NEWS IN DETAIL

Greece pledges support to Albanian political deal

The deal, signed Sunday after two days of talks and mediation by senior European envoys, calls for the formation of an interim all-party government to supervise general elections to be held in June.

However, the revolt in the south of the country appeared to be spreading yesterday, with rebels ignoring the political deal thrashed out by President Berisha, continuing their calls for the president's resignation, and the army falling back in disarray .

Reports said that the latest areas to fall were the ancient town of Berat, abandoned without a fight by the army, and the nearby town of Kucove, where residents pillaged an air force base, one of two important military airfields in Albania. Reports from Tirana indicated the towns of Polican and Corovode, south of the capital, were also in rebel hands.

An ANA dispatch from the Albanian capital reported Mr. Berisha calling an urgent meeting of political party leaders in a last-ditch attempt to stem the rebellion from spreading further.

According to the same dispatch, Mr. Berisha was to propose to the main opposition Socialist Party that it choose a prime minister in the interim government.

Albanian crisis purely a political -- not ethnic -- problem

Mr. Pangalos expressed the view that the rebellion in the south of Albania was not due to the fact that part of the population there was Greek.

"The rebellion is due to ... political instability in Albania and the authoritarian behaviour of the government...(and) the big financial scandal, " he said, referring to the collapse of pyramid investment schemes.

Greece's concerns, he went on, were to protect the ethnic Greek minority.

"Up to now we have a positive response from the Albanian government. ... President Berisha told Prime Minister Costas Simitis in a telephone conversation that there is no ethnic motivation in the troubles nor any distinction among the different religious or language groups in Albania," he explained. The minister also stressed that Greece could not afford any more illegal immigrants from Albania, noting that almost one in three Albanian families survives on incomes earned in Greece.

Pangalos: Cyprus solution 'long overdue'

"I think that at the end of this year, Cyprus will start accession negotiations with the European Union... Although a solution is not a condition for the beginning of the negotiations, if there was a solution, the negotiations would be much easier and Cyprus' place in the EU would be much clearer," he commented, adding:

"The problem... is to oblige in some way the government in Ankara, through international pressure, to take a decision on the Cyprus issue, to contribute positively to a solution. That is the point."

He expressed the view that proximity talks would start immediately and face- to-face talks (between the leaders of the two communities) eventually "if there is a positive development, before the end of the year."

Finally, with regard to the dispute over the name of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Mr. Pangalos drew attention to Greece's currently excellent relations as FYROM's second-largest trading partner.

"The problem is that we want a name that will distinguish this new country from our Macedonia. Macedonia is an important part of Greece, as you know, and Greek Macedonia is more than fifty percent of the geographical area ...(of Macedonia) ...So we want to keep this name in a clear way as the name of Greek Macedonia. We want their name to be specified in some way and this is what the negotiations are about," he concluded.

New Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria enthroned

The ceremony was attended by President Kostis Stephanopoulos, Cypriot President Glafcos Clerides, Alternate Foreign Minister George Papandreou, Foreign Undersecretary Yiannos Kranidiotis, Public Order Minister George Romeos, many deputies, leaders or representatives of Greek and Cypriot parties, Athens Mayor Dimitris Avramopoulos and crowds of people. Also present were representatives of all Orthodox Churches, a representation for Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and senior Egyptian officials.

President Stephanopoulos showed particular interest in the preservation of the Patriarchate's heirlooms and the university to be established in the city founded by Alexander the Great and which will bear his name.

Alternate FM to visit Sweden next week

Mr. Papandreou will also be meeting with the European affairs undersecretary and president of the Swedish Committee on the Intergovernmental Conference Gunar Loyd.

Representatives of Greek expatriate bodies will hold talks with Mr. Papandreou on March 17. Mr. Papandreou will leave Stockholm for Vienna the next day.

FYROM satisfied with progress in relations with Greece

Referring to economic relations,he estimated their value at 20-30 million marks, expressing his conviction that this year they will exceed $100 million, primarily due to Greek participation in a number of major projects.

Commenting on the political sector, he referred to the recent meeting held in Thessaloniki between the two countries' culture ministers, adding that Skopje has proposed a meeting between the two interior ministers and the creation of committees for a jo int discussion on and examination of pending issues.

Mr. Frckovski further said "the process of the New York talks on the name (of FYROM) should continue without terms being set and without association with the European Union being obstructed."

Austrian defence minister due in Athens today

Austria, he noted, is the country with the longest service in the UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus, with its involvement dating back to the beginning of the '60s.

Mr. Faslabed said developments in the Balkans,and Albania in particular, Europe's future security architecture, the Cyprus issue and bilateral cooperation will be the main topics of discussion with his Greek counterpart Akis Tsohatzopoulos.

Mr. Faslabed said the exchange of information and views between Austria and Greece is extremely important, as they are countries bordering events in the Balkans which, in his view, will remain a flashpoint in the future as well, as illustrated by developments in Albania.

Honorary doctorate for German President

President Herzog will meet President Kostis Stephanopoulos tomorrow morning before returning to Germany.

President Herzog, who was a member of the Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe from 1983 and its president from 1987 to 1994 (when he was elected President of the Republic by the German Parliament), will be honoured by the Athens University's Law Faculty for his academic work.

President Herzog and President Stephanopoulos have met twice in the past. The first time was in July 1995 when President Stephanopoulos paid an acquaintance visit to Berlin and the second was in June 1996 when President Stephanopoulos paid an official v isit to Germany in the light of the Greek- Turkish crisis, accompanied by Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos.

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