Today, 5 December 2011, the International Court of Justice announced its judgment in the Case of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia v. Greece.
With full respect for the International Court of Justice as the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, Greece is reviewing the decision.
The application which was lodged before the Court unilaterally by the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia against Greece on November 17, 2008, was designed primarily to circumvent the UN sponsored negotiations for the resolution of the name issue and compel Greece not to exercise in the future its obligations under the North Atlantic Treaty, regarding the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’s candidature. In today’s Judgment, the Court did not satisfy the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’s objective.
More specifically, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has submitted two requests to the Court:
(a) to declare that Greece violated its obligations under the Interim Accord of 1995 at the Bucharest NATO Summit of 2008; and
b) to order Greece to comply with its obligations under the Interim Accord and not object in any way, whether directly or indirectly, to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’s application for membership in NATO or any other ‘’international multilateral and regional organizations and institutions’’ in which Greece is a member insofar the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia is to be referred to in such organizations as ‘’the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", in accordance with Security Council Resolution 817 (1993).
Regarding the first request, the Court taking into account all the facts, as well as public statements made by Greece at the Bucharest Summit, found that Greece had objected to the admission of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia into NATO in April 2008.
The Court rejected in its entirety the second request of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, concluding that it is not necessary to order Greece to not repeat such conduct in the future.
The judgment of today does not address the issue of the difference over the name of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, confirming that this difference should be resolved within the framework defined by the resolutions of the Security Council and through negotiations under the auspices of the UN. The Court calls on the parties to engage in meaningful negotiations under the aegis of the UN. This is especially important as it indirectly calls on the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to demonstrate a spirit of compromise so that negotiations may lead to a mutually acceptable solution.
The judgment does not relate, and could not relate, to the decision making process of NATO, nor to the substantive criteria and requirements set forth by the Alliance for the admission of new members within it. Most specifically, with regard to NATO, we recall that its decisions, including those taken at the Summit in Bucharest (2008), Strasbourg (2009) and Lisbon (2010), were taken unanimously, reflecting its members shared conviction that the name issue of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia be resolved before it is invited to join the Alliance.
Greece will act within NATO as well as in all the other organizations in which it is a member, in full compliance with their respective procedural and substantive requirements and in a constructive spirit and good faith.
Greece will continue to pursue negotiations in good faith to reach a mutually acceptable solution on the name of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, within the spirit and letter of the relevant resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly of the United Nations. It is to be hoped that the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia will begin to pursue the negotiations in good faith, as the name issue can only be resolved through negotiation under the auspices of the United Nations.
December 5, 2011