foreign Ministry's legal adviser, said Friday at the public hearing before the Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Skopje's suit against Athens for violating the 1995 bilateral document by objecting to Macedonia's application to join NATO.
Macedonia on the other hand has breached several articles of the document by interfering in Greece's internal affairs, encouraging and financing irredentist activities.
According to the Macedonia's Government web portal, a total of 700,000 ethic Macedonians live in Greece, which is not correct, while 4,535 citizens of Greece vote for a political party, which claims to represent the so-called Macedonian minority in the country, Telalian said.
"It is difficult for Greece to comprehend these demographic claims in any other way but as provocation," she said.
Telalian also mentioned the existence of several associations of Aegean Macedonians, which enjoy Skopje's financial and other support for retrieving their properties the applicant claims to be seized by Greece.
Moreover, in 2008 the Prime Minister in Skopje sent a letter to his colleague in Athens, asking him to take care for the Macedonian minority in Greece, which, as Telalian said, doesn't exist.
"It is well-known that minority rights are closely related to respecting the territorial integrity, sovereignty and good-neighbourly relations. This is even more important for the relations between the two countries. The applicant is not some international organization for monitoring, but an independent state that is accusing of a so-called Macedonian minority in and supports irredentist aspirations against Greece," she said.
For Telalian, the usage of the Star of Vergina, erecting of monuments of Alexander the Great, Philip II, renaming the Corridor X and national stadium into Alexander the Great and Philip II respectively, are also some of Macedonia's moves for breaching the Interim Accord.
Closing Greece's presentation of arguments, professor Alain Pellet from the Paris University said there could be no legal security for those who breach agreements, something Macedonia has done by violating the provisions of the Interim Accord.
The first phase of the public hearing ended with Greece's elaboration on Friday. Team representing Macedonia will have the opportunity to respond to Greece's defense on March 28, and the oral hearing will end with closing remarks by the Greek side on March 30.
The ICJ verdict, which is final and binding for UN member-states and parties in the dispute, is expected within six months or by the year-end.
Macedonia took Greece to the UN court seeking a ruling that Athens illegally vetoed its application for NATO membership three years ago in breach of a 1995 agreement to support its membership of international organizations under the name "The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia."
Comments (11)
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27. March 2011. 10:04:10
| Ime
3
the greeks have committed countless crimes against what was once the macedonian majority in what is now "Northern Greece". Torture, displacement, confiscation, cultural and linguistic genocide. I know this because my village is one of thousands that had their tombstones smashed because they were written in macedonian. Our village was renamed as were the mountains, lakes, rivers and of course the people. We were treated as savages and if the greeks could they would exterminate the rest of us whereever in the world we live. Egomaniacs, is there no end to the suffering they wish to subject us to?
28. March 2011. 07:05:13
| Ime
2
The person that quotes all of the above are totally distorted, nothing of the sort documented, and they forget they are Bulgarians that settled in Makedonia, evidenced by their language, culture. He is referring to the Balkan wars.
Very uneducated and misinformed article.
28. March 2011. 22:03:37
| Ime
0
TO the person who wrote the last statement. why do you avoid the questions at hand, by presenting another question that has no bearing to the first question . Apparently deceiving and disinformation is one of you'r best qualities . if course there would never be any so called evidences if it was destroyed!!! In other words this was a very well thought out plan by the greek government to make it look like these people had never existed or occupied that territory at any time. For the simple reason that you know that this day would come and It's not so much about a dispute over a NAME as it is over territory . That must be a very scary feeling !!!
28. March 2011. 22:03:37
| Ime
2
The nonsense claim by the FYROM nationalists on this thread pretty much illustrates the open hostility and historical fabrications Greeks have to deal with.
The poster hides that the people that lived in what is today FYROM used to freely self-identify as ethnic Bulgarians while pretending Macedonians (i.e. Greeks that liberated Macedonia from the Ottomans) have no right to the name Macedonia.
Why do ultra-nationalists like Gruevski hide their own ethnic Bulgarian heritage if they are doing nothing wrong?
"The creation of the Macedonian nation, for almost half of a century, was done in a condition of single-party dictatorship. In those times, there was no difference between science and ideology, so the “Macedonian” historiography, unopposed by anybody, comfortably performed a selection of the historic material from which the “Macedonian” identity was created. There is nothing atypical here for the process of the creation of any modern nation, except when falsification from the type of substitution of the word “Bulgarian” with the word “Macedonian” were made." -former FYROM foreign minister Denko Maleski
http://www.utrinski.com.mk/?ItemID=C7A7DD4ECD45C946BF6573284EC01164
29. March 2011. 07:18:50
| Kiril
1
Me Greek, me very cultured, we Greeks have 3000 years of continuous unbroken culture, my people invent everything democracy, language, mathematics even cheese and coffee (greek style).
Greek people best business people in the world. You laugh maybe? But think about it! Europe gives my Greek people money every year for nothing (2009 EU subsidies to Greece=Euro 40,000,000,000), we waste this very easy, no problem! From this we learn that money is very cheap, so my Greek people go crazy on the Visa (Greek foreign debt = Euro 400,000,000,000) and do you believe our EU brothers can't pay off our debt quick enough.
Now I tell you, people from FYROM are Slav, bad people, they not intelligent like Greek people, they steal Greek history and our land. They come to Macedonia in 600 AD, 800 years after Alexander Megali and now after only 1600 years of living our soil they think they are Macedonian, because Tito and Stalin brain washed them all.
I hope my Greek Government keeps these slavo-skopian-fyromian-commi peasants out of NATO and EU for ever. Who needs them anyway in our glorious EU, they would be like hungry pigs in our god given EU subsidy trough.
29. March 2011. 07:18:50
| Ime
1
Me Greek, my people no tell lies. FYROMIAN's are Slav, very bad people, they lie, very big liars. They say we veto them in Bucharest, no, no, no, this big liar, it was someone else's idea, not Greeks, no, no no!
Let me tell the truth about Macedonia, me, I am true Macedonian. 2500 years ago Alexander Megali spread his Greek seed to Pontus in present day Northern Turkey, we Pontic people (approx. 1/2 million) come back to mother Macedonia in 1920, after very bad Turkish people kick us out. Of course we have to kick out some Slav's to make room for my people, but this is OK, they are only Slav's not Greek like me.
Now I tell you about Slavs, they come to my Macedonia 1600 years ago. They were happy little Slavs living in my beautiful Macedonia for 1550 years and then Tito tell them they are Macedonian and they believe this. Very stupid people, yesterday they were Slavs and today they are Macedonian. Ah ha ha ha, sorry I laugh, how stupid some people can be.
29. March 2011. 07:18:50
| Ime
0
Me Greek, my people no tell lies. FYROMIAN's are Slav, very bad people, they lie, very big liars. They say we veto them in Bucharest, no, no, no, this big liar, it was someone else's idea, not Greeks, no, no no!
Let me tell the truth about Macedonia, me, I am true Macedonian. 2500 years ago Alexander Megali spread his Greek seed to Pontus in present day Northern Turkey, we Pontic people (approx. 1/2 million) come back to mother Macedonia in 1920, after very bad Turkish people kick us out. Of course we have to kick out some Slav's to make room for my people, but this is OK, they are only Slav's not Greek like me.
Now I tell you about Slavs, they come to my Macedonia 1600 years ago. They were happy little Slavs living in my beautiful Macedonia for 1550 years and then Tito tell them they are Macedonian and they believe this. Very stupid people, yesterday they were Slavs and today they are Macedonian. Ah ha ha ha, sorry I laugh, how stupid some people can be.
29. March 2011. 07:18:50
| Ime
0
It is very easy to blame the other party in the is case FYROM blaming Greece and vice versa...But have any of the parties really made an effort to give up something to reach an agreement..
In this case what is sad is that Skpoja has not given in alittle and neither have the Greeks unfortunately...
Both are Christian and belong to the christian church. How about concentrating on we have in common as a starting point rather than our differences??? Where can both gain creat synergies and work together to grow rather than against each other??
And above all respect at all times...!!!!
29. March 2011. 07:18:50
| Ime
0
It should be noted that Greece signed an accord with FYROM and not Macedonia...Unfortunately this has been overlooked...
In all documentation FYROM submitted to be accepted in these international organisations they never applied as FYROM so it is my opinion the matter should be thrown out and should not waste the Hagues time and resources..
There are bigger problems and worse problems around the world..
Skopjia and Greece should waste more of their resources on creating jobs for the unemployed in both these countries rather than arguing over a name you idiots...Both countries have youth unemployment figures of over 35% what does that tell you???
Stop fighting and start working on some solutions for you youth...
30. March 2011. 11:49:09
| maco 1
0
20 years ago the greeks did'nt want to hear the word Macedonia.Now all of a sudden macedonia is greek.your all a bunch of turks.