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NATO Chief Tells Skopje to be 'Realistic'


NATO’s secretary-general, wrapping up a two-day visit to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) on Thursday, said the country needed to be “realistic” about its NATO membership ambitions.
FYROM is currently locked in a dispute with Greece over its official name which has seen Skopje barred from joining NATO and the EU.
UN-backed talks in New York on the issue are to conclude on Friday.
In comments reported by the Associated Press, the NATO chief said although he “strongly welcomed” efforts by the former Yugoslav state to join the alliance – of which Greece is a member – it had to resolve its dispute with Athens and undertake major reforms.
“While it is good to be ambitious, it is also important to be realistic,” Stoltenberg told lawmakers in Skopje.
“There is still much hard work to be done,” he added. “That means, of course, resolving the issue of your country’s name. It’s an issue that has weighed on this region — and this country — for far too long.”
Earlier on Thursday, a FYROM media outlet leaked some of the alleged names on the negotiating table between Athens and Skopje. They all contained the name ‘Macedonia’ in one form or another, something opposed by the majority of Greek political parties and the public.

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