'Alexander the Great' Sign Removed From Skopje Airport

[Mingle]

Macedonia has removed an "Alexander the Great" sign from its main airport in another goodwill gesture to Greece, as the two neighbors work to resolve a 27-year-old dispute over the name of the former Yugoslav republic.

The 3-meter-long letters spelling out the name of the famed ruler of the ancient Kingdom of Macedonia, who is also celebrated in Greece, were removed from the Skopje airport terminal on February 24.

The Macedonian government earlier this month decided to rename the airport and the country’s main highway, which was also previously named after Alexander the Great.

The capital's airport was renamed International Airport Skopje and the highway will be known as the Friendship Highway.

Name signs were earlier this week removed from the highway running from Macedonia's border with Greece to the border with Serbia.

Greece objects to the former Yugoslav republic's use of the name Macedonia, which Athens says could imply territorial claims over its own northern region of the same name.

Negotiations between the two neighbors have been inconclusive since 1991, when Macedonia gained independence from the former Yugoslavia.

It was admitted into the United Nations in 1993 under the name Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).

Skopje and Athens have recently stepped up efforts to resolve the row that has hampered Macedonia's efforts to join NATO and the EU. Greece is a member of both entities.

Macedonia has said it is ready to add a geographical qualifier to its name to help resolve the dispute. An agreement could include Macedonia adding "Upper," "New," or "North" to its name.

“My wish and ambition, as well as of each of us that are involved in this process, is to reach a solution for the name dispute by the end of March,” Macedonian prime Minister Zoran Zaev told the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) in an interview published on February 23.

"It will not help us if we delay it because there are always antagonistic forces that are against a solution," he added.

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https://www.rferl.org/a/mecedonia-re.../29060724.html

[Dimos]

A good move indeed. The whole Hellenisation process of the neighbouring country, has to stop.

[wvwvw]

A good move indeed. The whole Hellenisation process of the neighbouring country, has to stop.

It’s just a show, statues can be re-erected as much easily as they are taken down. Skopjans named their autobahn Alexander the Great only a few days ago.

Μας δουλεύουν ψιλό γαζί οι Σκοπιανοί: Δείτε πως μετονόμασαν τον εθνικό τους δρόμο «Αλέξανδρος ο Μακεδόνας»

Παραθέτουμε την είδηση όπως την βρήκαμε σε σκοπιανά μέσα ενημέρωσης που δείχνει ξεκάθαρα τις προθέσεις των σκοπιανών. Δες την είδηση εδώ https://www.njuz.net/makedonija-menj...ar-makedonski/

[Carpatz]

It's disappointing to see them give in to the Greek bullies.

[wvwvw]

It's disappointing to see them give in to the Greek bullies.

You are a moron, the real bullies are you and your friends, who deny the Greeks of real historical Macedonia the right to call themselves Macedonians. Greeks will NEVER sell out Macedonia.

If you are looking for bullies look in Romania, it is disappointing to see how the Hungarian minority give in to Romanian bullies.

[Dimos]

It’s just a show, statues can be re-erected as much easily as they are taken down. Skopjans named their autobahn Alexander the Great only a few days ago.

Μας δουλεύουν ψιλό γαζί οι Σκοπιανοί: Δείτε πως μετονόμασαν τον εθνικό τους δρόμο «Αλέξανδρος ο Μακεδόνας»

Παραθέτουμε την είδηση όπως την βρήκαμε σε σκοπιανά μέσα ενημέρωσης που δείχνει ξεκάθαρα τις προθέσεις των σκοπιανών. Δες την είδηση εδώ https://www.njuz.net/makedonija-menj...ar-makedonski/

If this is true, they are losing credibility, again.
On the other hand the turkeys are coming closer. I hope the Fyromians do not know something we do not thus being so bold.
Fuck, I sound like Velopoulos now, how embarassing

[Carpatz]

You are a moron, the real bullies are you and your friends, who deny the Greeks of real historical Macedonia the right to call themselves Macedonians. Greeks will NEVER sell out Macedonia.

If you are looking for bullies look in Romania, it is disappointing to see how the Hungarian minority give in to Romanian bullies.

Last time I checked, It's the Greeks trying to deny Macedonians the right to self-identify and not the other way around. Imagine if the inhabitants of modern day Rome protested the name of Romania by the thousands. Wouldn't it be ridiculous and petty?

[wvwvw]

Last time I checked, It's the Greeks trying to deny Macedonians the right to self-identify and not the other way around. Imagine if the inhabitants of modern day Rome protested the name of Romania by the thousands. Wouldn't it be ridiculous and petty?

It is bigots like you who deny the existance of Greek Macedonians and the hellenicity of Ancient Macedonians from who these Greeks descend. Skopjans are west Bulgarians who falsely appropriate for themselves the identity of Macedonians.

Their identity is not Macedonian and never was until Tito invented this false identity for them. We deny them nothing, except their non-right to appropriate and falsify Greek history, including the identity of Greeks who identify as Macedonians, Ionians, Cretans etc.

They are free to identify as descendants of Alexander the Great, Romans, Pericles, Thracians and any ancient Paleobalkanic people they desire, but they CAN’T OWN the name Macedonia by using it exclusively for International use, because there are over 3 million Greeks in historical Greek Macedonia that identify themselves with the region, culture and people of Ancient Macedonians.

Their country Fyrom was never even part of Ancient or Byzantine Macedonia. Their region’s name was VARDARSKA well until Tito’s regime… He renamed it to “Macedonia” and started propagating and brainwashing the Bulgarian speaking population of the region that they are “Macedonians”… There was never a “Macedonian” ethnic group, the region was inhabited by myriads of nationalities, each with their own distinctive culture.

Countries cannot in the name of self-determination can even re-write the historical truth. There is no “Macedonian” language, they clearly speak Bulgarian. Self-determination does not equally apply for the Greek -speaking people of those territories? Macedonia should be a region of Europe, not a nation or an ethnic group.

FYROM’s population constitutes only a 25% minority in the Macedonian region. This minority cannot and shouldnt impose to the other 3 quarters that they should give up their Macedonian cultural identity by monopolising the terms “Macedonia/Macedonian” for international use.

Over 3.5 million people worldwide with a Greek national identity and a Macedonian cultural identity, have a right to self-determination and preservation of their historic cultural identity.

In essense if their northern Slavic neighbours from FYROM monopolise the terms “Macedonia/Macedonian” for international use, these 3.5 million Macedonians with a Greek national identity are the ones who are being denied one of their basic human rights. Their right to self-determination and preservation of their historic cultural identity. They wouldn’t even be able to export their products under the name Macedonian (like Parmegan Cheese) because Fyrom will have the exculivity of the international name of Macedonia.

The term “Greek Macedonian” is problematic in itself because it implies mixed ethnic background (another example: “my German Italian friend“). Macedonian was not an ethnicity but a tribal name. The ethnicity of Macedonians always has been Greek. According to Fyromians you are either Greek or Macedonian, you can’t be both. With the same logic neither Athenians, or Spartans or Ionians can be both Greek and Athenian, Spartan etc.

There is no reason why a majority of 3.5 million people with continuous presence in the area, should give up their cultural identity, in favour of a newly emerged nation whose folk heroes described themselves as Bulgarians.

[Arthur9]

A first step in going back to their bulgarian roots.

[Carpatz]

It is bigots like you who deny the existance of Greek Macedonians and the hellenicity of Ancient Macedonians from who these Greeks descend. Skopjans are west Bulgarians who falsely appropriate for themselves the identity of Macedonians.

Their identity is not Macedonian and never was until Tito invented this false identity for them. We deny them nothing, except their non-right to appropriate and falsify Greek history, including the identity of Greeks who identify as Macedonians, Ionians, Cretans etc.

They are free to identify as descendants of Alexander the Great, Romans, Pericles, Thracians and any ancient Paleobalkanic people they desire, but they CAN’T OWN the name Macedonia by using it exclusively for International use, because there are over 3 million Greeks in historical Greek Macedonia that identify themselves with the region, culture and people of Ancient Macedonians.

Their country Fyrom was never even part of Ancient or Byzantine Macedonia. Their region’s name was VARDARSKA well until Tito’s regime… He renamed it to “Macedonia” and started propagating and brainwashing the Bulgarian speaking population of the region that they are “Macedonians”… There was never a “Macedonian” ethnic group, the region was inhabited by myriads of nationalities, each with their own distinctive culture.

Countries cannot in the name of self-determination can even re-write the historical truth. There is no “Macedonian” language, they clearly speak Bulgarian. Self-determination does not equally apply for the Greek -speaking people of those territories? Macedonia should be a region of Europe, not a nation or an ethnic group.

FYROM’s population constitutes only a 25% minority in the Macedonian region. This minority cannot and shouldnt impose to the other 3 quarters that they should give up their Macedonian cultural identity by monopolising the terms “Macedonia/Macedonian” for international use.

Over 3.5 million people worldwide with a Greek national identity and a Macedonian cultural identity, have a right to self-determination and preservation of their historic cultural identity.

In essense if their northern Slavic neighbours from FYROM monopolise the terms “Macedonia/Macedonian” for international use, these 3.5 million Macedonians with a Greek national identity are the ones who are being denied one of their basic human rights. Their right to self-determination and preservation of their historic cultural identity. They wouldn’t even be able to export their products under the name Macedonian (like Parmegan Cheese) because Fyrom will have the exculivity of the international name of Macedonia.

The term “Greek Macedonian” is problematic in itself because it implies mixed ethnic background (another example: “my German Italian friend“). Macedonian was not an ethnicity but a tribal name. The ethnicity of Macedonians always has been Greek. According to Fyromians you are either Greek or Macedonian, you can’t be both. With the same logic neither Athenians, or Spartans or Ionians can be both Greek and Athenian, Spartan etc.

There is no reason why a majority of 3.5 million people with continuous presence in the area, should give up their cultural identity, in favour of a newly emerged nation whose folk heroes described themselves as Bulgarians.

Slavophone Macedonians are much more related to the ancient ones compared to the Anatolians with no ties to the land which were settled in Greek Macedonia. No one is taking away any "rights" from Greek Macedonians. It is you who want to take away the rights of Macedonians, and you also have the nerve to call me a bigot. Hypocrite