The European Commission is expected to use the name "North Macedonia" in the very near future, instead of "The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (FYROM). “It's a matter of days”, a source told EUROPE.
The Macedonian and Greek parliaments have ratified the Prespa Agreement, which ratifies the change of name of FYROM, but not all procedures have been completed yet (see EUROPE 12171, 12180). Under this agreement, FYROM must notify all international fora, multinational and regional organisations and institutions to which it is a party of the entry into force of the agreement, and request these organisations to use the name North Macedonia.
Thus, according to a European source, the Commission will wait for the notification of the name change by Skopje. This could be received between Monday and Wednesday in parallel with the notification to the United Nations.
But this source specified that the “internal procedure” that will be followed by the Commission was “not yet clear”. “It is not yet confirmed how we will proceed”, she added. For example, it is not yet clear that the Commission is carrying out an assessment of the letter received by Skopje.
The Commission could change the name as soon as it receives the letter, or wait for the decision of the College of Commissioners or the Foreign Affairs Council on 18 February, at which time conclusions on FYROM could be adopted, to officially use the name Nort Macedonia.
On the Council's side, one source informed EUROPE that it had not yet been officially informed of the name change and would wait for it to happen before acting. "We are in the process of clarifying the exact procedure”, she added. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)