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U.S. Congress Acquiesces - Adds FYROM to NATO Expansion Bill Vital to Macedonia's Future

On Sept. 29, the NATO Freedom Consolidation Act was introduced in the U.S. Senate with the aim of enlarging NATO including membership for Macedonia, according to comments made by the bill's sponsors Senators Richard Lugar and Bill Frist.

This bill referred to Macedonia by that word, and not as FYROM (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia).

The House version of the bill (H.R. 987) also referred to Macedonia by its name.

On March 15, Senators Robert Menendez, Harry Reid and Joseph Biden, introduced an amendment to the Senate version, which added the epithet FYROM after the name Macedonia in each instance. The change was accepted without a formal vote.

Because the bills were nearly identical, the incorrect reference to the Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) being the only disparity, the two houses agreed to the change and it was sent to the president for his signature.

Since NATO membership is vital to Macedonia's future, once it got that far, it was not contested. Prior to the agreement by the two houses, however, there was a flurry of activity to have FYROM deleted from the legislation.

The State Department insists the U.S. has not changed position on the name. Other communications from the State Department note that Congress did not replace Republic of Macedonia, it just added the parenthetical (FYROM).

Congressman Mark Souder added his voice in support of Macedonia. On March 27, he and Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr. followed with a letter to President Bush. This letter pointed out that more than 120 countries around the world formally recognize Macedonia under its constitutional name and that Macedonian troops fight alongside Americans in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Introducing this insulting abbreviation will be a negative morale boost for our ally's support in the Middle East. The language in the passed legislation is thoughtless at best, reckless at worst and steps must be undertaken to resolve this issue."

Their letter formally requests that upon signing the bill, President Bush take the opportunity to reiterate American policy regarding the name of the Republic of Macedonia.