Statements of the Greek negotiator on the FYROM name issue, Ambassador A. Vassilakis, and the UN Secretary General’s personal envoy Matthew Nimetz

M. NIMETZ:  Let me say I am very happy to be here in Greece, in Thessaloniki, and I came at the direction of the Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, I was with him in Ochrid and Skopje, with his meetings with the Government there, and I came down to brief the Greek Government, through Ambassador Vassilakis, who is the representative to these talks about the name, which have gone on for quite a while.  So, we spent some time yesterday evening but also at our meeting this morning, in which I gave Ambassador Vassilakis a full report on the meetings of the Secretary General with the Government of your northern neighbor, and also my meetings, because I had some separate meetings there, with the President, the Prime Minister, the Foreign Minister, in some free time that I had, so we had a full discussion about the issue and I can answer any questions that you might have.

Thank you.  Yes.

JOURNALIST:  Ambassador, what was the answer of the Greek Government concerning the bigger involvement of the Secretary General of the UN in this process and what is the answer of the Greek Government towards this corrective stance of Mr. *** towards the name issue?

M. NIMETZ:  The Secretary General has a role in this and has had a role from the very start.  You know the UN resolutions that deal with this, our resolution, I think it is 817, 1993, gives the Secretary General some responsibility here and article 5 of the Interim Agreement says that the name issue shall continue to be discussed under the aegis of the Secretary General, so the agreement of the two parties and Secretary General has a role.  Now, he has appointed me, his personal envoy on these issues, but I always report to him, so he has always been engaged. This was his first visit to Skopje, so he of course focused more intensely on this, but he has always been interested in this issue, it’s considered at the United Nations to be an important regional issue, affecting the security of the region and therefore a real priority.  So, I think he has a deep interest and recognizes that the only solution is if the two sides come to an agreement, this is an issue that needs understanding by both sides, he will try to make an effort.  In Skopje, the Government has an interest in resolving this, it’s an important issue for them as you well know and I have the assurance of Ambassador Vassilakis that this continues to be your priority, of the Greek Government as well, something they would like to solve, so both sides who say they want to solve the issue, so let’s hope they can move in that direction.

A. VASSILAKIS: First of all, I would like to thank Mr. Nimetz for all the efforts he has made these many years and for the trouble he took to come down to Thessaloniki and brief the Greek government, through me, on what was discussed in Skopje. The second thing I would like to say is that no one should have any doubts as to the Greek government’s desire to find a solution. I am certain that impassioned statements don’t help, but the Greek government is doing everything in its power so that we can eventually get onto the right path. Thank you.

July 26, 2012