Greece: Junior coalition partner withdraws from gov’t

By Furkan Naci Top

ATHENS (AA) - The head of the junior partner in Greece’s ruling coalition announced his resignation from his post as defense minister on Sunday in protest over a deal to end a dispute over the name of neighboring Macedonia.

Party chief of the Independent Greeks (ANEL) Panos Kammenos said his party would withdraw from the government of “national unity”, which he said had successfully delivered the country from the period of bailouts following the deep depression of the Greek economy after the 2008 global financial crisis.

“On the issue of Macedonia, I am not permitted to not sacrifice the seat,” Kammenos said in a statement following a 30-minute meeting with Prime Minster Alexis Tsipras, adding that cooperation between ANEL and Tsipras’ Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) could not continue on the “national issue” of the Prespa Agreement with Skopje.

In June 2018, Greece and Macedonia inked Prespa Agreement, which requires Macedonia to change its name to the Republic of North Macedonia and Greece to drop its objection to Macedonia joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and becoming a member of the European Union.

Macedonia was found in 1991 and has been recognized by the UN in 1993, but was accepted to the UN membership with the name of Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) due to Greek objection to the name Macedonia.

Many countries including Turkey recognize Macedonia with its present name.