US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo welcomed the ratification of the deal to rename Macedonia into North Macedonia in the Greek Parliament.

The United States welcomes the decision by Greece’s Parliament to ratify the Prespa Agreement. The leaders of Greece demonstrated vision, courage and persistence in their pursuit of a solution to the name dispute, which will allow the future Republic of North Macedonia to take its rightful place in NATO and the EU. The United States applauds this historic opportunity to advance stability, security and prosperity throughout the region, Pompeo said in a statement distributed by the State Department.

The United States recognized Macedonia under its constitutional name in 2004, angering Greece. The move was designed to get ethnic Macedonians not to vote in a referendum to overturn the new municipal borders in the country which gerrymandered Struga and Kicevo into majority ethnic Albanian cities, while the capital Skopje was made more than 20 percent Albanian. But, the US did not promote this position further and eventually began asking Macedonia to change its name none the less.