GREECE/MACEDONIA: WHAT'S IN A NAME? (OR IN THIS

C O N F I D E N T I A L ATHENS 002177

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/07/2017
TAGS: PREL PGOV MK GR
SUBJECT: GREECE/MACEDONIA: WHAT'S IN A NAME? (OR IN THIS
CASE FLIGHT DESIGNATOR)


Classified By: POL Counselor Robin Quinville for 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (U) This message has been cleared by Embassy Skopje.

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Summary
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2. (C) On November 2, GOG aircraft carrying CHOD Grapsas to
Belgrade diverted in flight to avoid overflying Macedonia,
due to concerns with the flight designator code assigned by
Macedonian authorities. The current Macedonian flight
clearance system has been in place since 2002, and Macedonian
flight designators begin with the three letters "MKD" per ISO
standards; we are not aware of Greek objections to this
designation. However, in this case, the Greeks claim that
Macedonian authorities assigned a flight indicator which
utilized "MK" and the Greek letter "delta" instead of "MKD;"
Embassy Skopje suggests this may simply have been
misinterpretation of bad handwriting. We fail to see how use
of "delta" instead of "D" in a flight designation could be
seen as a potential advantage to Skopje; however, the Greeks
appear to have had sincere concerns. We report this incident
as it highlights current Greek hypersensitivity and thQ mentaQ -------------- Q


3. (C) We followedauthorities had sought to assign an "impertinent"
and "unacceptable" flight designation to GOG aircraft
carrying CHOD Grapsas to Belgrade for talks with his
counterparts. Greek MOD sources reported that they had
indeed rerouted the aircraft carrying Grapsas because of a
concern with the flight designator assigned by Macedonia.
They claimed that the designator had been "odd" in that it
had used "MK" and then the Greek letter "Delta," something
that they considered irregular and suspicious. Greek
military authorities then consulted with MFA representatives
who suggested rerouting the aircraft rather than accept an
"objectionable designator" noting that this flight was taking
place at the same time that UN Envoy Nimetz was leading talks
between Greek and Macedonian officials in New York. The
Greeks did not articulate, however, how the use of "Delta"
instead of "D" in a flight designator could play to Skopje's
advantage.


4. (C) Embassy Skopje has reviewed the situation and reports
that Macedonia's current flight clearance system has been in
place since 2002. As part of this system, all flights are
given a designator that begins "MKD," per ISO standards.
Macedonian authorities deny having sought to utilize the
Greek letter "Delta" in place of "D" in the designator.
Embassy Skopje further notes, however, that flight clearance
numbers are hand written, and that there is a likely
possibility that the letters were misinterpreted. Embassy
Skopje Comment: It is also very possible, likely in fact,
that the Macedonian in charge of the flight clearance used
the Cyrillic &D8 which closely resembles the Greek
&Delta.8


5. (C) Comment: We do not believe that the Greeks are
inventing an additional "provocation" from Skopje; they
appeared genuinely concerned that the Macedonians were up to
something when they issued this flight designator. The
Macedonians, on the other hand, are sure to find this whole
episode baffling and will view it as an attempt by Athens to
muddy the waters with overblown interpretations of
non-existent or minor incidents. We report this incident
because it highlights some of the key characteristics
informing Greek/Macedonian relations: hypersensitivity and a
zero-sum approach. The issue also highlights how small,
unintentional actions can be misread, particularly with the
Nimetz process underway. End Comment.
COUNTRYMAN