Macedonia has urged NATO to accept it as a member when the alliance holds a summit in Chicago in May, despite Greek opposition due to a long-running row over its name.
Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov wrote in a letter to NATO leaders that the Balkan country should be able to join the military alliance.
Greece says the use of the name Macedonia suggests a territorial claim to the northern Greek province of the same name.
Skopje says that changing the name would be a denial of its national identity and language.
An invitation for Macedonia to join NATO was on the agenda of NATO's 2008 Bucharest summit but was suspended due to a Greek veto.
Macedonia was admitted to the United Nations in 1993 under the provisional name, the "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia."
Compiled from agency reports
Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov wrote in a letter to NATO leaders that the Balkan country should be able to join the military alliance.
Greece says the use of the name Macedonia suggests a territorial claim to the northern Greek province of the same name.
Skopje says that changing the name would be a denial of its national identity and language.
An invitation for Macedonia to join NATO was on the agenda of NATO's 2008 Bucharest summit but was suspended due to a Greek veto.
Macedonia was admitted to the United Nations in 1993 under the provisional name, the "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia."
Compiled from agency reports
