UN envoy Matthew Nimetz said that progress has been made in the negotiations between the foreign ministers of Macedonia and Greece aimed at solving the long-standing name dispute, but still there are difficult issues that need to be resolved.

Nimetz met the Macedonian and Greek foreign ministers Nikola Dimitrov and Nikos Kotzias in Vienna on March 31 after the two sides exchanged draft proposals on the resolution of the dispute, which centres around Athens’ objections to the use of the name “Macedonia”. This followed the Dimitrov-Kotzias meeting in Skopje on March 23.

“We had a productive and constructive meeting and set out a path of work. And while difficult issues remain to be resolved, I believe the talks are moving in the right direction," Nimetz said, according to a tweet posted by United Nations Information Service (UNIS) in Vienna.

Nimetz said that two ministers are focused on long-term stability of the region and he hopes that the positive approach in the negotiations will continue.

“We have some progress, but as we are moving forward there are more difficult issues,” Dimitrov said.

Greek daily Kathimerini quoted Kotzias as saying after the six-hour talks that “both sides have taken stock of where they agree and where they don’t”.

“We have identified the major issues for each side and I hope that in our next meeting we will be ready to take a big step,” he said, without elaborating.

Kathimerini quoting diplomatic sources said that “Athens would consider it ideal if Skopje revised the wording of Article 49 of its constitution, which refers to diaspora citizens of FYROM [the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia], so that there are no hints of irredentism.”

Kotzias and Dimitrov will meet again on April 8 and, if there is progress, meetings at a higher level may follow, the Greek daily said.

Greece wants Macedonian to change its Constitution to reinforce the name change and to meet Greek demands for erga omnes, which means the use of the name by all sides, including internally. However, constitutional changes are not acceptable for Macedonia.

“The name issue process is in a delicate phase and the speculations by certain media are harmful. I stand by my public statement and I inform the public that I haven’t made any additional informal briefings,” Dimitrov said in a tweet. He referred to some media articles claiming that Macedonia had agreed to change the constitution.

Macedonia agrees to a composite name and among several options on the table the most acceptable is Upper Macedonia. However, the Greek proposal, the name GornaMakedonija (Upper Macedonia) to be written in one word in the Cyrillic alphabet and without translation is unacceptable for the Macedonian side.

Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev recently said that he hopes the government will be able to find a dignified solution to the name dispute, which will protect the national identity.

Finding a solution to the name dispute is of great importance as it is a precondition for Macedonia to join Nato and the EU after years of its progress being stalled by Greece.

Macedonia, as a sign of goodwill, renamed the airport formerly named after Alexander the Great as International Airport Skopje and removed the statue of Alexander from the airport. It also renamed Alexander the Great motorway that leads to Greece to “Friendship”.

This was done because Greece also objects to Macedonia laying claim to Alexander the Great, who is regarded as key historical figure in Hellenistic culture by Greece.

If the spat is resolved with a solution that is acceptable for both sides, this will be a major diplomatic and political achievement for Macedonia.