US State Nimitz April 13

For the third and last time ... Nimetz.

Poor Greeks ... Foreign Minister Ilinka Mitreva upset their tummy! Greeks, bend over, Ilinka is wearing a stap-on!

Daily Press Briefing for April 13 -- Transcript

MR. BOUCHER: I don't have anything to say right now. I'll have to get you something on it.

QUESTION: But may I go to Skopje for a moment and express my pain. Mr. Boucher, the Foreign Minster of FYROM Ilinka Mitreva made yesterday a mockery of international law. She rejected the U.S. proposal by Matthew Nimetz as "unacceptable," insisting that the name is the constitutional name, "Republic of Macedonia," recognized, as she said, by a bunch of countries, Member of the UN, including the United States.

How do you respond to her provocative statements since, actually, it's a slap to the U.S. and the UN involvement, saying above all it's "a joke," however, we are still available for negotiations?

MR. BOUCHER: Well, I think there's a couple of things to say. First, when you mentioned Mr. Nimitz, I think meant to refer to him as the UN Envoy -- United Nations. He's working on their behalf there. We have supported this effort by the UN. We have encouraged all the parties to work with him and seen the putting forward of the proposal as constructive. But beyond that, I don't think I have anything new.

QUESTION: From that point, anything to do because essentially that is a deadlock?

MR. BOUCHER: Well, we'll have to see how it turns out. We've encouraged the parties to work with Mr. Nimitz. We've encouraged people to work constructively with him and we've seen his role as a constructive one. And we've said we'll look forward to recognizing the result of discussions that can reach agreement on this issue.

QUESTION: One more. Mr. Boucher, how do you explain the fact that your government recognized a name created by the Communist former Yugoslavia under Josip Tito in the 1940s above the name your real name (inaudible) that time, "Republic of Vardaska," V-a-r-d-a-s-k-a, (inaudible) for a solution.

MR. BOUCHER: I explained our policy of recognition at the time that I announced it. I don't have anything more to say today. I don't know what we said at the time that Tito might have changed the name, but I do know what we said at the time when we decided the name under which we would recognize Macedonia.