Skopje president cancels trip to Greece after Athens refuses landing permission

[Angelo]

Macedonian president cancels trip to Greece after Athens refuses landing permission
The Associated PressPublished: June 5, 2008


SKOPJE, Macedonia: Macedonia's president has canceled a trip to Greece because Athens refused to allow his plane to land due to a dispute over Macedonia's name, the president's office said Thursday.

Greece argues the name Macedonia implies expansionist claims on its northern province of the same name. Athens has vowed to prevent its neighbor from joining NATO or the European Union until the issue is resolved. U.N.-brokered talks aimed at resolving the dispute remain deadlocked.

President Branko Crvenkovski was to attend a meeting of southeastern European presidents discussing cultural issues in Athens on June 13.

But his office said Greece was refusing landing permission because the plane bears Macedonian symbols. It said that in April, Greek civil aviation authorities barred Macedonia's national airline from using Greek airspace because of the company's name, Macedonian Air Transport, or MAT.

"The latest move goes against international norms and principles and it does not contribute to the development of good neighborly relations and sharing common European and democratic values," the president's office said in a statement.

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"Greece has a precise policy, which it has been following ... for many years now, concerning the regulation of landing permission for aircraft from the neighboring country," foreign ministry spokesman Giorgos Koumoutsakos said without elaborating.

Separately, Greece complained that Macedonia had prevented a Greek military convoy from passing through Macedonia on its way to Kosovo to participate in the NATO-led peacekeeping mission there, known as KFOR.

The convoy was stopped on Tuesday at the Greek-Macedonian border "in violation of the agreed procedure that has been in place for the past eight years," Koumoutsakos said at the time.

Macedonian foreign ministry spokesman Vasko Andonovski said the convoy of 25 vehicles and 123 Greek soldiers was stopped because the Greeks failed to present the correct documents.

Koumoutsakos said on Thursday that NATO and KFOR were dealing with the issue.

However, NATO headquarters in Brussels said they were not involved, while in Kosovo, KFOR spokesman Lt. Jean-Luc Cotard described it as "an administrative problem between Greece and FYROM," using the official name of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.


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[Prokomenos]

Im sure the Greek government is very upset with this.
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[Hellenika]

Originally Posted by Angelo
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"The latest move goes against international norms and principles and it does not contribute to the development of good neighborly relations and sharing common European and democratic values," the president's office said in a statement.

They are over there clearly making territorial claims on a part of Greece and the president of these has the nerve to make that statement?!?!!

[LadyMontreal]

BRAVO ELLADA !!! It's about time Greece puts her foot down once and for all.

Some info for those who don't know....a part of Skopia was Greek and WE greeks have every right to claim that part. So the Skopian baloney about Makedonia does not fly.
If anyone has a right to claim anything it's ELLAS and not them.

[TooGreek]

Latest news reveal the real reason as to why that plane was not allowed to fly over Greece.
The associated press in a special report announced that the name "FYROM LINES" on the plane in question, was totally covered by dirt, thus making it dangerous and highly improper to fly over the clear Greek blue skies.

[TooGreek]

I've got news for the malakes because they shot their own foot one too many times. That was not a "Greek" convoy, since Greece is part of NATO it is considered a "NATO" convoy. I can't wait to see what EU and NATO officials will have to say about that.

[Prokomenos]

Originally Posted by TooGreek
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I've got news for the malakes because they shot their own foot one too many times. That was not a "Greek" convoy, since Greece is part of NATO it is considered a "NATO" convoy. I can't wait to see what EU and NATO officials will have to say about that.

Good Im glad they did that then. Keep us informed on what happens.

[Hellenika]

Originally Posted by TooGreek
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Latest news reveal the real reason as to why that plane was not allowed to fly over Greece.
The associated press in a special report announced that the name "FYROM LINES" on the plane in question, was totally covered by dirt, thus making it dangerous and highly improper to fly over the clear Greek blue skies.

So this whole thing was just a big misunderstanding
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[Napalm]

Originally Posted by TooGreek
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I've got news for the malakes because they shot their own foot one too many times. That was not a "Greek" convoy, since Greece is part of NATO it is considered a "NATO" convoy. I can't wait to see what EU and NATO officials will have to say about that.

Good points! They want to join NATO but i won't look good now that they've banned NATO branded convoys!