"Fresh thinking and new leadership is required to put Australia's national interests ahead of the interests of Greece which has been pursuing a destabilising and unsustainable foreign policy toward Macedonian and Turkish integration into the EU"

So the Slavs of Northern Macedonia are continuing their 'alliance' with Turkey.

I have a deal to make with the Slavs. We will give them back the lands of Florina (that is the ONLY place where these people are from in Greece), IF they support Greece's claim to take back Constantinople, Smyrna and the hinterland, Eastern Thrace, and the Pontus area of the Black Sea.

Gillard shouldn't get any further out of her depth than she already is ,she has her own Pensioners starving through her largess with the money that they contributed to Australian savings , Gillard needs to attend to the mess she has made of her Innovative Meanderings in OZ before she bothers anyone else with her Weird Welsh Philosophy .

I agree with you Savva. You should move there, you belong to middle east, not europe.

For those not in the know, the name Lerin is the alternative name for Florina. I think it is Turkish. How ironic after your intended slur, Lerin.

Anyway, Eastern Thrace and Constantinople are NOT part of the Middle East. And I daresay most of Anatolia (or Asia Minor) are not considered part of the Middle East either.

But I suspect you were implying that the Greeks look Middle Eastern.

We can take that two ways.

1) Being Middle Eastern looking, Greeks do not belong in Europe, or
2) We look Middle Eastern, and that is a slur in itself, because Middle Eastern looking people are looked down upon.

The Slavs of Northern Macedonia appear to doing what the Greeks of Cyprus are doing at the moment. Looking to alternative benefactors. Cyprus and Greece building bridges with Israel. FYROM with Turkey.

Very disappoining in both cases as they are both occupiers.

Savvas,
We Macedonians come from all parts of Macedonia, including Lerin (Florina), Kostur (Kastoria), Voden (Edhessa), and Solun (Thessaloniki). But, our identity, our culture, our existence does not pose any sort of mortal threat to Greece or a separatist dream. That is just what the fascists of Greece have brainwashed you into believing. The truth is that many Aegean Macedonians are happy to remain Greek citizens, and raise their children in Greece. All they want is to preserve their culture, their language, and their faith. Time for Greece to learn how to make peace, and act like Christians for a change. This Greek vendetta against the Macedonians is a self-inflicted wound, and it couldn't come at a worse time for the Greek people, who have much more important work to do then hating their neighbors.

Hmmm...

The Macedonia Slavs of Thessaloniki? WHo are they? Where are they? All I ever hear is the people from Florina and the occasinal Kastorian, Aridaian or Edessian.

You do realise the absurdity of wanting to be known as Macedonians within Greece itself?

How do we differentiate between Greek Macedonians and Slav Macedonians.

What would happen if Greece decided to federate and create a nation state called Macedonia? What would happen to your identity?

You can preserve your culture, your faith, ESPECIALLY your language within Macedonia and Greece itself. Just use another name.

Just to clarify my last point re "Macedonia and Greece". I am talking about the state within Greeces' current border's, not FYROM.

What is often not mentioned is that there are three dimensions to this.

1) The name to be decided upon for use when FYROM and Greece interact bilaterally. No solution here as yet.
2) The name to be used by third states. This is where FYROM has had the most success with ahving other countries call them 'Macedonia'.
3) The name to be used in multilateral organisations like the UN, EU, etc. Here is where FYROM has been decided upon temporarily.

How long will Macedonian people in Australai have to wait for Julia Gilard to make policy changes!! its a shame that Australia still has not recognised Macedonia under its constitutional name in spite of enormous contribution that Macedonian people gave to this country. therefor they should nt be treated like FYROM, Slavs or Greeks....That is disciminating. We are simply Macedonians..
I think its time for Australia to say Macedonia and repair international image.

>>>>>> Savvas Tzionis <<<<<<<<<<<

ok i can go with the name north macedonia as long greece rename it self to its usefull name MALAKA thats right MALAKA

for some people who dont know what MALAKA is here is an explanation so we all are on the same page

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyWU-0ppug0

ENJOY

To Sawa Tzionis- Just to let you know there are no Greek macedonians and there are no slavic macedonians- simply there are just Macedonians.

How would you classify greek macedonian? or a greek Albanian? there a more than a million of Albanians living there now? And when did you learn that macedonians are greeks- 10 years a go. I am sure you had no idea about all this before that. Akso check the map of the Balkans from 1829 before king Otto from Germany founded his own greek state- its only arround Athens exactly where real greeks lived in the time of Alexander the great. Double check what happened in 1913 when Macedonians are presecuted and expelled from their land just to bring the greek refugees from asia minor.

Savvas,
My friend, the fact that you haven't heard of something doesn't mean a lot in this world. Be honest, how hard are you looking? And what incentive do Macedonians have to proclaim themselves openly, considering the history of the conflict and the current regime, which is too busy telling us what we are and threatening us when we disagree, not asking us.

We are a nation of 5 million, we cannot simply rename ourselves, not even if we wanted to, and certainly not because it's convenient for a belligerent neighbor who essentially hates our guts. We are Makedonci, in English that is Macedonians, and we have no other name, no secondary name.

Your position is that you have three names - sometimes you are Hellenes, sometimes you are Greeks, and now, you are Makedonnes as well? Ultimately, what you should name yourself is none of my business, it's up to you. But, if you seek an outside opinion, I think Greek is the perfect name for you. Since, according to the Greek view, Macedonia is not a nation but rather a region, then there is no confusion at all. You are simply Greeks - sounds great. If you want to emphasize that you are Greeks from Macedonia, then you can call yourselves that too, no problem. Greco-Macedonian, Macedonian-Greeks, Greeks of Macedonia, Hellenic Macedonians... many choices, all are very clear. As for us, yes, our language is Slavic, but we don't identify as Slavs, nor as Bulgarians, nor as Vardarians, or anything like that. Our name is Macedonians, that is OUR business.

It's not brain surgery, Savvas, it's just basic respect. We are going to be neighbors either way, it's best to make friends and focus on real problems and shared interests.

To some extent I don't care what you call yourselves, especially in your home.

However, lets look at this analogy. Its like someone was to come into a home and state that the living room belonged to them! Ridiculous!

On the name issue, Greece has made many concessions.

At the end of the day, FYROM will have the word Macedonia in the title. Why not accept that and move on to more important issues like language, cultural and property rights within Greek Macedonia.

PM Gillard should know,there are thousands of Macedonia emigrees in Australia.Also she should know 4 out of 5 permanent security members recognised the Republic of Macedonia with its constitutional name.As to the comment by Tzionis;its not only Lerin,Kostur Voden,Solun Macedonian,but right down to Olympus.You are dreaming of the "Big Idea"dont you?You are forgettin 400 years under the Ottoman Empire.Who owned whom?Macedonia was divided by the Big Powers illigally in 1913.Macedonia never belonged to Greece.The fact is,Greece belonged to ancient Macedonians,not the othere way around.Can we claim Alexanders Empire as our lands?I quess not,so Greece cannot claim Macedonia is Greek for same reasons,or Ismir,Constantinopole as Greek.Just remember,Greek history stoped to exist in 338 BC untill 1829.

Mr. Savvas says this >>>
"To some extent I don't care what you call yourselves, especially in your home. However, lets look at this analogy. Its like someone was to come into a home and state that the living room belonged to them! Ridiculous!"

Your analogy is deeply flawed. The Macedonians are not "visitors" in Macedonia, they are an aboriginal people who come from all parts of Macedonia, including the part in Greece since 1913. No one is attempting to change borders, and no one is capable to change the if they wanted to. So that part is essentially a huge Greek lie.

The Greek people will always be welcome to live in Macedonia, regardless of what happens, they have nothing to fear. No one is seeking a fascist "pure state" - that is the language of another era long gone. Macedonia is multi-ethnic - always has been always will be. If Greeks want to honor aspects of Macedonian history, there is no harm in it. But Greeks have no "copyright" on Macedonia, or on Macedonian history, not at all.

Mr. Savvas says >>>
"On the name issue, Greece has made many concessions. At the end of the day, FYROM will have the word Macedonia in the title. Why not accept that and move on to more important issues like language, cultural and property rights within Greek Macedonia."

Greece has not made one iota of concession! Rather, it has destabilized the region and victimized a poorer, weaker neighbor as means of oppressing Greece's own ethnic minority, one of many ethnic minorities in the country, that have no human rights to express themselves or to preserve their culture.

It's the same dynamic you see in Greek-Albanian relations, in Greek-Bulgarian relations, in Greek-Turkish relations as well. The pattern is familiar.

[Deleted for abuse.]

Sawas,you are right by saying;its like coming to my living room and claim it is yours.The problem is,you Greeks came to Macedonia and to our living rooms in 1913.Ever since,you Greeks want to expropriate not only our living room,but,my name,my identity,my culture and language.Dont you think,your thesis is RIDICOLOUS as you put it?Who is in whos living room?On the Greek concessions,what do you mean?Greece expropriated our land through the Big Powers in 1913.Greece has nothing to conceed,Macedonia is not theirs to make any concessions.You talk about property,language,culture and identity within Greece.Read what Mitsotakis said in 1995 on the question of the recognition of the Macedonian minority within Greeces borders.How can a Cypriot claim he is Macedonian(Droutsas)who is born in Cypros from a Cypriot father and a Austrian mother,but the indigenouse Macedonians cannot identify themselves as Macedonians in their own living room.The Macedonian minority in Greece are being prosecuted for simply identifying themselves as Macedonians.Former G.Papandreos adviser on a local TV interview was complaining,why the Macedonian people are using"sto prajsh".I posed a simple question to him on live TV.He was deffending the Palestinians,blaming Israel.The question was:What is the difference between the Palestinians and the Macedonians in Greece.He never answered the question,came back to it on three occassions by skiping the real issue.He had no guts to come back and address the issue.Thats your civilized Greece?.

Hello Macedon,

Please explain this statement...
"you Greeks want to expropriate not only our living room"

This statement is silly.
"The Macedonian minority in Greece are being prosecuted for simply identifying themselves as Macedonians"

Who are the indigenous people of the big towns of Macedonia, Halkithiki, even the Slavophones, who identify as Greeks? Are they not Macedonians? Its quite funny. If your wish to be allowed to claim a Macedonian identity was to start to create traction within Greece, the obvious reaction would be for the Greek Macedonians to start calling themselves simply Macedonians! Now you may think this would simply be a political move, but isn't part of the Slav-Macedonian movement political?

This land grab that occured in 1913... like I said... I am happy for Greece to give you Florina... as long as you assist Greece is taking back its property in Eastern Thrace, Smyrna, Pontus, and Constantinople.