The Macedonian Republic

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The year 2008 has been characterised by the suspension of the Macedonian Republic’s Euro-Atlantic perspectives. The veto imposed by Greece on this country’s access to NATO in April, because of their persisting disagreement on the rival usage of the word “Macedonia” already proves to be heavy with consequences. This blockade, transposed in a European context, undermines the two main dynamics that have mobilized authorities (since the Ohrid Agreements have been adopted in summer 2001) in leading essential reforms aiming, among other things, at making the Macedonian Republic a model of multiethnic society and political balance. The country may be less fragile than one might think, yet it is to be feared that the new constraints that have been imposed on it will question painfully reached domestic balances. This evolution may eventually make the country durably vulnerable, increase its frustrations and reactivate its most harmful modes of expression (federalism, separatism…) not only for itself, but for the region in its totality, as well as for the European Union’s already imperilled capacity to efficiently manage its immediate neighbourhood.