A recently declassified document from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) reveals that former president of North Macedonia, Kiro Gligorov, refused a $100 million offer from Greece to change the country’s name, despite the severe economic difficulties the country faced in the early 1990s.
According to the CIA report dated November 6, 1992, Greek officials privately offered $100 million in economic assistance if Macedonia agreed to change its name. The document states that Gligorov rejected the proposal, even though the country had a strong need for financial support at the time.
The report also highlights Gligorov’s views on the conflicts that followed the breakup of Yugoslavia. He believed that the leaders of Serbia and Croatia Slobodan Milošević and Franjo Tuđman were responsible for the crisis that engulfed Yugoslavia.
The CIA assessment describes Gligorov as a strategic and pragmatic leader, even referring to him as an “old, wise fox” because of his political experience and careful decision-making.
According to the document, Gligorov also rejected proposals from Milošević to form an alliance with the remaining Yugoslav state dominated by Serbia. Instead, he pursued an independent political path for his country after it declared independence in 1991.
Domestically, the CIA report states that Gligorov tried to balance ethnic tensions, particularly between the Macedonian majority and the Albanian community, while working to stabilize the country during the turbulent post-Yugoslav transition.
