SKOPJE, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev on Friday congratulated his Greek counterpart Alexis Tsipras via social media over the Greek Parliament's approval of Prespa Agreement, which will rename Macedonia.
"Congratulation my friend Alexis Tsipras, together with our people we reached a historical victory. Long live the Prespa Agreement! For eternal peace and progress of the Balkan and in Europe," posted Zaev in his official Facebook and Twitter profiles.
The UN-brokered Prespa Agreement, under which Macedonia's constitutional name would be changed to "the Republic of North Macedonia", was passed by Greek lawmakers with a narrow majority of 153 against 146 on Friday.
The deal reached last summer ended the decades long name dispute between the two countries.
Since 1991, when the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) declared independence from Yugoslavia picking the name Macedonia, the same name as a province in northern Greece, Greeks protested, fearing territorial claims by the new Balkan state.
Earlier this month on Jan. 11, Macedonian Parliament members voted in favor to endorse the constitutional changes paving the way to changing the country's name to the Republic of North Macedonia.
