As part of his resignation remarks today, Greek Defense Minister Panos Kammenos called on Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to hold a referendum on the name deal he signed with Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev. Macedonia held a referendum to approve the deal, and it failed due to boycott from votes angry at the proposal. Although only 36 percent of the votes went to the polls, far below the constitutionally provided limit of 50 percent, the Government pushed it through Parliament anyway.

We will accept the outcome of the referendum. I know that 80 percent of the public oppose this treaty and we will do all we can to block it, said Kammenos.

He resigned as announced earlier, as the treaty was about to be submitted before the Greek Parliament. Kammenos called on the members of Parliament from his nationalist ANEL party to vote against Tsipras in next week’s vote of no confidence, and called several of them by name, indicating that they might switch sides and join Tsipras. Kammenos also accused Zaev of using bribes to buy votes in the Macedonian Parliament, where nine members from the opposition VMRO-DPMNE party joined him after being faced with criminal charges, but also after companies close to them received public contracts.

It is expected that Tsipras will have enough votes to push the Prespa deal through Parliament, as the centrist To Potami party supports him on this issue, but they will not back him in the preceding vote of no confidence in the Government.