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History of the Republic of Macedonia

This article is about the History of the Republic of Macedonia. For history of the whole Macedonian region, see Macedonia.

After the First Balkan War of 1912-13, Vardar Macedonia was made part of Serbia as Vardarska banovina ("Province of Vardar") and subsequently the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, whose 1929 constitution also called the area Vardarska banovina.

Following World War II, Yugoslavia was reconstituted as a Communist state under the leadership of the Communist Party led by Josip Broz Tito. In 1944, most of the former Vardar province was made into a separate republic of "Macedonia" (northernmost parts of the province became part of Serbia). In 1946, the province was given status as an autonomous "People's Republic of Macedonia" in the new Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In the 1963 Constitution of Yugoslavia, it was slightly renamed, to "Socialist Republic of Macedonia" (like all the others).

By creating this republic in the southernmost part of Yugoslavia and including "Macedonia" in its name, Tito's government offended Greece which had its own province of Macedonia around Thessaloniki and interpreted this to mean laying claim on Greek territory. The new Yugoslav authorities also encouraged the development of the Macedonian Slav nationality and Macedonian language, which in turn partly offended Bulgaria which had aimed to integrate the previously similarly inclined Slavs of Macedonia into its own nation.

During the Greek Civil War (1944-1949), many Macedonians (regardless of ethnicity) participated in the ELAS resistance movement organized by the Greek Communist Party. ELAS and Yugoslavia were on good terms until 1949, when they split due to Tito's lack of allegiance to Stalin (cf. Cominform). After the end of the war, the ELAS fighters who took refuge in southern Yugoslavia weren't all permitted to return to Greece: only those who considered themselves Greeks were allowed, whereas those who considered themselves Macedonians were barred. These events also contributed to the bad state of Yugoslav-Greek relations in Macedonia.

On September 17, 1991, the Macedonian republic declared independence from Yugoslavia as the Republic of Macedonia. However, international recognition of the new country was delayed by Greece's objection to the use of what it considered a Hellenic name and flag symbol, as well as a controversial quote from the Republic's constitution. To compromise, the United Nations recognised the state under the name of "the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (FYROM) in 1993.

Greece was still dissatisfied and it imposed a trade blockade in February 1994. The sanctions were lifted in September 1995 after the Republic of Macedonia changed its flag and the constitution. The two countries agreed to normalize relations but the state's name remains a source of local and international controversy. The usage of each name remains controversial to supporters of the other.

After the state was admitted to the United Nations under the FYROM name, other international organisations adopted the same convention. Most diplomats are accredited to the republic using the FYROM designation. Conversely, at least 40 countries have recognised the country by its constitutional name – the Republic of Macedonia, rather than FYROM. A permanent agreement on how the Macedonian republic should be referred to internationally has not yet been reached.

During the Kosovo War of 1999, FYROM co-operated with NATO, but managed to stay out of the conflict. Some 360,000 Albanian refugees from Kosovo entered FYROM during the war, threatening to disrupt the balance between the Macedonian and Albanian ethnic groups in the country. Many later returned to Kosovo, but ethnic tensions grew.

In the spring of 2001, Albanian rebels calling themselves the National Liberation Army (probably made up of former KLA members) took up arms in the west of FYROM, demanding that the constitution be rewritten to grant Albanians equal rights. The guerillas received support from Albanians in NATO-controlled Kosovo and the UCPMB guerilla in the demilitarized zone between Kosovo and the rest of Serbia. The fighting was concentrated in and around Tetovo, the second largest city in FYROM.

After a joint NATO-Serb crackdown on UCPMB and NLA supporters in Kosovo, EU officials were able to negotiate a cease-fire in June. The government would give ethnic Albanians greater civil rights, and the guerilla groups would voluntarily relinquish their weapons to NATO monitors. This agreement was a success, and in August 3500 NATO soldiers conducted "Operations Essential Harvest " to retrieve the arms. Directly after the operation finished in September, the NLA officially dissolved itself.

On February 26, 2004, President Boris Trajkovski died in a plane crash on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The results of the official investigation revealed that the cause of the plane accident was procedural mistakes by the crew, committed during the approach to land at Mostar airport.

See also


Last updated: 01-20-2005 13:06:56