United Macedonia Diaspora

[Risto the Great]

Reality is the same 2.1 million people live in a country officially described as FYROM. It doesn't mean we in the diaspora have to accept it.

[makedonche]

Waste of Forum space!

[Gocka]

The answer on the question of about giving of awards to people who have been detrimental to Macedonian interests made no sense.

It was suggested that some of the people who received awards were directly detrimental yet he says " UMD bestows awards on individuals to recognize them for the efforts and work they have done or are doing to promote Macedonia and its interests". Completely dodging the assertion that these people worked against Macedonian interests.

His slithering responses just reek of a sleazy politician, he keeps saying that the UMD is not a political party but he certainly talks like hes the head of one.

He is useless, and his father did not plan half of those protests, I know that for a fact.

[George S.]

example bob carr does not represent us as Macedonians only as fyromians.Why give him an award.??Kiro gligorov said we are not Macedonians we are just slavs why give him an award.That is why this organization that meto represents in name only & not the etire diaspora.Think about he has dodged RTg's questions.I'm sure RTG can speak for himself.Meto was given free advertising on the MTO website not until he failed to answer really pertinent questions.He has avoided coming on the mto so far.He knows his time is up People have seen what he's about.Think abou what the umd really represents.All whacky razatamataz awards,fakery,lying,cheating etcNothing has changed the status of the umd.Caught red handed,capitulating etc on a hell of a number of issues.Their role is about fat salaries,money gobbling,raising events not about real delivery on projects.Yes they are a wasted space do not give them your time of day.

[Vangelovski]

Same old BS. Meto is still unable to answer the question from SoM that led him to leave the forum with his tail in between his legs - does he agree that Macedonia should share its history with Greece? UMD has implied in the past that it should.

[George S.]

Handing out worthless bits of paper as umd awards to dubious people seems to be the order of the day.Raising funds for fat salaries of directors is another priority.So does anyone really care in this organization about what happens to Macedonia.??Not at the umd as it's full steam making money with their fundraisers.There are different things that point to compromise & even capitulation of Macedonia's name.On the surface they think their resolve is unshaken but once you scratch the surface you can see the sham & bs for what the umd is.

[DedoAleko]

Metodija Koloski: Time for US to take sides in dispute over Macedonia's name

In light of the recent proposal by Greece’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Evangelos Venizelos, to change the name of Macedonia to “Slavo-Albanian Macedonia,” Congress must urge President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry to send a clear message to our Greek friends to abandon their nationalist positions once and for all.

In the ’90s, Venizelos was instrumental in advising the Greek government to put a three-year economic embargo on Macedonia. Current Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras was the architect of Greece’s policy on Macedonia’s name, stating that Macedonia would one day be divided between a “Greater Albania” and “Greater Bulgaria.”

Leaders who insist on border changes within Europe cause instability and stagnation, creating a negative ripple effect on all surrounding countries. The detrimental effects of such policies echo back to Slobodan Milosevic’s “Greater Serbia,” a clear failure.

Greece does not hold a monopoly on the name Macedonia or Macedonian history. Macedonia continues to be blackmailed by Greece, and Macedonians worldwide will not agree to change their name and identity. It is long overdue for the U.S., NATO, and EU to call a spade a spade and publically recognize that in the interest of building a Europe that is whole, free and at peace, Greece must back down. And NATO and the EU should extend a welcoming hand to Macedonia.

Greece takes over the EU Presidency next month, 10 years after it spearheaded the Thessaloniki agenda, which would see the entire Western Balkans (including Macedonia) in the EU and NATO by 2014. However, today, we are further away from realizing that dream. Clearly, U.S. leadership and re-engagement are essential.

As the prime example of democracy and freedom, the United States must ensure that Greece holds to its international legal obligations. Greece’s ethno-nationalist, centrist, populist position jeopardizes the future of Southeast Europe and puts U.S. interests at risk.

In 2011, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Greece violated Article 11 of the 1995 United Nations Interim Accord by objecting to Macedonia's membership into NATO at the 2008 Bucharest Summit. Instead of taking this ruling into consideration, NATO leaders, including our own, once again succumbed to Greek pressure and did not a extend a well-deserved invitation to Macedonia during the 2012 Chicago Summit. Greece has an obligation not to veto Macedonia’s membership in international bodies under the 1995 United Nations Interim Accord, which the U.S., under then-President Clinton, brokered.

As of today, 135 countries, including the U.S., U.K., and Canada, have recognized Macedonia by its constitutional name.

Macedonia has been a steadfast friend and ally of the United States. It took in 400,000 refugees during the Kosovo war and sent troops to Iraq and peacekeepers to Bosnia and Herzegovina and Lebanon. Today, it is the fifth highest International Security Assistance Force troop contributor per capita patrolling the ISAF headquarters, in Kabul, Afghanistan.

U.S., NATO, and EU leaders must not allow Greece to block Macedonia once again at the EU council meeting in Brussels later this month and the NATO Summit hosted by the U.K. in September 2014, putting the future of the country at further risk.

While Greece is faced with serious economic problems, it stands to gain nothing by obstructing and destabilizing Macedonia and the region. With the rise of extremism and xenophobia in Greece, migrants, Macedonians and other ethnic and faith-based minorities including Muslims, Catholics, and Jews are facing even more discrimination.

It is our duty as Americans to ensure that Macedonia enjoys all the freedoms it deserves in the world, including its freedom to use the name Macedonia, and for Macedonians to speak Macedonian and identify as Macedonians without prejudice. This is a human rights issue, and Macedonia needs strong allies in Congress to urge Obama and Kerry to do the right thing.

Congress has and should play a role. The bi-cameral and bi-partisan support of Congress today is crucial for a better tomorrow for Macedonia and all of Southeast Europe.

Koloski is the president of the United Macedonian Diaspora, and co-chair of the Southeast Europe Coalition.

izvor: http://thehill.com/blogs/global-affa...todija-koloski

[Vangelovski]

Meto Koloski, while claiming Macedonians have rights continues to participate in some of the gravest violations of those very same rights. This entire PR is a contradiction. He continues to promote the treason and violation of our human rights that is the ventilator.

http://umdiaspora.org/index.php/en/f...hts-challenges

[Vangelovski]

The following quote is from Meto Koloski:

Greece does not hold a monopoly on the name Macedonia or Macedonian history.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=15826

This is one of the many problems with UMD's ideological outlook - they actually believe that Greece does have a legitimate claim to Macedonia's name and history. He states here that Greece does not have a monopoly on the two - but that directly implies that it holds a legitimate claim even if it is a shared one. The last time Koloski posted on here he was asked a question by SoM as to whether he agrees that Macedonia should share its history with Greece. He has never answered and never returned since.

Further, he continues to use the treasonous and plainly idiotic ICJ case that confirmed the Interim Accord as a legitimate and valid agreement as a favourable argument for Macedonia's membership in the EU and NATO under the FYROM terminology:

In 2011, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Greece violated Article 11 of the 1995 United Nations Interim Accord by objecting to Macedonia's membership into NATO at the 2008 Bucharest Summit. Instead of taking this ruling into consideration, NATO leaders yielding to Greek pressure have yet to extend a well-deserved invitation to Macedonia. Greece has an obligation not to veto Macedonia's membership in international bodies under the 1995 United Nations Interim Accord.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=15826

After years of having it all carefully explained to them by numerous individuals and organisations, UMD continues with its anti-Macedonian policies.

[George S.]

i read somewhere the umd was even advocating to Macedonia to do away with the interim accord.It seems that they are neither here or there on their ideology.The nameissue is in a similar case of advocating a no discussion of the name.Decretly supporting ruevski on his discussions with Greece.At the same time Greece having some legitimate right to the name.You know these views remind me of the branko views on Macedonian history giving us no legitimate right to our name.If this is not treasoness I don't know what is.?i wonder if they realize what they are saying ,so many anti Macedonian things.We should distance ourselves from such comments .We shouldn't agree in ay shape or form.Meto has simply lost his way & is anti Macedonian.