Report: Bolivia Recognises Macedonia's Official Name

Late on Monday evening Macedonian Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki received a letter from his Bolivian counterpart David Choquehuanca through Skopje’s UN mission.

The Bolivian government will now use Macedonia’s constitutional name, the Republic of Macedonia, instead of the country's title used in the UN and other international organisations - the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, FYROM. Bolivia is the 131th country to recognise Skopje under its constitutional name.

Bolivia's decision comes several days after local media reported that Zimbabwe has now recognised Macedonia's constitutional name.

The two countries' governments established diplomatic relations on January 13.

The recognitions come just a week before negotiators from Macedonia and Greece are set to meet with UN mediator Matthew Nimetz in an effort to resolve their longstanding dispute.

Athens and Skopje have been locked in a row over Macedonia's official name for almost two decades.

Greece claims the name implies territorial claims against its northern province, also named Macedonia.

In 2008, the name spat escalated when Athens blocked its smaller neighbour from entering NATO, despite the country using the previously agreed UN provisional reference, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

Last autumn, the same happened in the EU, where Greece blocked Skopje from starting accession talks.