EU Enlargement Commissioner, Stefan Fule

Speaking at the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee, Fule expressed hope that the name dispute can be resolved so Macedonia can advance on its path towards the EU.

“It is time for us to do something about the name issue,” Fuele said on Monday, insisting that EU enlargement would be incomplete without all western Balkan countries.

Fule’s remarks came after a blow for Macedonia at the European Council Summit last week, when EU leaders decided to leave the country off the agenda entirely.

Instead, the summit made Serbia and Croatia its priorities in the Balkan region.

Macedonia obtained EU candidate status back in December 2005 and European Commission reports have recommended a start to membership talks each year since 2009.

But the country has never been offered a date for talks owing to a Greek blockade related to the dispute over its name.

Greece insists that Macedonia’s name implies territorial claims to its own northern province, also called Macedonia.

Last autumn, Bulgaria joined Greece in blocking Macedonia’s accession bid, alleging discrimination and hate speech towards Bulgarians inside and outside Macedonia.

But many analysts say that the name dispute remains by far the main obstacle for the country.

In April, coinciding with the release of the latest European Commission special report on Macedonia, the UN mediator in the name talks, Matthew Nimetz, tabled a fresh proposal for a solution to the dispute.

Nimetz refused to divulge his suggested formula but media reports speculated that it contained some version of the words ‘Upper Macedonia’.

There was official silence from both sides about the proposal with both countries saying they were still considering it.

Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski has insisted he will not accept any new name without putting it to a referendum.