A.N.A. Bulletin, 08/07/96

From: "Greek Press & Information Office, Ottawa Canada" <grnewsca@sympatico.ca>

Athens News Agency Directory

ATHENS NEWS AGENCY BULLETIN (No 931), July 8, 1996

Greek Press & Information Office

Ottawa, Canada

E-Mail Address: grnewsca@sympatico.ca

CONTENTS

[1] Sofia foreign ministers conference presages new era of Balkan co-operation

Representatives from seven south-eastern European nations passed a declaration on "good neighborly relations, stability, security and co-operation in the Balkans" at the close of the two-day conference in Sofia yesterday.

The meeting, the first inter-Balkan conference since the break-up of former Yugoslavia, agreed that its next meeting would be held in Greece next year, Greek Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos said.

Mr. Pangalos termed the Sofia conference "a point of no return" for a new era of co-operation in the Balkans, recalling tripartite contacts between Greece, Bulgaria and Romania leading to yesterday's conference.

Mr. Pangalos called Greek-Bulgarian friendship "one of the foundation stones of Greek foreign policy", adding that Athens "will do all in its power to support Bulgaria, its stability and progress, both economically and politically."

"It is the first time since 1990 that we foreign ministers from all the Balkan countries are meeting to examine and discuss the possibilities for a better future in our region," Mr. Pangalos said in his address to the conference.

"During this period of time, dramatic changes have taken place in the Balkans, Europe and the world. Our present is full of challenges and opportunities. New prospects have been created and new possibilities are presenting themselves. We have a duty to utilize them, to examine prospects and achieve new targets for the benefit of our co-operation in all sectors."

Mr. Pangalos took the opportunity to thank and congratulate the Bulgarian government on behalf of his government for undertaking the initiative for the conference, adding that he hoped it would reactivate inter-Balkan co-operation which started in 1975 a t Greece's initiative.

"European integration could not be complete without the participation of the Balkans which is based on the same European principles which helped in the establishment and development of what constitutes the European Union at present and of which my country is an active member. The significance of our region for the peace and prosperity of Europe is even more evident following the Yugoslav crisis," he said.

"We are ready to discuss and decide on the ways and means on further promoting our co-operation in various sectors. It is natural for such co-operation to be brought to a successful conclusion only when it has the generally accepted principles of good neighborliness as its basis. These principles alone can create a favorable environment for realizing co-operation between neighboring countries," he said.

"In parallel, I wish to make special reference to the creation of a regional center for promoting trade. We have already proposed organizing this center which will be headquartered in Thessaloniki. I also wish to bring to your attention the idea of creating two foundations with the co-operation of the governments of Greece and the US with which we already held prolonged talks at high level: a) the institute for conveying technology in the Balkans which we will name BITT and b) the Center for Democracy for which we will co-operate with the 'National legacy of the US for Democracy'. My country will continue to apply the same policy and is ready to contribute to the efforts starting today," he added.

[2] FYROM issue

Mr. Pangalos also referred to the "unfortunate effort by Skopje (the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, or FYROM) to extort a fait accompli" at the conference, adding that his Bulgarian counterpart Georgi Pirinski had "adopted the generally acceptable view that the state of Skopje has a name decided by the UN."

Late on Friday night, FYROM's foreign ministry said it would not participate in the Sofia conference, given the refusal of Bulgarian authorities to accept a compromise proposal regarding the name of the former Yugoslav republic to be used at the conference.

Bulgarian organizers upheld Greek objections regarding the use of the name "Republic of Macedonia".

Mr. Pangalos said "it is difficult to create another practice here which is contrary to the UN's practice of having it named FYROM", making it clear that "that was the name it could have at this conference."

He said the effort by FYROM met with reaction by the majority of participants and the organizers and for this reason it was obliged to be absent which "we greet with great regret because we would want Skopje to be here among us and discuss substantively about co-operation in the region with the name it has at the present moment, until a name is found which Greece will also accept."

Mr. Pangalos also criticized Turkey, saying that "the only ones who rushed to support Skopje were the Turks who, I suppose, don't want to lose an opportunity to show their hostility towards Greece. We are used to this."

In Belgrade, Greek ambassador Panayiotis Vlassopoulos said the absence of FYROM from the inter-Balkan conference in Sofia under the name by which the state was recognized by the UN was due to a decision by the government of the state.

[3] Greece, Turkey agree to suspend Aegean exercises

Greece and Turkey on Saturday agreed to suspend all planned exercises in the Aegean from July 1 to September 1, a NATO spokesman stated in Brussels.

"NATO's Secretary-General (Javier Solana) hopes that this agreement will prepare the ground for further confidence-building measures between the two countries," spokesman Jamie Shea added.

NATO sources also said that Mr. Solana has already tried to mediate for the resolution of the regional differences between Greece and Turkey, but recent government instability in both countries made his task almost impossible.

They added that his efforts would continue in the immediate future.

Saturday's agreement was achieved on the basis of a memorandum signed in 1988 by the countries' then foreign ministers Karolos Papoulias and Mesut Yilmaz, but which was never applied.

Last January, the two NATO countries almost went to war over Turkish claims to Imia, an uninhabited islet in the Aegean under Greek sovereignty.

Meanwhile, an ANA dispatch from Istanbul Saturday said Turkey protested to Greece over the latter's refusal to grant permission to Turkish F4 planes on their way to a NATO exercise in Holland to fly over its national air space.

The Turkish foreign ministry claimed the planes were harassed by the Greek air force planes while using air corridors south of Crete.

[4] Balkans conference adopts declaration on regional co-operation

Representatives from seven southeastern European nations passed a declaration on "good neighborly relations, stability, security and co-operation in the Balkans" at the close of a two-day conference in Sofia yesterday.

Bulgarian Foreign Minister Georgi Pirinski said the declaration was an important first step toward greater positive co-operation in the region.

It was passed with the votes of representatives from Greece, Turkey, Albania, Romania, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), Bosnia-Herzegovina and Bulgaria.

The seven countries at the conference agreed on multilateral co-operation in the areas of security, economics, transport, infrastructure, the arts and in the fight against organized crime.

While Mr. Pirinski said the conference had been a success, he warned that the declaration must also be implemented.

Earlier Sunday, international representatives from countries outside the region stressed that economic co-operation is a key to defusing tensions and averting conflicts in the Balkans.

"The Sofia conference is an important element in this strategy," Howard Pearce, head of the Central Europe desk at the British Foreign Ministry, told the gathering.

The civilian coordinator on aid in Bosnia, Carl Bildt, called on Yugoslavia to take the "steps necessary" to ensure that it can return to the international community, saying this was vital to security and stability in the region.

The Albanian delegation noted that the Kosovo region of Serbia with its Albanian minority " could jeopardize the future".

Mr. Pirinksi and Yugoslavian Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic expressed their regret at FYROM's absence. Mr. Milutinovic said FYROM had made a "big mistake" by not attending.

[5] Russia holds key for Balkan oil pipeline project, Pangalos says

Progress in negotiations on a project for the construction of an oil route from Russia to the Aegean Sea depends on Russia only, Greek Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos said yesterday.

Mr. Pangalos, in Sofia for a Balkan foreign ministers conference aimed at boosting regional economic ties, said he expected renewal of contacts with Russia on the oil route issue as soon as Moscow established its new government.

"I think now we can make progress because of the Russian elections (coming to an end). Our problem starts from Russia, it is not here," he told Reuters late on Saturday.

Bulgarian officials said in May that a tripartite meeting at a government level between Russia, Bulgaria and Greece would probably be held in August in Sofia.

The oil route project envisages a tanker route from Novorosiisk in Russia to Bulgaria's Black Sea port of Burgas, from where an new underground pipeline would carry Russian crude to Alexandroupolis in Greece.

The pipeline is expected to cost between $570 million and $640 million, Bulgarian government officials said.

The European Investment Bank has shown strong interest in granting credits for the Bulgarian portion, they added.

There were disagreements between Sofia and Athens over their future shares in the consortium.

Bulgaria has insisted on equal shares of 25 per cent each with the remaining 50 per cent for Russia.

Greece is in favor of a restricted state participation of Bulgaria and Greece.

[6] Romanian FM begins visit to Athens today

Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu begins a two-day official visit to Athens today, where he will be received by President of the Republic Kostis Stephanopoulos, Prime Minister Costas Simitis and have talks with his Greek counterpart Theodoros Pangalos.

Tomorrow, Mr. Malescanu will meet with National Defense Minister Gerassimos Arsenis, Development Minister Vasso Papandreou, National Economy Minister Yiannos Papantoniou and Parliament President Apostolos Kaklamanis.

[7] Authorities confident that foot and mouth disease will be contained

Veterinary service crews have killed 1,300 sheep, goats and cows in Dikella and Makri in the Evros region as part of strict measures to crack down on foot and mouth disease affecting herds in the region.

Veterinarians are continuing to make inventories of all stockbreeding units in Evros, while expressing optimism that the foot and mouth disease virus has been restricted to the areas of Dikella, Makri and Mesivria and that it will be contained with quarantine, the killings of animals and disinfection processes.

Another 300 animals were killed in Makri on Saturday, but no other stockbreeding unit has been found so far with cases of the disease.

Veterinarians in Evros insist in their assessment that the virus was brought to the region from Turkey where the disease is endemic. They said the first case was ascertained in a herd of goats and sheep belonging to a Moslem from the Dikella region who had visited Turkey several days ago.

Meanwhile, a delegation of European Union experts will visit the Evros region in the next few days to make an on-the-spot assessment of the situation.

In another development, Agriculture Under-secretary Apostolos Fotiadis visited the affected areas on Saturday, assuring stockbreeders that they would be compensated for the loss of their animals.

"We are tackling the situation with special concern and due attention. We have taken extreme precautionary measures which go beyond the EU's directive by far," he said.

Mr. Fotiadis said samples from the bowels of animals had already been sent to England for a laboratory examination and results were expected in the next few days.

"We hope we have prevented the worse. We believe the timely intervention of our services will prove to be a relief for stockbreeding in Thrace and our country," he added.

[8] Terrorist offshoot claims responsibility for Friday's attack

The shady 'June '78' terrorist organization, considered an offshoot of the Revolutionary Popular Struggle group (ELA), claimed responsibility for Friday night's shooting of a policeman guarding PASOK party headquarters, in an anonymous phone call to the 'Eleftherotypia' newspaper early Saturday.

Public Order Minister Costas Geitonas said that authorities were taking the call seriously, while police officials noted that 'Eleftherotypia' has never received a hoax claim following a similar attack.

'June '78' has in the past claimed responsibility for the murder of a policeman who was a notorious torturer during the seven-year long colonels' regime.

The victim of Friday's attack, 24-year old Nikos Vaiopoulos, is recovering in hospital but has not yet been interviewed by police.

[9] Opinion polls show Simitis in strong position

Seventy-nine per cent of Greeks consider the election of premier Costas Simitis to president of the ruling PASOK party as a good thing, while 50.1 per cent think that, following Mr. Simitis' election, PASOK has more chances of winning the next general elections.

According to the results of an opinion poll published in the 'Sunday Eleftherotypia' newspaper yesterday, 81.1 per cent of PASOK voters consider Mr. Simitis' election to the party's presidency a good thing and 78.7 of main opposition New Democracy followers.

Some 53.8 per cent of those questioned consider that the ruling party came out of its congress united.

[10] 'Marco Polo' greeted by scuffles dockside again

There were scuffles at the port of Nafplion on Saturday morning when dockers tried to prevent the cruiseship "Marco Polo" from docking and disembarking about 800 tourists.

The dockers clashed with locals who, headed by mayor George Tsournos and the municipal council, favored the disembarkation of the tourists.

The dockers, members of the Panhellenic Seamen's Federation (PNO), had come from Piraeus and were supported by the Communist Party of Greece's (KKE) party organization from Argolida. The Marco Polo anchored at a distance from the port and the small ship

'Mantalena' was used to disembark the tourists. Unionists jumped into the sea to prevent the Mantalena from docking but harbor officials pushed them back.

The mayor of Nafplion filed a suit against the unionists for the "loss of profits for the city" and for "disturbing the peace."

The 800 tourists managed to disembark, but one said "we will never set foot in Greece again, since we were terrified by what we saw."

The Marco Polo has been dogged by protests, as seamen's unions say the vessel is violating cabotage regulations allowing only Greek-flagged ships to complete round-trip cruises in Greek ports. According to EU regulations, only Greek vessels can organize cruises in Greek waters until the year 2004.

[11] Traffic restrictions in Athens today

Traffic restrictions will be in force for the center of Athens again today, as heat wave conditions are expected to continue until tomorrow. No private cars and only taxis with number plates ending in an even number are to be permitted into Athens' inner ring.

All taxis, as well as private cars with plates ending in even numbers will be allowed to circulate in the outer ring. These restrictions will be in force from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. Factories are being asked to reduce their output for 24 hours beginning 7 a.m. today.

Temperatures are expected to begin to drop on Wednesday, according to the weather bureau.

[12] Weekend meeting calls for legal status for all immigrants

Legal status for all immigrants was the demand of the majority of speakers at an anti-racism festival held in Athens this weekend.

The festival was organized by migrant groups in conjunction with a number of anti-racism organizations.

General Secretary for Youth P. Sfikakis stressed the need to replace the existing immigration law which he called "inappropriate and anachronistic".

Greece had proved to be unprepared in the face of an influx of migrants, even though it had the greatest proportion of migrants in its work force in southern Europe, he noted, drawing attention to the provisions of a labor and social services ministry bill, which he said he hoped would not remain on the drawing board.

Other speakers who spoke of the conditions faced by the country's foreign workers included Athens municipal councilor Leon Avdis and G. Kaplani, representative of the newly-founded Albanian Association.

End of English language section.