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- Communists Against Kosovo’s Independence |
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Written by News Desk
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Thursday, 04 October 2007 |
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Communist Party of Greece (KKE) General Secretary Aleka Papariga this week voiced heightened concern over developments in the Balkans and skepticism regarding the course of negotiations on the FYROM "name issue". Following a KKE political bureau meeting on Tuesday, Papariga presented her party's positions on the situation in the Balkans, reiterating KKE's view over NATO expansion in the region.
In a press conference, she said Washington ranks a decisive factor for developments in the region and the FYROM name issue. "The United States want speedy developments in view of a NATO summit in April 2008, during which they will back the Alliance's enlargement to include FYROM, Albania and Croatia," Papariga said, predicting that "pressures will intensify". Papariga linked the FYROM name issue with a possible US decision to recognize Kosovo's independence from Serbia, while adding that obstacles over the delineation of borders between Kosovo and FYROM and an attempted border revision -- in violation of previous UN resolutions -- will lead to a new round of confrontations, not only in the Balkans but in other regions as well. On the FYROM name issue, Papariga stressed that proposals by UN mediator Matthew Nimetz do not lead to a settlement, but in effect keep the issue open to all kinds of "imperialist interventions". "US hypocrisy is apparent," she said, considering the fact that "while Washington has unilaterally recognized FYROM under its constitutional name, it has also taken up the role of 'goodwill ambassador' in the effort to reach a solution to the name issue". "KKE is opposed to negotiations for a mutually acceptable solution to the FYROM name issue that will include the term 'Macedonia' or any of its derivatives," stressed Papariga, adding that it should be made clear that this term can be accepted only as geographic definition. Irredentist propaganda should end, while border inviolability, territorial integrity and sovereignty should be mutually recognized," she stressed. The communist party also called on the Greek government to reject Kosovo's independence, and to persist in the preservation of existing borders, while adamantly rejecting all acts of unilateral recognition by the European Union. |
