Cyprus News Agency: News in English (PM), 99-01-27

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From: The Cyprus News Agency at <http://www.cyna.org.cy>

CONTENTS

[01] Portuguese Foreign Minister - Arrival

[02] WFDY - 15th Assembly

[03] Portuguese Foreign Minister - Cyprus

[04] Canada - Turkey - Nuclear reactors

[05] Bill - Interest rates

[06] Minister - Cyprus Airways - Strike

0800:CYPPRESS:01

[01] Portuguese Foreign Minister - Arrival

Today Gama will be received by President of the Republic, Glafcos Clerides and President of the House of Representatives, Spyros Kyprianou.

He will also meet with his Cypriot counterpart, Ioannis Kasoulides for official talks.

The two Foreign Ministers will then give a joint press conference and proceed with a working lunch.

Foreign Minister Gama leaves the island this evening.

CNA MCH/GP/1999

ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

1130:CYPPRESS:02

[02] WFDY - 15th Assembly

The 15th Assembly of WFDY will last four days and with the participation of 160 young people representing 85 organisations from 70 countries.

In a press release WFDY Coordinating Council points out that the 15th Assembly "is taking place at a very crucial time," and describes it as "a unique event to exchange experience in diversity from national levels".

The possibility "to launch an international campaign for a youth rights charter," will be discussed at the Assembly as well as "the issue of participation of young people in all countries in the decision-making process at all levels."

Substantial time will also be devoted "for solidarity with the fighting peoples for their just cause, like the peoples of Palestine, Western Sahara, East Timor and Burma".

The WFDY Coordinating Council points out that "holding the Assembly in Cyprus is a show of solidarity with the struggle of the young people of Cyprus," and stresses that it "has always had serious concerns over the division of Cyprus and occupation and the presence of foreign troops".

Turkish troops have been occupying 37 per cent of Cyprus territory since 1974, in violation of repeated UN resolutions calling for their withdrawal.

WFDY underlines that the people of Cyprus, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, should be the ones "to decide their fortune without any intervention from outside".

The assembly, the Coordinating Council notes, "will express its serious concern over the policies of domination and imperialism led by USA and its unjustified intervention in the internal affairs of other countries and gross misuse of UN for interests of its foreign policy".

CNA MCH/GP/1999

ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

1230:CYPPRESS:03

[03] Portuguese Foreign Minister - Cyprus

He was received by President Glafcos Clerides, House of Representatives President, Spyros Kyprianou, and had a meeting with the head of the Cyprus delegation for European Union accession talks, George Vassiliou.

The Portuguese Minister was holding official talks with his Cypriot counterpart Ioannis Kasoulides, after which the two Ministers will give a joint press conference. He will leave this afternoon.

Speaking after his meeting with Gama, Vassiliou said that Cyprus' EU accession course and that of the other candidate countries will be greatly affected by the approval or not of the "Agenda 2000" at the end of March.

He said that Portugal is a friendly country, which supports the island's EU accession.

Vassiliou pointed out that Gama's visit to Cyprus contributes towards accession, adding that good relations with all EU member-states is important, especially with those who are willing to promote the island's membership.

After receiving the Portuguese Minister, Kyprianou said Gama stressed the need to focus on EU accession talks at the moment.

The House President briefed the Portuguese Minister on the latest developments in the Cyprus problem, stressing his opposition to a Turkish proposal for the establishment of a confederation of two states on the island.

This is contrary to numerous UN resolutions calling for the establishment of a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation in Cyprus and the withdrawal of Turkish troops occupying the island's northern third since 1974.

CNA GG/RG/GP/1999

ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

1300:CYPPRESS:04

[04] Canada - Turkey - Nuclear reactors

Toronto, Jan 27 (CNA) -- Fueling home-grown opposition to Canada's bid to sell nuclear reactors to Turkey, Canadian experts have concluded that a study by Canada's nuclear reactor manufacturer and vendor confirms that seismic research conducted by Turkish authorities on the proposed Akkuyu Bay reactor site is incomplete and inadequate.

The site research, conducted by the former Turkish Electric Authority (TEK), was investigated by Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL) consultant Ralph Kall in 1985.

"The AECL study emphasises that the TEK research was incomplete and inadequate in a number of areas," says David Martin, of Nuclear Awareness Project.

Martin also says "The actual site research that is being used is very old --dated 1983 and is thus over 16 years old. This confirms what we have been saying that more research needs to be done before Akkuyu proceeds any further," adds Martin.

The revelation raises serious questions as to the veracity of claims made by AECL and Turkish authorities that the Akkuyu site is relatively earthquake-free. This attains heightened importance in light of the fact that the Ecemis fault, whose activity is currently in dispute by scientists, is located only 20 kilometres from the site.

"There is no question that (Turkish authorities) and the vendors have not done adequate site research, given what we know about the Ecemis Fault, " Martin says.

AECL is bidding to build two 770 Megawatt CANDU 6 nuclear reactors at Akkuyu Bay, located on Turkey's Mediterranean coast directly north of Cyprus. Two other vendors are vying with AECL for the 100 per cent financed contract - the French-German consortium Nuclear Power International (NPI) and the collaborative effort between Westinghouse of the US and Japan's Mitsubishi.

AECL officials have intimated that AECL is considered the front-runner in the bidding. The winning vendor will be announced most likely following Turkey's elections in April.

Kall's study and the site research conducted by TEK became available following a meeting between Greek and Cypriot Canadian community leaders and AECL's top brass two months ago.

Also present were two seismological and geological experts, Dr. Karl Buckthought and Dr. Arsalan Mohajer.

Dr. Buckthought is a principal with the company Earthquake Forecasts Inc. and Dr. Mohajer is a professor of Geology at the University of Toronto and a principal with the company Seismican Geophysical Ltd.

AECL management agreed to put the seismic studies on the table at the meeting for perusal, but would not provide copies of the studies or allow photocopies to be made, claiming that it cannot release the TEK studies because they do not belong to them.

The basic research was six volumes of reports released by TEK and their consultants in 1983 and updated in 1990. Kall's study, dated December 1985, was released by AECL management a few weeks later.

Dr. Mohajer told CNA that "it is scientifically justified to conclude that the existing geotechnical reports, showed to us at the AECL meeting, are not up-to-date with respect to the recent risk analysis approaches and the newly available data during the last decade."

He added that the original assumptions used to prepare the existing reports "need to be, definitely, revised in the light of the new information during the '90s."

"Without such deliberation, whatever else anyone postulates would only help to confuse the issue even further, which provides an excuse for the AECL not to take the shaky objections seriously," he said.

Martin says that AECL has accepted the data given to them by Turkish authorities, including inappropriate attenuation models based on California data.

Both Dr. Buckthought and Dr. Mohajer agree that these models assume much greater attenuation, or weakening of the earthquake force, than is actually the case in Turkey.

The data also assumes that the annual risk level of a catastrophic earthquake occurring near Akkuyu is such an event occurring once every 10, 000 years.

But Dr. Buckthought points out the data set being employed by both the Turkish authorities and AECL is incomplete, missing several very large earthquakes in the Akkuyu vicinity in antiquity.

In what Martin characterised as a "deliberate attempt to minimise and misrepresent the real risk", the micro-earthquake data sited in the TEK study is only for a few months in 1977 and 1978 -- a period of extremely low seismic activity in Turkey gene rally.

Martin says further that Dr. Buckthought has demonstrated that AECL President and CEO R. Allen Kilpatrick has "publicly lied" about CANDU reactors withstanding earthquakes.

In letters to several Canadian newspapers, Kilpartrick stated that a CANDU reactor in the province of Quebec survived a serious quake in November 1988 and that another CANDU reactor in the province of New Brunswick survived a serious quake in 1983.

"In fact, the epicentre of the November 1988 quake was 230 kilometres from (the Quebec reactor). There was no earthquake even remotely near (the New Brunswick reactor) in 1983," Martin says.

CNA MH/GP/1999

ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

1950:CYPPRESS:05

[05] Bill - Interest rates

"The cabinet is taking a very serious measure to harmonise the fiscal domain with European Union directives," he told the press after today's meeting of the Council of ministers.

The bill will include certain special provisions effective until December 2003 to allow for a transitional period before full liberalisation.

"The government has introduced certain safety net provisions in case there is a sudden fluctuation of interests rates, which is unlikely. Should this occur, the Governor of the Central Bank will be allowed to intervene and impose the necessary rate," Christodoulou added.

He said the bill also allows home owners with a housing mortgage of no more than 60,000 Cyprus pounds (about 120,000 US dollars) to choose either to maintain the existing nine per cent interest rate or opt for the fluctuating rate.

CNA MM/MK/1999

ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

2000:CYPPRESS:06

[06] Minister - Cyprus Airways - Strike

Employees are set to stage a four-hour strike tomorrow morning, barring an unexpected development overnight, which according to Cyprus Airways spokesman Tasos Angelis is highly unlikely, as there is no dialogue at present.

"The government cannot enter into a dialogue while the strike is on, it has to be called off," the minister said after today's cabinet meeting.

Trade Unions, he said, are asking for a 4,5 per cent rise before they sit at the negotiating table and Cyprus Airways maintains the demand should be put forward at negotiations and the company in its turn will outline its own demands so that everything will be discussed.

Ierodiakonou said the strike is against the rules and noted that procedures have not been followed.

"The government will not give in or compromise with threatening measures," he stressed.

Asked what the government can do to ease problems arising from the strike, he said there are measures that will be implemented immediately and others which will be taken for a long-term policy on the problems relating to air transport.

CNA MM/RM/1999

ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

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