THESSALONIKI – Greece seeks a harmonious co-operation with its Balkan neighbors and advocates their European prospects, but this requires similar behavior on their part, President Prokopis Pavlopoulos said on Friday, during a visit to the city hall of Halkidona, a city near Thessaloniki.

Pavlopoulos spoke of Macedonia’s “indisputable” Greekness and, commenting on FYROM’s stance on the name issue, said it is a “blatant counterfeiting of history and exudes irredentism”.

He also commented on Albania and its human rights record concerning minorities and the right to ownership, saying it must respect EU rules. We are the ones who are saying even now that Albania must find its European path but for this to happen Albania must adopt the behavior of a candidate country for accession,? he said.

Greece wishes to cooperate with both FYROM and Albania and sees favourably their European perspective, Pavlopoulos continued, but the countries are “undermining their prospects? with their stance.