Athens News Agency: Daily News Bulletin in English, 00-09-28

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] At least 63 people drown in Aegean shipwreck; rescue operations continue

[02] Tsohatzopoulos says what the Yugoslav people need is to have democracy consolidated in practice

[03] Papandreou says the safest Olympic Games will be held in 2004

[04] Greek ambassador to Tirana visits NATO command in Durres

[05] Greece supports release of strategic oil reserves

[06] Turkish trade fair offers free participation to Greek firms

[07] Greek travel agents say Athens hotels too few for Olympics

[08] Lack of direction leaves Greek stocks flat

[09] ASE chairman to present bourse's activities in London

[10] Airliner obliged to land at Fiumicino airport after bomb threat

[11] Sydney Olympics Third gold medal for Greece in Tae Kwon do from Mouroutsos

[12] Kelesidou comes second in discus throwing competition

[13] UN committed to respect resolutions on Cyprus in context of peace talks

[14] Turkish settlers in Cyprus among main problems in reaching settlement on island

[15] Turkey to be challenged at CoE for failing to honor obligations

[01] At least 63 people drown in Aegean shipwreck; rescue operations continue

Athens, 28/09/2000 (ANA)

The tragedy took place at approximately 10:20 p.m. on Tuesday as the 3,783-ton, 110-meter ferry "Express Samina" ran aground and sank near the islet of Portes off the island of Paros, at the central Aegean.

Port authority sources announced that 452 were rescued of a yet undetermined number of passengers and crew, while about 20 of those rescued, were injured but none was in critical condition and nine persons were still missing.

Among those already rescued there were 72 foreign nationals, and among those drowned was a Norwegian national, Ilia Heisten Juul, 51.

According to reports the number of those killed was expected to climb higher, as hopes of finding survivors diminish as time passes, because of the weather conditions in the region. This was the worst accident on Greek seas, since 1965, when the ferry Iraklion sank off the Aegean island of Falkonera killing 217 people.

Paros Port Authority Vice-Commander Dimitrios Malamas, 40, should be counted among the victims of the tragedy, as he died on duty of heart failure, during his efforts to coordinate the search and rescue efforts.

Paros residents were the first to set out with their commercial fishing boats to rescue passengers risking their lives and livelihoods, as Hellenic Air force C130s lighted the skies with flares, but the residents of Paros did not stop at the rescue as they also gave their best in hospitality to the victims.

Four British naval vessels already in the region were also instrumental in minimizing the numbers of those drowned.

Initially it was reported that the ship carried approximately 500 passengers and crew, but that number was amended as reports came in of passengers purchasing tickets later on board and not via the central databank system.

Gale force winds were prevailing in the area at the time of the accident, making rescue operations highly difficult.

The "Express Samina" had departed at 5 p.m. from Piraeus for Paros, Naxos, Ikaria, Samos and Patmos.

Justice Minister Michalis Stathopoulos announced in Parliament on Wednesday that there would be a full judicial inquiry into the causes of the shipwreck and that charges would be pressed against those responsible, as well as the ship's owners.

Stathopoulos, expressing the deep grief and shock of the government, said that the accident was not only a tragedy but that there was also strong evidence of "criminal negligence".

Earlier, Parliament speaker Apostolos Kaklamanis had said that a preliminary inquiry was being carried out by the public prosecutor on Syros and by authorities on Paros and in Piraeus port.

As he emerged from a meeting with Prime Minister Costas Simitis at noon, Stathopoulos described the accident as a "criminal act".

"It is hard to understand how a ship could run into a lit beacon," he said and said he had spoken with the Supreme Court public prosecutor Panagiotis Dimopoulos and instructed him to immediately begin an inquiry.

Dimopoulos has ordered the Syros Appeals Court prosecutor and other judicial officials to go to Paros immediately and carry out an exhaustive investigation into the causes of the accident

Meanwhile, five crewmembers, including captain Vassilis Yannakis and second-in-command Antonis Psychogios, were being held by prosecutor's order pending investigation in the causes of the shipwreck.

Reactions: President of the Republic Kostis Stephanopoulos expressed "immense grief" over the 'Express Samina' shipwreck and his "deepest sympathy" to the survivors of the maritime tragedy and the relatives of the victims, adding his wish that the death toll would not rise further.

Prime Minister Simitis also expressed deep grief at the death of so many people, but declined further comment "while the massive search and rescue operation is still underway", adding that he had ordered that the causes of the accident "be fully investigated and responsibilities attributed".

Main opposition New Democracy (ND) leader Costas Karamanlis expressed condolences to the families of the victims and congratulated all those taking part in the rescue operation.

European Commission President Romano Prodi expressed his condolences to the families of the victims and his hope that search and rescue efforts will conclude soon.

According to a press release issued by the Commission, Prodi and Transport Com-missioner Loyola de Palacio expressed their condolences to the families of the victims and to the Greek government.

"This tragedy touches all us Europeans and I want to express my solidarity to the families of the victims," Palacio said.

Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer conveyed his condolences over the tragic shipwreck of the ferry "Express Samina" to his Greek counterpart Kostis Stephanopoulos, according to a press release from the Turkish president's office.

"I convey personally and also on behalf of the Turkish people, my condolences and sincere feelings. I was greatly saddened by the shipwreck that occurred in the Aegean yesterday and which cost the lives of so many people," Sezer said in his message.

"Mr. President, rest assured that the Turkish people stand by the Greek people and share their pain," he concluded.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair sent a message to his Greek counterpart Costas Simitis expressing his condolences over the "terrible loss of life" in the sinking of the ferry 'Express Samina', a press release of the British Embassy in Athens noted.

"I was immensely saddened to hear of the terrible loss of life from the sinking of the ferry Express Samina, off Paros," Blair said in his message.

Pope John Pall II sent a message expressing his condolences for the victims. In a message to the Greek foreign ministry, Vatican Foreign Minister Cardinal Angelo Sontano noted that "when the Holy Father was informed of the tragic accident of a ship off the coast of Greece, he sympathized through prayer with the suffering and pain of the families who lost loved ones".

Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos ex-pressed his deepest condolences in a telegram sent to Prime Minister Costas Simitis.

Vartholomeos was informed of the tragedy during his visit to Bahrain, and upon his return to the Phanar, addressed the telegram of condolences to Simitis.

Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Christodoulos expressed his condolences for the victims of the "Express Samina" shipwreck, making special mention of those missing.

"Great is our worry over the fate of the passengers and crew of the fateful ship still missing," the message read.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem sent a message of condolences to his Greek counterpart George Papandreou, ac-cording to a report by the Turkish "Anatolian" news agency.

"We share the grief of the Greek people and I wish to express my sincere condolences to you and the relatives of the victims," Cem said, adding that "I assure you that if we can do something to relieve the pain of the neighboring Greek people we shall do so."

Government spokesman: Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas said that "plenty of light will be shed on the reasons behind the tragedy of Paros. We reassure everyone that there will be an in-depth and persistent investigation in every direction in order to hold all those responsible for the tragedy."

He added that the state rescue mechanisms mobilized immediately and were under the orders of Merchant Marine Minister Christos Papoutsis and the leader-ship of the Port Authority, who immediately arrived at the rescue operation facilities of the ministry.

Reppas said that there should be no political exploitation of the incident and the pain of the relatives of those dead or missing, adding that such a tragedy has never happened before in Greece.

He concluded noting that the ship had received certificates of seaworthiness, and that issue will be under special investigation.

Minoan Lines president sees human negligence as the key factor in shipwreck: Criminal human negligence caused the "Express Samina" accident, Costas Kliromonos president of Minoan Flying Dolphins (MFD), owner of the vessel, said on Wednesday.

"We can not blame the company, nor the crew or the officers or the structure of the company or the company's controls of its ships for the 'blindness' of one of the ship's officer, who was on the bridge and could not see a lighted rock, but rather he goes head and falls on it," Klironomos said.

He also said that the company had the vessel checked twice, following the report of an "Express Samina" engineer who was fired a week ago, which doubted the ship's seaworthiness, adding that he was let go for tardiness and not for his negative report.

Klironomos, who is also the president of Minoan Lines, said that although the major MFD shareholder was Minoan Lines the two companies have separate administrations, organizational structures and business identities.

Sailor steering the "Express Samina" recounts incident: Gale force winds and lack of visibility caused the shipwreck of the "Express Samina" ferry, according to the sailor who was on the bridge of the vessel, manning the steering wheel of the ship at the time of the accident.

The sailor, Panagiotis Kasdaglis, said that the ship was on the correct course, according to maps, the compass and the rest of the navigational equipment.

He said that while he and the chief mate saw the light house, on the rocky islet of 'Dio Portes' from a distance of 20 to 30 meters, "the navigational equipment indicated that we were on the correct course. Nothing could have stopped the impact. I did not have a chance to do anything, not one in a million. In any case our speed was up to 18 knots.

"The chief mate grabbed the steering wheel immediately, but at that point the loud noise of the impact was heard. We were in a black out condition and the lights went out. We were hit at the right side of the ship and the rupture must have been large, as the ship sank completely in 20 minutes," Kasdaglis said.

"The crew did what it could ... there was panic and people started to slide into the sea and those who could made it to the boats. I can not explain how we reached the rocks," he said.

"Usually, we pass by the 'Dio Portes' (or two doors the name of the rock which the ship hit) at a distance of 300, 400 or 500 meters, depending on the weather conditions at sea. We saw the light (on the rock) from afar and suddenly we saw it right in front of us," he said.

"I can not assign this accident to human error. One thing is certain we were on course, according to the compass, which must have been right, there were two of them, not just one. We could not reverse, nor stop the engines. The moment we saw the rocks the impact came. The engines went out. The ship began sinking," he concluded.

Political parties extend their condolences and sympathy to the families of the "Express Samina" victims: Political parties extended their condolences to the families of the "Express Samina" shipwreck's victims in announcements on Wednesday.

The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) in an announcement said "it is another huge crime for which the government and Merchant Marine Ministry are absolutely responsible for turning a blind eye to ship-owners' free hand regarding the ship in question. The profits of ship owners' capital prevailed here as well at the expense of human life."

Coalition of the Left and Progress (Synaspismos) leader Nikos Constantopoulos made a written announcement expressing his grief and extending his sympathy to the families of the shipwreck's victims.

"It has been revealed dramatically that the problems of protecting common and day-to-day security in our lives are many, big and open," he said.

Democratic Social Movement (DHKKI) leader Dimitris Tsovolas, in his own writ-ten announcement, extended his condolences to the families of the victims of the "inexcusable tragedy in Paros."

Tsovolas said "the bright exception to the state apparatus's inertia and confusion was the stance of local administration and the citizens of Paros, as well as of passengers on the ship."

Reactions to naval tragedy by Parliament and political parties: The Greek Parliament observed a minute's silence on Wednesday in honor of the victims of the naval tragedy and postponed its workings until the next day.

Parliament speaker Apostolos Kaklamanis had earlier expressed the body's anguish over the dozens of dead and missing, and conveyed its deepest sorrow to the relatives of the victims.

Prime Minister Costas Simitis ordered all PASOK party activities to be postponed out of respect for the tragedy, including Thursday's meeting of the Executive Bureau to discuss the statements made by Culture Minister Theodoros Pangalos, which has been put off until October 5, and a meeting of the PASOK Central Committee on Friday and Saturday that will be held on October 6-7. The postponement of the latter meeting, meanwhile, pushes back a nationwide PASOK conference on health, which will now be held on November 3-4 in Thessaloniki.

Main opposition New Democracy also announced that it was postponing a planned meeting of its Central Committee on Thursday to mark the tragedy and said it would be held October 7.

Athens Mayor Dimitris Avramopoulos, meanwhile, said the planned celebrations for Greece's Olympic medallists, scheduled for Tuesday, might well be postponed as a sign of grief for the victims of the tragedy, possibly for the next two months.

Ship fully inspected, Piraeus port claims: Piraeus port officials said on Wednesday that the shipwrecked ferry "Express Samina" had been thoroughly inspected by three Coast Guard officers and one Merchant Marine ministry official on Tuesday before sailing and had been found seaworthy.

Speaking to the press, Coast Guard Chief Captain Dam. Damianos, Piraeus Port Chief K. Kyrzakitsis and ship's captain Dim. Fokas claimed that a vessel's seaworthiness is not "directly correlated to its age limit and maintenance."

According to the Coast Guard, the ship had begun plying its route on July 20 and all its live-saving gear was in functional condition.

Regarding a report by the ship's first engineer A. Sorokos on September 21 that the ship had serious problems, the three officers said that two general inspections were immediately carried out and no one had noticed any problems.

According to records, the newest part of the "Express Samina" was its name, the ship itself being nearly 35 years old. It first sailed in 1966 as the "Golden Vergina," along with the other 22 per cent of the Greek passenger ferry fleet that dates back to the 1960s.

According to Merchant Marine ministry records, around two thirds of the 409 passenger ferries now plying the Greek sea routes are classed as old or very old, while only one third were built in the last 20 years.

The Greek fleet currently has 88 passenger ships that were built between 1960-1969, 166 that were built between 1970-1979 and 155 built since 1980. Only 21 were built in the last decade.

[02] Tsohatzopoulos says what the Yugoslav people need is to have democracy consolidated in practice

SOFIA, 28/09/2000 (ANA - B. Borisov)

"The most important message from the elections in Yugoslavia was the mass participation of the Yugoslav people. It was a message of choice for democracy, for processes, which will consolidate the democratic will of the Yugoslav people. I am sorry about the situation which appears to being shaped and I think that what the people of Yugoslavia need is to have democracy consolidated in practice to enable hope and expectation to be created for a stable course of developments in this country," he said.

Tsohatzopoulos was speaking at the start of the exercise codenamed "Seven Stars" at the Koren training center near the town of Haskovo, Bulgaria, on looming tension and confrontation between the main political forces in Yugoslavia, following the Yugoslav opposition's categorical refusal to accept the possible holding of a second round of presidential elections on October 8.

Tsohatzopoulos had headed a delegation of senior armed forces officers to Bulgaria on Tuesday to watch the first exercise of the multinational brigade created two years ago by seven countries in southeastern Europe.

Tsohatzopoulos cut short his two-day visit to Bulgaria on Wednesday and returned to Athens upon hearing of Tuesday's tragic shipwreck in the Aegean.

"We are all deeply grieved from this unexpected and tragic development, from the victims, from the loss of human life," he told Greek journalists prior to his departure for Athens.

Reppas says the people of Yugoslavia have taken their decision: Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas said on Wednesday Greece will not interfere in the possible holding or not of a second round of elections in Yugoslavia.

He said after the announcement of the elections by the Central Supervisory Committee, the clear predominance of the opposition has appeared, adding that the people of Yugoslavia have voted and have decided.

"We have the impression that changes are underway in the neighboring country which might help in the improvement of Yugoslavia's relations with Europe," he said.

[03] Papandreou says the safest Olympic Games will be held in 2004

SYDNEY, 28/09/2000 (ANA)

Papandreou was speaking at a press conference in his capacity as Vice President of the International Foundation and International Olympic Truce Center, while some foreign reporters preferred to focus on the issue of terrorism in Greece in light of the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.

"When the question is repeated to such a degree, the problem is widened," he said in response to questions by BBC and Wall Street Journal reporters on whether Greece is in a position to guarantee the security of IOC members and other dignitaries during the 28th Olympic Games.

"We are in close cooperation with Scotland Yard and various other agencies. There will be no problem, as we have also proved, in any case, at the world athletics championship in 1997. Select guests, the members of the IOC and the sponsors of the games will not be faced with the slightest of problems. The safest games will be held in 2004," he said.

[04] Greek ambassador to Tirana visits NATO command in Durres

TIRANA, 28/09/2000 (ANA - Ilir Pacho)

Mallias held talks with COMM Z WEST Commander Casalotto, who briefed him on the contribution of the Greek contingent in the framework of the NATO force.

He also addressed a gathering of Greek officers who gave him a tour of their installations and barracks later and briefed him on their activities.

[05] Greece supports release of strategic oil reserves

PRAGUE, 28/09/2000 (ANA/A. Lidorikis)

Papantoniou reiterated, however, that the impact from rising oil prices in the world and the Greek economy would be limited.

"Even if current high oil prices were maintained in the next 12 months, the impact on the country's growth rate will be minimal and will only affect the inflation rate by less than one point," he said.

Papantoniou said that the euro's current rate did not reflect eurozone's economic fundamentals. "We are determined (in European level) to approve a new round of intervention by the European Central Bank to support the currency," he said.

The Greek minister said that a previous week's joint intervention in support of the euro had changed market sentiment and predicted that the US dollar could face problems in the medium-term due to a rising trade deficit in the US.

[06] Turkish trade fair offers free participation to Greek firms

Athens, 28/09/2000 (ANA)

Running parallel with the fair, which will be held from October 25-29, is Advis 2000.

[07] Greek travel agents say Athens hotels too few for Olympics

Athens, 28/09/2000 (ANA)

Growth in the hotels sector needed to be part of an integrated development policy, HATTA said in a statement.

[08] Lack of direction leaves Greek stocks flat

Athens, 28/09/2000 (ANA)

Shares in the smaller capitalization and construction sectors remained under pressure to end substantially lower while blue chip stocks in the banks sector attracted demand.

The general index ended at 4,153.14 points, down 0.01 percent, after moving within a range of 4,204.13-4,112.75 points throughout the day. Turnover was a low 79 billion drachmas.

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks fell 0.07 percent to 2,350.74 points and the FTSE/ASE 40 index eased 0.29 percent.

Sector indices ended as follows: Banks: 8,346.25 +0.86% Leasing: 672.45 -1.54% Insurance: 2,257.23 -0.28% Investment: 1,649.60 -0.25% Construction: 2,005.66 -1.65% Industrials: 2,485.18 -0.15% Miscellaneous: 4,296.70 +0.14% Holding: 4,960.51 -1.90%

The parallel market index for smaller capitalization stocks ended at 597.69 points, off 2.95 percent.

Broadly, decliners led advancers by 224 to 104 with another 25 issues unchanged.

Intertek, Hellenic Bottling, Eurobank, Hellenic Telecoms, Minoan Lines and Daios Plastics were the most heavily traded stocks.

Leading shares' closing prices (in Drs): National Bank: 15,325 Titan Cement (c): 14,620 Alpha Bank: 14,950 Hellenic Telecoms: 7,480 Commercial Bank: 19,350 Panafon: 3,750 Hellenic Petroleum: 4,125 Eurobank: 10,795 Attica Enterprises: 2,985 Piraeus Bank: 6,560 Intracom: 13,295 Lambrakis Press: 9,100 Minoan Lines: 2,935 Heracles Cement: 6,240 Hellenic Bottling: 5,040

Equity futures end mixed, tracking Athens bourse: Equity futures traded on the Athens Derivatives Exchange finished mixed on Wednesday, in line with the indices on which they are based.

The FTSE/ASE 20 index closed 0.07 percent down, and the FTSE/ASE 40 ended 0.29 percent lower.

Turnover was 15.4 billion drachmas.

A total of 2,417 contracts were traded on the FTSE/ASE 20 with turnover at 11.5 billion drachmas.

On the FTSE/ASE 40 index, 1,789 contracts changed hands on turnover of 3.8 billion drachmas.

Bond prices edge down in light trade: Bond prices in the domestic secondary market on Wednesday finished lower in light across-the-board trade.

The Greek benchmark 10-year bond showed a yield of 6.05 percent from 6.043 percent in the last session.

The Greek paper's yield spread over German bunds was 76 basis points from 79-80 basis points in the previous trading day.

Turnover through the central bank's electronic system totalled 40 billion drachmas from 56 billion drachmas in the session before.

Of the total, sell orders accounted for around 30 billion drachmas of trade.

Drachma up vs. euro, dollar: The drachma on Wednesday ended higher against the euro and the US dollar in the domestic foreign exchange market.

At the central bank's daily fixing, the euro was set at 339.280 drachmas from 339.300 drachmas in the previous session.

Also at the fix, the dollar was set at 383.080 drachmas from 386.730 drachmas a trading day earlier.

[09] ASE chairman to present bourse's activities in London

Athens, 28/09/2000 (ANA)

The trip is part of an international road show planned by ASE's board in major financial centers to attract foreign fund managers.

The first presentation will take place at UBS Warburg offices in London on Friday. The event will be repeated next month at the same investment bank's offices in New York.

ASE's delegation will meet with Societe Generale's board on Thursday in the UK capital.

The road show, including presentations by Credit Suisse First Boston and Schroder-Salomon Brothers in London and New York, will be carried on in October and November and will be continued next year.

[10] Airliner obliged to land at Fiumicino airport after bomb threat

Athens, 28/09/2000 (ANA)

[11] Sydney Olympics Third gold medal for Greece in Tae Kwon do from Mouroutsos

Athens, 28/09/2000 (ANA)

[12] Kelesidou comes second in discus throwing competition

Athens, 28/09/2000 (ANA)

Two more Greek athletes ranked among the top nine in the same event.

[13] UN committed to respect resolutions on Cyprus in context of peace talks

NEW YORK, 28/09/2000 (CNA/ANA)

They also note that the UN feel they have engaged Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash in substantive talks, without giving in to his unacceptable demands for recognition of his status or acknowledgment of his self-styled regime in the Turkish-occupied part of Cyprus.

The assessment was made as the fourth round of UN-led proximity talks closed here on Tuesday, with UN Secretary-General's Special Adviser for Cyprus Alvaro de Soto saying that both sides engaged in the substance of the negotiations in a way they have never done in the past during this process, which started last December.

The same sources believe the UN consider Denktash's engagement in serious talks is the result of the significant contribution of powerful members of the Security Council, which worked in the direction of Turkey which in turn influenced Denktash to conduct substantive talks on all four core issues the UN has identified (constitution, security, territory, refugees-property).

The UN, according to the same sources, intends to intensify their work with a view to speed up the process and move towards the substantive objective of reaching an agreement to break the deadlock.

President Glafcos Clerides has repeatedly told the UN he is not prepared to agree to a solution which is outside the parameters of UN resolutions, something the UN understands fully.

The UN intends to work in earnest to prepare the next round of proximity talks to take place 1-10 November in Geneva, but intend to bring the two sides back here in late January.

Meanwhile, the Cypriot president had a meeting here on Tuesday with German Ambassador in Nicosia Peter Wittig, who is also his country's special envoy for Cyprus.

President Clerides, who left New York on Tuesday, plans to be in Nice at the beginning of December for the European Union summit.

[14] Turkish settlers in Cyprus among main problems in reaching settlement on island

LONDON, 28/07/2000 (CNA/ANA)

Speaking at a meeting held in Brighton on Tuesday on the fringes of the Labor Party Conference, Cook added that some progress had been made at the UN-led proximity talks, noting that "Cyprus is in the front for accession to the European Union".

The British Foreign Secretary said his country had helped at the Helsinki EU Summit in reaching the formulation that the political settlement is not a precondition for accession to the EU.

Cook said his experience walking the Green Line dividing the capital, Nicosia, helped him understand how difficult peacekeeping is.

He noted that "one of the main problems in reaching a settlement is the large numbers (of Turks) who have entered Cyprus from Turkey since 1975 to provide an (illegal) electoral base" for Turkish

Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash.

[15] Turkey to be challenged at CoE for failing to honor obligations

STRASBOURG, 28/09/2000 (CNA/ANA)

Speaking after a meeting in Strasbourg with Turkish-occupied Famagusta Mayor Sophi Phitidou and the Chairman of the Political Affairs Committee of the CoE Terry Davis, the British MP said that if a country is a member of the CoE, as Turkey is, then it has " to obey by the rules of the CoE", adding that "we know very clearly that Turkey is not doing that on many cases no more so than the Loizidou case".

He said it has been made clear that "the CoE is not going to allow this situation to continue indefinitely and what we believe is that there will come a time and that time is not far away, we are talking about months not years, when the credentials of Turkey will be challenged here for failing to honor the obligations of the CoE and for failing to honor the obligations of the European Court of Human Rights".

Referring to the Cyprus problem and UN-led talks to reach a settlement on the island, divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third, Cox said:

"There is going to come a time, and again we are not talking about years, when we would be saying very clearly, that if Turkey wishes, as we know it does, to become a member of the EU then they will not become a member as long as their troops occupy the island of Cyprus, as long as Cypriots who were driven from their homes are not allowed to return to those homes and until the day when both Greek and Turkish Cypriots start to live together again".

He added that "with the necessary financial help they will start to rebuild the northern part of Cyprus, because it is very clear from what has been told to me by very senior British diplomats who have been to the northern-occupied part of Cyprus, that the economy is in ruins".

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