SKOPJE, SEPTEMBER 20, 1995 (MIC)
The President of the Republic of Macedonia Kiro Gligorov received a message from his Greek colleague Kostas Stefanopoulos yesterday. In the message, the Greek President emphasizes the importance of improving the relations between the two countries, following the signing of the interim accord, and expresses hope that the future talks will lead to results that are in the interest of both countries and peoples.
President Gligorov received a message with similar contents from the Prime Minister of the Republic of Greece Andreas Papandreou, as well. In his message, Papandreou expresses the desire for a constructive development of the bilateral relations, in the spirit of good-neighborliness.
The Greek opposition is persistent in its criticism of the Government for signing the interim accord with Macedonia, in New York. The opposition is demanding a parliamentary debate on the issue, while the paper "Katimerini" feels the "Government doesn't want to talk at all."
The mayors from the northern part of Greece have sent a letter to Papandreou asking to meet with him and expressing dissatisfaction over the signing of the accord.
Otherwise, the moderate left-wing newspaper "Elefterotipia" says that allegedly, the new Macedonian flag will also have a sun on it, but it will have nothing to do with the Star of Vergina."
In the broad interview for "Nova Makedonija" today, the European Commissioner Hans Van den Brook says: "We hope this accord lays the foundations for a complete solution to the problem, including the question about the name, which is still the subject of discussion between both sides. However, we feel the atmosphere can be improved now, and that the contacts which can re-start, can also develop in the direction of solving this problem. As for the European Union, I am prepared to propose to the Council of Ministers to start intensifying our relations. That means establishing diplomatic relations, but also, to see when we can prepare a contractual agreement on trade and cooperation, and to intensify our program for technical help. All of these are exceptionally important matters and I feel they will come as a reward to your country, which it is undoubtedly expecting."
Daniel Tarsis, Secretary-General of the Council of Europe will be arriving on a three-day visit to the Republic of Macedonia today.
Tomorrow, Tarsis is scheduled to meet with Speaker of Parliament Stojan Andov, as well as President Gligorov and Prime Minister Branko Crvenkovski.
The visit of the delegation of the Council of Europe is in the function of the next session of the Council of Europe from the 25th to the 29th of this month, whereby on the 27th, Macedonia is expected to be received as a full member.
Regular consultations between the Macedonian and Slovenian foreign ministries took place in Ljubljana yesterday. The delegations were led by Viktor Gaber, Under Secretary in the Macedonian Foreign Ministry and Ignjac Golob, Secretary of State in the Foreign Ministry of Slovenia.
Also participating in the talks was the ambassador of the Republic of Macedonia to Ljubljana Dimitar Mirchev. The two sides exchanged information about the relations with their neighbors and the EU. It was concluded that the two countries have close and identical views on the international events.
The Government of the Republic of Macedonia has not discussed whether it will appear in the role of proposer of the law on changing the national flag, minister-spokesman Gjuner Ismail stated at yesterday's news conference.
Ismail said the question of the flag was directly under the jurisdiction of Parliament, while the Government was only one of the possible authorized proposers.
Before the start of tomorrow's session of Parliament, which will have the draft-law on local self-management on the daily agenda, today, the Government will discuss all the new insights and views on this law, Ismail said in answering the question whether it was correct that the Minister of Justice Vlado Popovski had taken on the responsibility to inform the Government about the new developments in the talks between the Government representative and the representatives of the Albanian parties, with the mediation of Gerd Arens.
As the spokesman announced, at yesterday's session, the Government adopted the law on amendments and supplementations to the law on duties, which should narrow down the space for so- called flexible interpretation, i.e. the abuse of the legal provisions.
Thus, returnees from abroad who now receive receipts for the duty-free import of goods, mainly cars and household furniture, and then sell them, will not be able to do so any longer. Namely, in future, they will not be allowed to sell the goods for a period of three years. In future, in cases where people import goods and pay duty for them, and then decide to return the goods (fictively or really), the duty will not be refunded, as was the case before.
As a penalty for illegal trade (in drugs, arms, etc.), from now on, not only will the vehicles transporting the goods be confiscated, but the other vehicles, busses, trucks, etc., as well.
The Government also made an analysis of the work of some 70,000 companies registered mainly in the last couple of years, and determined that half of them don't have even the elementary circulation on the giro accounts, Ismail said. With the draft-law on amendments and supplementations to the law on companies, they will have the obligation to register at least one employee or as many as prescribed by the laws on appropriate activities. Thus, the Government hopes that the number of fictive and "phantom" companies will be considerably reduced, and a more realistic picture about the number of unemployed persons will be gained."
"NEW SOURCES FOR FINANCING"
The Law on local self-management received support from the parliamentary commissions on political system and the Survey commission yesterday.
The MPs feel competence of the newly proposed official - chief city architect should be reduced. He will not be able to draw up additional standards and rulebooks from the sphere of architecture, but only suggest them to the Council.
The commission also proposed an amendment on new elections for the financing of the local self-management. Thus, the municipalities will be financed from the percentage on the sales tax on the products and services, income from personal estate, income from penalties set by the municipality and incomes from a part of the concessions.
The Government has to additionally voice its views on the Albanian request to bilingually write the names of inhabited regions and streets in municipalities where minorities comprise a considerable number. There is a recommendation for that from the Council of Europe.
The first vice-president of EBRD G. Freeman announced at yesterday's reception at Prime Minister Branko Crvenkovski's that the major reforms in Macedonia will have an influence on agreements for new credit lines to the amount of 220 million Deutsche marks being signed in the next three years.
These funds will be endorsed as a long-term loan for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the banking system in the country. Next year, other credit lines for small and medium- sized enterprises will be able to be established from these funds.
The Minister of Economy Risto Ivanov explained to the representatives of the EBRD that in accordance with the Government program on investments in the public sector, electric energy and the construction of the gas line system in the Republic have the priority. The tanning industry, tourism and agriculture have been listed as investment sectors.
PTT "Makedonija" signed a deal yesterday with the German company "Siemens" and its affiliated company "Iskra-tel" from Slovenia for the delivery of equipment and the installment of digital telephone exchanges of the EVSD system.
The deal is valued at US$ 14,758,988.
The Macedonian media report that in anticipation of the lifting of the Greek embargo, more and more Greek businessmen are coming to Macedonia, calling on the phone and the fax machines, to renew the interrupted cooperation, especially with companies from Gevgelija. The forwarding firm "Makshped" and the company "Solun" from Gevgelija are only examples of such companies.
In the talks, the Greek businessmen say the cooperation with the Macedonian firms is quite certain, just like the transportation of the goods through Macedonia.
The Union of the Salonika industrialists says that in 1993, the exchange with Macedonia brought them US$ 193 million.
According to the Ministry of Economy and the Directorate for Republic Goods Reserves, 35,021 tones of wheat have been purchased, for which the premium has been paid. The Directorate also bought another 165,000 tones, and paid only 53,500 tones, that is, one third.
The payments were made through compensations in flour, petrol and derivatives, and a part through products from the mill-baking industry. Efforts are being made to pay for the whole harvest by the end of the year.
The individual farmers are protesting and claim that the premiums of the individual producers have not been paid at all, contrary to the statement of the Ministry of Agriculture.