"R. Nicholas Burns said in December 2006 that Romania deserved the honor to hold this event due to its contribution to the Alliance's common effort in the War in Afghanistan and for stability in the Iraq War. Romania has been a member of NATO since 14 March 2004. An invitation to join the Alliance was not extended to Macedonia. Greece had threatened on several occasions to veto the country's NATO bid due to the longstanding naming dispute over the latter's name. The last UN proposal before the summit was the name ""Republic of Macedonia (Skopje)"", which was rejected by Greece."
"NATO and an invitation for those three countries was planned to be issued on the NATO summit in Bucharest (Romania), in April 2008. Before the beginning of the summit, the American president Bush said that NATO would make a historic decision on the admission of three Balkan nations: Croatia, Albania and Macedonia; and that the United States strongly supported inviting these nations to join NATO. However, during the summit NATO leaders decided not to extend a membership invitation to Macedonia because Greece vetoed the move after the dispute over the name issue. The Macedonian representative and negotiator with Greece in"
"coming NATO accession talks for the country, in the Foreign Ministers' summit on 6 March 2008 in Brussels. Meanwhile, in a newer poll in Greece, the ""composite name that includes the name Macedonia for the country"" seemed, for the first time, to be marginally more popular than the previous more hard-lined stance of ""no Macedonia in the title"" (43% vs 42%). In the same poll, 84% of the respondents were pro-veto in the country's NATO accession talks, if the issue had not been resolved by then. All Greek political parties except the small nationalist party Popular Orthodox Rally support the"
"or rejected. Greek foreign minister Dora Bakoyannis told journalists that the proposal does not meet Greece's stated objectives. The Macedonian foreign minister, Antonio Milošoski, stated that any reasonable solution that did not impose on the identity of ethnic Macedonians would be explored. However, he also stated that if Greece were to veto the country's entrance into NATO, compromise talks would be stopped. Meanwhile, police in Skopje said they were investigating death threats against academics, journalists and politicians who publicly favour reaching a compromise in the dispute with Greece. On 3 April 2008, at NATO's summit in Bucharest, Greece presented its"
"hosted NATO military exercises and high-profile meetings in 2009. The unresolved conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh would present a major roadblock to membership. Azerbaijan made its policy of not being aligned with a geopolitical/military structure official when it became a full member of the Non-Aligned Movement in 2011. Cyprus is the only EU member state that is neither a NATO member state nor a member of the PfP program. The Parliament of Cyprus voted in February 2011 to apply for membership in the program, but President Demetris Christofias vetoed the decision as it would hamper his attempts to negotiate an end to"
"inviting the country under its UN provisional reference (FYROM) was backed by Turkey, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Denmark, Bulgaria and Norway; Germany, the United Kingdom and Canada were reported neutral. According to polls, 95% of Greeks believed the veto appropriate, while only 1% opposed it. Then Foreign Affairs Minister Dora Bakoyannis stated that her country would continue to focus on promoting its neighbour's NATO and EU accession as soon as the naming issue is resolved. Since coming to power in 2006, and especially since the Republic of Macedonia's non-invitation to NATO in 2008, the nationalist VMRO-DPMNE government pursued"
"FYROM's EU bid, although it is a bilateral question, Greece—as any other EU member—has the right to veto"". On 5 March 2008, Nimetz visited Skopje to try to find common ground on his proposal, but announced that ""the gap remains"". As earlier anticipated, on 6 March 2008, in the NATO Foreign Minister's summit in Brussels, Greek minister Dora Bakoyannis announced that ""as regards the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, ... , unfortunately, the policy followed by our neighbouring country in its relations with Greece, on the one side with intransigence and on the other with a logic of nationalist and"
"functioning in a protest against joining NATO. The parliament was blocked from January 25, 2008 till March 4, 2008 (on 29 February 2008 faction leaders agreed on a protocol of mutual understanding). US President George W. Bush and both nominees for President of the United States in the 2008 election, U.S. senator Barack Obama and U.S. senator John McCain, did offer backing to Ukraine's membership of NATO. Russian reactions were negative. At the NATO summit in Bucharest in April 2008, NATO decided it would not yet offer membership to Georgia and Ukraine; nevertheless, Nato Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer"
"Vilnius Group The Vilnius Group was an organization of NATO aspirant countries, created in May 2000, aimed at practical cooperation, exchange of information and lobbying for their candidacy in the NATO capitals. As motto of the Vilnius group was chosen: The members were: Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Republic of Macedonia, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia. On March 29, 2004, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia joined NATO at the 2004 Istanbul summit. Albania and Croatia joined the alliance in 2009. Macedonia had been expected to join in 2009, but because of the Macedonia naming dispute, Greece vetoed Macedonia's"
"(MAP). By the time of the Bucharest summit in April 2008, it was evident that the majority of the European NATO countries were not ready to support the American lead and offer MAP to Ukraine and Georgia, although the US president George W. Bush himself was lobbying both Georgia and Ukraine. The Russian campaign of pressure and threat had likely contributed to that outcome. Germany and France said that offering membership plan to Ukraine and Georgia would be ""an unnecessary offense"" to Russia. At the summit, the alliance did not offer a MAP to Georgia or Ukraine. The opponents of"
"Poland became NATO members. Finally, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovenia, and Slovakia joined in 2004. In 2009, Croatia and Albania joined. In 2008, Ukraine and Georgia were told that they will also eventually become members. The Republic of Macedonia's application process is finished, but it is blocked by Greece. Thus, 22 out of 28 NATO states are among the 28 EU members, another two are members of the EEA, and one more is an EU candidate and also a member of the European Union Customs Union. On 22 May 2007, the member states of the European Union have agreed"
"to block its neighbor's application for NATO membership at the Bucharest NATO Summit in 2008. However, the court also affirmed that it did not have jurisdiction to order Greece not to bring the issue up in other fora as it should be assumed that states ""act in good faith."" After nearly two years of separate meetings between UN Mediator Matthew Nimetz and the two negotiators, a joint round of negotiations occurred in the UN Headquarters in New York. The UN mediator presented recommendations and ideas to both parties to consider; however, these proposals are not yet known to the general"
"2006), La Francophonie (since 2001). In 2005, the country was officially recognised as a European Union candidate state. At the NATO 2008 Bucharest summit, Macedonia failed to gain an invitation to join the organisation because Greece vetoed the move after the dispute over the name issue. The USA had previously expressed support for an invitation, but the summit then decided to extend an invitation only on condition of a resolution of the naming conflict with Greece. In March 2009, the European Parliament expressed support for Macedonia's EU candidacy and asked the EU Commission to grant the country a date for"
"violated the Interim Accord by blocking its NATO membership. In 1995, the two countries signed an agreement by which Macedonia agreed to use the provisional reference in international organizations, while Greece pledged not to block Macedonia's integration into the European Union and NATO. In March 2009, the European Parliament expressed support for the Republic of Macedonia's EU candidacy and asked the EU to grant the country a date for the start of accession talks by the end of 2009, regretting that the country is waiting three years after the country was granted a candidate status, which makes a demoralizing effect"
"participation in NATO intervention. Javier Solana was the NATO Secretary-General at the time of intervention. Aznar's Government supported subsequent interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq as well. On 17 February 2008 Assembly of Kosovo adopted its second unilateral declaration of independence. Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija was not under ""de facto"" control of Government of Serbia at the time of unilateral declaration of independence and was under the control of the United Nations UNMIK and NATO-led KFOR peacekeeping force missions. Spain, together with Greece, Cyprus, Romania and Slovakia among the European Union member states refused to recognize independence of Kosovo"
"if attacked temporarily lifted support for NATO membership in polls. A May 2017 poll by Pew showed that support for membership had risen to 47 percent. Austria and Switzerland are both members of the Partnership for Peace, and border NATO member states. Malta is also a member of the Partnership for Peace and the European Union. However, each country has a long-standing policy of neutrality. Cyprus is the only Member state of the European Union that is not a member of the Partnership for Peace, with any treaty blocked by Turkey's concerns regarding the Cyprus dispute. According to Minister of"
"and refused to supply Greek troops to the UN peacekeeping mission in Bosnia. In NATO, Greece's position was diametrically opposed to that of Turkey, which supported the Bosnian government. In December 1994, after official talks with Milošević in Athens, Papandreou reiterated that the positions of Greece and Serbia on the Bosnia issue were virtually identical. A Milošević proposal for a confederation of Greece and Serbia with the Republic of Macedonia failed to gain support among any faction in Greece. According to University of Amsterdam professor 'C. Wiebes', the Hellenic National Intelligence Service (EYP) systematically sabotaged NATO operations in Bosnia in"
"2018 Macedonian referendum A referendum was held in the Republic of Macedonia on 30 September 2018, with voters asked whether they support EU and NATO membership by accepting the agreement struck between the Republic of Macedonia and Greece in June 2018. It is related to the 27-year long dispute between Republic of Macedonia and Greece over the former's name, an issue which has prevented the accession of Macedonia to the European Union and NATO. The government had carried out a social media campaign about the issue of the referendum. The proposal ultimately failed on a constitutional ground because the turnout"
"in a country that had been part of the Soviet Union. At the April 2008 summit in Bucharest, Romania, NATO agreed to the accession of Croatia and Albania and both countries joined NATO in April 2009. Ukraine and Georgia were also told that they could eventually become members. The issue of Georgian and Ukrainian membership in NATO prompted harsh criticism from Russia, as did NATO plans for a missile defence system. Studies for this system began in 2002, with negotiations centered on anti-ballistic missiles being stationed in Poland and the Czech Republic. Though NATO leaders gave assurances that the system"
"blocks the Republic of Macedonia's accession to NATO, due to the disagreement over the use of the name Macedonia. Turkey similarly opposes the participation of the Republic of Cyprus with NATO institutions as long as the Cyprus dispute is not resolved. Since the 1991 Rome summit, when the delegations of its member states officially offered cooperation with Europe's newly democratic states, NATO has addressed and further defined the expectations and procedure for adding new members. The 1994 Brussels Declaration reaffirmed the principles in Article 10 and led to the ""Study on NATO Enlargement"". Published in September 1995, the study outlined"
"23 voting against and 4 abstaining. A simple majority was needed at this stage. The decisive vote on the amendment is expected in January 2019. 2018 Macedonian referendum A referendum was held in the Republic of Macedonia on 30 September 2018, with voters asked whether they support EU and NATO membership by accepting the agreement struck between the Republic of Macedonia and Greece in June 2018. It is related to the 27-year long dispute between Republic of Macedonia and Greece over the former's name, an issue which has prevented the accession of Macedonia to the European Union and NATO. The"
"the Cyprus dispute and demilitarize the island. Turkey, a full member of NATO, is likely to veto any attempt by Cyprus to engage with NATO until the dispute is resolved. The winner of Cyprus' presidential election in February 2013, Nicos Anastasiades, has stated that he intends to apply for membership in the PfP program soon after taking over. Finland participates in nearly all sub-areas of the Partnership for Peace programme, and has provided peacekeeping forces to both the Afghanistan and Kosovo missions. However, a 2005 poll indicated that the public was strongly against NATO membership. The possibility of Finland's membership"
"in Bucharest on 4 April 2008. The possibility of a failure of the ascension talks is met with unease by the ethnic Albanian part of the population that places more importance on EU and NATO membership than on the Macedonia name issue. Following the declaration of Athens for a veto, the press in Skopje reported increased intervention from the United States to solve the dispute, through Victoria Nuland, the US NATO ambassador. Antonio Milošoski announced that ""Nimetz's proposal remains unchanged"". The daily newspaper ""Dnevnik"" reported that diplomatic sources claimed that this would be the last attempt from the American leadership"
"hoped that Cyprus would join as a unified island. However, northern Cyprus has remained outside the control of the internationally recognised government of the Republic of Cyprus since the Turkish invasion of 1974. The Annan Plan for the resolution of the Cyprus dispute was rejected by Greek Cypriots in a 2004 referendum. The accession treaties were signed on 16 April 2003 in Athens, admitting Malta, Cyprus, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary. Romania and Bulgaria were not among the 10 chosen to accede in 2004. Finally, on 1 May 2004, the Union expanded from 15"
"revealed that 94% of the Greek population were completely opposed to the bombing), and Greece's subjequent refusal to recognize the Kosovo Unilateral Declaration of Independence, backing the Serbian stance on this issue as one of the five European Union's member states that have done so, also have contributed to these relations. Greece is a strong supporter of the EU membership candidacy for Serbia, and in 2003 it has proposed the ""Agenda 2014"" for boosting the Euro-Atlantic integration integration of all the Western Balkan states into the Union. The two countries cooperate in security, tourism, culture and agriculture, with Greece being"
"the EU in 2013. Macedonia also received candidate status in 2005, while the other Balkan countries have expressed a desire to join the EU but at some date in the future. Greece has been a member of NATO since 1952. In 2004 Bulgaria, Romania and Slovenia became members of NATO. Croatia and Albania joined NATO in 2009. In 2006, Montenegro separated from the state of Serbia and Montenegro, also making Serbia a separate state. On October 17, 2007 Croatia became a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2008-2009 term, while Bosnia and Herzegovina became a non-permanent"
"the name issue complained that the Republic of Macedonia was punished not because it had failed to fulfill NATO accession criteria, but because it had been trying to defend its national identity. The NATO leaders agreed to extend a membership invitation for Macedonia as soon as the name issue with Greece is resolved, but until now no progress has been made in the negotiations between the Republic of Macedonia and Greece to resolve the name issue. In November 2008, Republic of Macedonia filed a lawsuit against Greece before the International Court of Justice in The Hague accusing Athens that it"
"summit by 30 states: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Moldova, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and the United States. Four states did not sign the treaty when they joined NATO, despite a preliminary agreement to do so: Slovenia and the three Baltic states: Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia. These states are unable to do so because the treaty cannot be joined until all the original signatories have ratified it. Ratified by 4 of the 30 signatories: Moldova and Georgia said"
"Greek officials had repeatedly stated that Athens would veto the country's accession in the absence of a resolution to the dispute. The Greek foreign minister, Dora Bakoyannis, stated that ""the Hellenic Parliament, under any composition, will not ratify the accession of the neighbouring country to the EU and NATO if the name issue is not resolved beforehand."" The Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis had initially denied ever committing himself unequivocally to exercising Greece's right of veto, stating instead that he would only block the neighbouring country's application for EU and NATO membership if it sought to be admitted as the"
"of the summit was that Hungary, Poland, and the Czech Republic were invited to join NATO. Fellow Visegrád Group member Slovakia was excluded from this invitation. Slovakia had held a referendum on NATO membership in May 1997, but turnout in the referendum failed to achieve the required 50% of eligible voters and government sabotage was blamed, which in turn was viewed as one of a string of undemocratic measures taken by Prime Minister Vladimír Mečiar. A majority of NATO members reportedly supported France's proposal to also immediately invite Romania and Slovenia as members, but this was strongly opposed by U.S."
"invitation, leaving it as the only former member of the Vilnius group not to be a member of NATO by 2009. Vilnius Group The Vilnius Group was an organization of NATO aspirant countries, created in May 2000, aimed at practical cooperation, exchange of information and lobbying for their candidacy in the NATO capitals. As motto of the Vilnius group was chosen: The members were: Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Republic of Macedonia, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia. On March 29, 2004, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia joined NATO at the 2004 Istanbul summit. Albania and Croatia joined the"
"eight members had been dropped by all members except Germany and Austria. Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia became members on 1 May 2004, but some areas of cooperation in the European Union will apply to some of the EU member states at a later date. These are: Since 1974 Cyprus has been divided between the Greek south (the Republic of Cyprus) and the northern areas under Turkish military occupation (the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus). The Republic of Cyprus is recognised as the sole legitimate government by most countries, including the entire"
"EU by virtue of ""de jure"" being part of the Republic of Cyprus. It was hoped that the accession of the south in 2004 would provide the catalyst for unification so that a unitary state of Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots could join the EU on 1 May 2004. In the end, Turkish Cypriots supported reunification, also because it would allow them to join the EU. However, the unification plan was voted down by the Greek Cypriots and Cyprus joined the EU in the face of the Republic of Cyprus. , the EU recognises the north as being outside the"