For half an hour the Prime Ministers of Macedonia and Greece, Nikola Gruevski and George Papandreou, reviewed the talks at their meeting in Brussels, without any concrete proposals for resolution of the name issue, Greek sources said.

According to information of Vecer, the Greek position remains the same – a complex name with a geographic attribute for all use. Papandreou wished to hear what is acceptable to Macedonia and whether Gruevski was ready for concessions.

Both Macedonian Foreign Minister Milososki and Greek Government Spokesman Petalotis assessed the meeting Friday as constructive. The two prime ministers agreed that the dispute needed to be resolved for the sake of the region’s stability. They discussed how the talks had so far progressed but did not go into greater detail.

“We have clearly stated our desire for headway and we believe that direct contacts will create a better climate and will have a positive effect on the entire process,” Petalotis said.

The will for a serious approach to this issue was confirmed by the chief of the Macedonian diplomacy too.

“It is important that there is political will with both the Macedonian and the Greek prime minister,” Foreign Minister Milososki said.

Greek media say that Gruevski intentionally delayed the name issue talks waiting for the verdict from the International Court of Justice in The Hague. However, they say they are not concerned at all either because they too await a positive outcome.

Relying on government sources, Greek media report that Athens was preparing for intensified secret talks once the Greek elections were over.

Greece is not shunning direct meetings, Petalotis said. Papandreou pledged at the meeting that once the bilateral problem was resolved, Greece would be Macedonia’s major supporter. “This is going to be repeated and our country will be the most effective ally in FYROM’s accession to the EU and NATO.”

Apart from producing optimism that the mutual trust has strengthened, the seven direct meeting failed to propel the process ahead. The positions of Skopje and Athens are still far from a compromise.

“More such meetings should be held. The Macedonian-Greek dialogue should actively continue,” Minister Milososki said.

Diplomats say a miracle should happen over the next 20 days so that Macedonia is invited to join NATO at the coming Summit in Lisbon.

This has been the seventh meeting between Gruevski and Papandreou that unlike the previous meetings took longer than an hour. According to diplomatic sources, this is a proof that the meeting was not merely a protocol and it is therefore expected to lead to a crucial progress in the name issue talks.

Prime Minister Gruevski communicated the latest developments in the name issue talks with Greece to EU Enlargement Commissioner Fule with whom he met right after Papandreou. Apart from the dispute and the reform process, Gruevski and Fule discussed also the interethnic relations, the political dialogue, the independence of the judiciary, the situation in the public administration and the freedom of the media.