It took until 2018 for the two nations to finally sign the Prespa Agreement, a landmark treaty that saw the country rename itself the "Republic of North Macedonia." In return, they dropped the specific references to Alexander in public infrastructure. The airport was renamed "International Airport Skopje," and the statues remain, but the overt state-sponsored claim on the ancient king was dialed back.
Not for its gold, but for its name.
For the diplomats and ministers who must navigate this field, the only certainty is danger. The Prespa Agreement is a fragile bandage on a 2,300-year-old wound. As long as nationalism exists, as long as identity politics thrives, and as long as a bronze statue of a man on a horse can make one nation cheer and another weep, the ghost of Alexander the Great will march on. It took until 2018 for the two nations
For modern Greece, the position is absolute and non-negotiable. Alexander the Great was a Greek. He spoke Greek, worshipped the Greek Olympian gods (claiming descent from Heracles and Achilles), was educated by the Greek philosopher Aristotle, and his father, Philip II, unified the Greek city-states (with Alexander later crushing the rebel Thebes to cement that unity). For the diplomats and ministers who must navigate
— The World News
The "diplomatic minefield" over Alexander the Great refers to the intense historical and political dispute between North Macedonia For modern Greece, the position is absolute and