On Sunday, violent protests swept through Athens with demonstrators wielding clubs and firebombs. Their cause for outcry? A 2,000-year-old territorial claim over the name Macedonia. Greek lawmakers must reject that nationalist anger in favor of regional peace.
Today, there are two areas known as Macedonia: a northern region of the modern country Greece and the country Macedonia (officially known as the the Republic of Macedonia or the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia).
The famed ancient Macedonia, birthplace of Alexander the Great, largely falls within Greek territory, while the current state of Macedonia roughly corresponds to the ancient kingdom of Paeonia.
But as tends to happen in history, the borders, control, and name of the region shifted. In 168 B.C., more than 2,000 years ago, Rome conquered Greece and combined Macedonia and Paeonia into a single administrative unit it called Macedonia.
A few hundred years later, that province was divided into “first Macedonia” and “second Macedonia,” the first corresponding to the modern Greek region and the second to the country. Those names were still in use when the Ottoman Empire captured the last bits of the Roman Empire in the 15th century.
After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, several wars, a split among Macedonian nationalists, a stint as a member of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and occupation during World War II, the area of the modern state of Macedonia became part of the Socialist Federal Republics of Yugoslavia with Macedonia renamed as the Socialist Republic of Macedonia in 1946. Even then, the use of the name Macedonia drew sharp criticism from Greece and continued to do so even after Macedonia seceded and became an independent republic in 1991.
For the more than 25 years since, Greece has continued to oppose the use of the name Macedonia, claiming that that name is rightly applied only to the northern Greek region.
In June 2018, that conflict finally seemed to be headed for a resolution: Greece and Macedonia signed an agreement under which Macedonia would change its name to North Macedonia and agree that it “can claim no relation to the ancient Greek civilization of Macedonia.”
In exchange, Greece would withdraw its opposition to Macedonia joining NATO and the European Union.
Macedonia acted on its part of the agreement and has already voted to change its name, thereby passing the resolution to Greece to be ratified by Parliament. That vote is set to take place this week.
But for Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, that vote has become a political problem. He just barley survived a no-confidence vote last week after his coalition partner resigned in protest. Worse, protesters, many bused in from northern Greece, filled the streets of Athens over the weekend to voice their opposition on nationalist grounds.
Despite that conflict, Greek politicians should still support the June agreement and vote to ratify the deal.
Resolving long-standing territorial and cultural claims require concessions from both parties. The history here makes clear, there is plenty of legitimacy to the state of Macedonia having some claim to the name.
Macedonia, the country, has already willingly handed over its claim to perhaps legitimately argue Greek history and added the modifier “North” to its name at Greece’s request. In turn, Greek lawmakers should recognize that history is not as cut and dried as its national myths and support an end to the dispute paving the way for stronger relations and the addition of an important ally to both NATO and the European Union — key to countering Russian influence.
No deal is going to make everyone happy or fully represent the nuances of a complex history. But this deal is a compromise that is, ultimately, in the best interests of both countries and the region.
In this week’s vote, Greek lawmakers should end the decadeslong fight over names and pave the way for regional stability, choosing long-term peace over anger.
