Macedonia says no change from Greece concerning EU bid

02/12/2009

ATHENS, Greece -- Prime Minister George Papandreou and Alternate Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas have told Macedonian Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki that their country's position regarding Skopje's efforts to get a date for starting EU accession talks has not changed, Macedonian media reported on Tuesday (December 1st). The three officials held talks on the sidelines of an OSCE ministerial conference in Athens. Milososki urged the Greek officials to change their minds and demonstrate a pragmatic approach regarding Macedonia's EU bid. He said doing so would have a positive impact on efforts to resolve the long-standing name dispute between the two countries. During the talks, Milososki offered two initiatives aimed at improving bilateral relations. The first involves transforming the Greek Liaison Office to Skopje into an embassy, while the second involves signing an agreement on double taxation avoidance. Greece says it will consider the proposals. (MIA, A1, Makfax - 01/12/09)