Greek opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis told German Chancellor Angela Merkel that the Prespa treaty will only create more problems in the Balkans and that his New Democracy party will remain firm and will not vote to ratify it in the Greek Parliament.

I explained our positions on the Prespa agreement to Ms. Merkel, and the reasons why New Democracy will not ratify it. It is not only contrary to the will of a huge majority of Greeks but it is also a bad deal which will not resolve the old problems in the wider Balkan region, but may create new ones, said Mitsotakis.

Merkel is visiting Greece, where she urged the two countries to go ahead and ratify the treaty. She previously intervened in the Macedonian referendum campaign in early September, calling on the Macedonian public to support the deal, but the referendum failed miserably with a turnout of mere 36 percent.