Nikos Martis
Former Hellenic Government Minister
8 Kaissarias Street, Athens, 115 27
Tel.+30 210 777 8800, +30 210 620 4826
Athens, 19 January 2009
OPEN LETTER
FROM
Nikos Martis
Former Hellenic Government Minister
President of the «MACEDONIAN HESTIA»
TO
Mr. Jose Emmanuel Barroso
President of the European Commission
Dear Mr. President,
It is more than clear that what concerns FYROM most, is the international acceptance of their identity as
Macedonians and not to what degree the name of their State will contain the word «Macedonia». This is
why our neighbours continually perpetrate arbitrary actions, which are unacceptable to anyone with
elementary knowledge of history and common sense, as for example are their following actions, that have
come recently to our attention:
1. On the 29th December 2008 the Skopjan newspaper DEVNIK writes that the Skopjans named a
Skopjan athletic playground «Philip» and the road axis Koumanovo – Yevyeli «Alexander the
Macedonian»
2. The Skopjan magazine «Macedonian», in its January 2009 issue, presents on its first page the sun of
Vergina and refers to organisations that pursue the creation of what they call «Great Macedonia», (among
them is the organisation RAINBOW of the Greek city of Florina), while the magazine presents also a
map, with the Greek frontiers at the mountain Olympus.
3. The Skopjans have circulated a coin of 50 denarii on which an Angel is depicted, a purely Hellenic
representation, which, together with many Hellenic inscriptions, is found at Koumanovo, in the Greek
church of St. George since 1191. On the coin they have the sixteen-ray sun of Vergina upside down.
The responsibility for coping with these arbitrary actions and unacceptable pursuits, rests with the
competent authorities of the EU, which ought to have warned the Skopjans that they have no right
whatsoever to call themselves «Macedonians», because, according to undeniable historical and
archaeological evidence, the identity of Macedonia is Greek and Macedonians are Greek. This is what has
been declared by eminent personalities of international repute, such as Stettinius, Mitteran, Schultzberger,
Truman, Kissinger, Pope John Paul, Helmut Schmidt and many others, as it is synoptically shown
hereunder:
-Stettinius, Foreign Minister of the Roosevelt government, who seems to have foreseen the Soviet
Union’s expansionism long before the Cold War, instructed with his 868614/26.12.1944 circular the
Ambassadors and the Consuls of the USA to inform all parties concerned, that the American Government
considers demagoguery the supposed existence of «Macedonian Nation» and «Macedonian
consciousness» «These assertions do not represent either national or political reality and they aim at
the extraction of a Greek part of Macedonia, which is inhabited by Greeks. The American government
will take all the necessary measures against those who will help Yugoslavia and Bulgaria create a
Macedonian issue».
-The French President Francois Mitteran, stated, following his visit to Vergina in 1982: « I didn’t know
about the excavations, nor could I imagine the stamp of Greece would be so strong here. I delved into the
grandeur of ancient Macedonia»
1
-The well known American journalist Schultzberger, whom I myself accompanied during his visits to
Pella and Vergina, wrote in a letter he sent me from Edessa, where he had spent the night: «I am leaving
tomorrow for Yugoslavia, but I leave behind a big part of my heart in Macedonia!»
-The Polish Pope John Paul said in an interview he gave on the 21st June 1992 to the journalist Mrs
Pinni for the Greek newspaper KYRIAKATIKI ELEFTHEROTYPIA: «Macedonia is the country of
Philip, of Alexander, of Methodius and Cyril and Macedonia is Greek».
-The distinguished American politician Henry Kissinger said in 1992: « Greece is right about the name.
I say this because I know history, something that Ministers and High Officials in Washington don’ t.»
-The former Chancellor of West Germany Helmut Schmidt characterised my book «The falsification of
Macedonian History» as « An excellent and very impressive book about the Macedonian history, which,
of course, is also an important contribution to European history».
-Gligorov himself, who had repeatedly in the past declared that he had no national claim over
Alexander, did not make any references to Philip and Alexander the Great in the speech he gave during
the presentation of his book in New York. When at the end of his speech he asked Skopjan students from
Australia about their impressions and they protested because he did not refer to their glorious ancestors,
Alexander the Great and Philip, he replied that he did not, because, according to their historiography, the
Skopjans are Slavs who made their appearance in the 6th and the 7th centuries and therefore they had no
relation to Alexander the Great and Philip.
Owing to this omission by the competent authorities of the EU, Pope Benedictus, influenced by Vatican
circles who either did not know history or were simply naive, gave his blessings to the «Macedonians» of
Skopje, within the framework of seasonal wishes. Surely the Pope could not have been aware of the
statements made by Kissinger and Helmut Schmidt; nor did he know that in 1941 the German army
attacked the Macedonian frontier Fortifications that Greeks defended. I was one of the defenders.
A small strip of ancient Macedonia, occupied by the Armies of Serbia and Bulgaria, was incorporated as
Serbian and Bulgarian territory.
Historically, Macedonia exists as Hellenic since the 8th century B.C., while the pseudo-Macedonian
nation that was fabricated by Tito to serve the expansive plans of the Soviet Union made its appearance in
1944.
It is not accidental that in 1992 the late President of the Hellenic Democracy Constantine Karamanlis
mentions in his letter to the Prime Ministers of the E.U : «It is inconceivable to give, upon the termination
of the Cold War, legitimacy to Tito and Moscow, that called South Yugoslavia «Macedonia», having an
eye on the Aegean and machinating to extract Macedonia from Greece».
Nor can the resolution of the Summit Council of Lisbon, which unanimously resolved to recognise
Skopje, on condition that its name would not contain the word «Macedonia», be underestimated.
The personal and inalienable right of each human being is his or her identity. It would therefore be a
grave and provocative offence to the memory of the late President Constantine Karamanlis, the present
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis and millions of Macedonians, if their identity as Greeks were to be
doubted.
Wishing you a Good Year, health, strength and success in your difficult task, I remain,
Truly Yours,
NIKOS MARTIS
Former Hellenic Government Minister
President of «THE MACEDONIAN HESTIA»
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