Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 97-05-07
NEWS IN ENGLISH
Athens, Greece, 07/05/1997 (ANA)
MAIN HEADLINES
- Greece will not bargain away its sovereign rights, Simitis says
- US fully supports committee of experts proposal, envoy says
- EU directives threaten Greek wines
- Apostolakis officially opens Greek-US defence talks
- No Greek-British clash over Elgin Marbles, minister says
- Inflation continues to drop, Papantoniou says
- Turnover, prices buoyant on the Athens Stock Exchange
- Weather
- Foreign exchange
NEWS IN DETAIL
Greece will not bargain away its sovereign rights, Simitis says
Prime Minister Costas Simitis stressed today that Greece was in no way
prepared to negotiate its sovereign rights in any form of dialogue and
would not accept any process which questioned the present status quo in the
Aegean.
Addressing the ruling PASOK party's parliamentary group, the premier was
replying to criticism from within the party of the government's recent
handling of issues related to Greek-Turkish relations.
''There is no place for rhetoric in foreign policy matters... With regard
to national issues, the greatest responsibility is borne by the cadres of a
ruling party,'' Simitis said.
Thirty-two PASOK deputies last month made public a letter they sent to
Simitis protesting what they viewed as the government's acceptance of a
dialogue between Greece and Turkey.
''This form of public announcement promotes neither democracy nor cohesion
within the party, since there are statutory bodies at which issues should
be raised,'' Simitis said, noting that he had first learned about the
letter while listening to a radio station.
The premier underlined that the government's positions on the entire
spectrum of Greek-Turkish relations were ''crystal-clear'' and had been
ratified by the principal collective bodies of the ruling PASOK party.
''It is a fundamental position of the government that Greece does not put
up its sovereign rights, as these rights emanate from international law and
treaties, (for discussion) in any dialogue,'' Simitis said, adding that
Greece would not accept any process which questioned the present status quo
in the Aegean.
Simitis said there was a substantial difference between Greece and Turkey,
namely that while Athens had a clear policy and positions based on
international law and treaties, Ankara was refusing to adapt its policy to
the fundamental rules of the European Union which it nevertheless wanted to
join.
''The result is, at the present time, that Turkey is a destabilising factor
not only in the Aegean but in the greater region,'' he said.
If Turkey proved in deed that it respected international law and abandoned
its expansionist designs, the premier said, it would find support from
Greece in its European course.
If the tension and threat of force systematically fostered in recent years
by Ankara disappeared from the region, he added, the Greek and Turkish
peoples would only gain.
Simitis said in Athens' view, the purpose of the committees of experts to
be formed by Greece and Turkey to examine the problems between the two
neighbours was to improve the climate in their bilateral relations.
''The committee in no way implies commencement of a political dialogue nor
any form of arbitration,'' Simitis said, reiterating that its findings
would not be binding.
The premier said Greece hoped on the one hand that the process would mark a
turning point in Turkish policy towards respect for international law,
while on the other highlighting once again that Ankara does not really want
dialogue.
''Greece has nothing to fear and nothing to lose...,'' Simitis said.
Government policy aimed at improving Greek-Turkish relations through a step-
by-step approach, Simitis said.
The premier reiterated that the first step was for Turkey to accept three
conditions which reflect basic principles of international law.
''Namely, a declaration (by Ankara) at the appropriate political level,
without terms or provisos, that it rules out the threat of war and the use
of force in relations between the two countries, and at the same time, the
unreserved declaration that it will under no circumstances resort to war in
order to resolve any problem which Turkey may consider to exist between the
two countries.
''Secondly, the acceptance (by Ankara) of the institutional framework which
governs relations between the two countries and shapes the existing legal
situation in the Aegean, that is, the existing international treaties.
''Thirdly, the subsequent acceptance by Turkey that issues which pertain to
the implementation or interpretation of international treaties should be
settled through legal procedures provided under international law and
specifically, at the International Court at the Hague,'' Simitis said.
Following this, the premier went on, and Turkey's acceptance to refer its
claims regarding the Imia islets to the Hague, Greece would give its
approval for the financial protocol foreseen under the EU-Turkey customs
union agreement.
''The next step would be the drawing up of an agreement to refer the issue
of the delineation of the (Aegean) continental shelf to the Hague, while at
the same time, contacts could begin at a ministerial and government level
for an exchange of views and the development of cooperation in sectors such
as tourism, commerce, combatting crime etc.,'' the premier said.
There is no hesitation or wavering in PASOK with regard to national issues,
Simitis said, adding that government policy had been shaped through
successive collective procedures and ratified by virtue of the Greek
people's mandate in September last year.
Simitis said foreign policy was ''closely and decisively'' linked with the
attainment of the government's overall targets such as the strengthening of
the economy, preserving social cohesion and the country's equal participation
in the course towards European integration.
US fully supports committee of experts proposal, envoy says
US Ambassador to Greece Thomas Niles today expressed support for a Dutch
European Union presidency proposal to form a committee of experts to
examine Greek-Turkish relations.
Greece and Turkey have each named two representatives to the committee, to
hold separate consultations on Greek-Turkish differences.
Speaking after his first meeting with main opposition New Democracy party
leader Kostas Karamanlis, Niles said the US considered there were
possibilities for positive results and progress in relations between the
two countries. He declined to comment on whether the US wanted a meeting
betweeen the two countries' experts or an exchange of ideas by letter. The
US, he said, did not want to get involved in procedures.
"We are sure the Dutch presidency will make all the necessary arrangements
with the Greek and Turkish governments. The US is not about to give advice
as to how the talks should take place," said the Ambassador.
EU directives threaten Greek wines
Greece's viniculturists have sounded the alarm that Greece is in danger of
becoming a wine-importer rather than exporter if the current trend
continues of uprooting vineyards to limit wine production in accordance
with European Union directives.
About 14% of Greece's vineyards have been uprooted, according to Yannis
Boutaris, president of Boutaris Wines, vice-president of the Industrialists'
Association of Northern Greece and president of the Greek Wine Assocation.
Speaking at a press conference yesterday in Thessaloniki on the occasion of
the 14th DETROP trade fair, Boutaris urged the government to do everything
in its power to abolish the policy of uprooting vineyards.
"The government should make the European Union realise that Greece has
special characteristics and that the policy of subsidising viniculturists
who abandon their vineyards should be abolishe," he said.
The viniculturalists also want the Agriculture Ministry to take action
against an issue raised by Britain regarding the abolition of taxation
restrictions on ouzo, the traditional Greek aniseed drink, in the Greek
market.
"This is a thorn in the side of companies producing that Greek traditional
drink, recognised by the European Union as a Greek patent," said Boutaris.
Greece's wine producers have begun a promotion campaign both at home and
abroad. Part of this effort is the Second Gastronomic and Wine Festival to
coincide with the DETROP fair and which includes symposia, lectures and
exhibitions of Greek and foreign-language books on wine and nutrition.
The first restaurant guide to Thessaloniki has also been published, to
promote Greek wine at the same time as traditional Greek cuisine.
Apostolakis officially opens Greek-US defence talks
The sixth high-level Greece-US consultative committee meeting began in
Iraklio, Crete today with an address by Defence Undersecretary Dimitris
Apostolakis calling for an expansion of the system of stability and
security in northern and central Europe towards the south.
"The European Union and the Western European Union, as well as NATO of
course, could all work together and contribute a great deal in this
direction...Greece is participating actively in this process," said
Apostolakis.
The Undersecretary referred to Greece's position that stability and peace
were best served by adherence to existing international treaties and
respect for the status quo established by those treaties.
He also emphasised that Russia's concerns regarding the expansion of NATO
should be taken into consideration, and that Balkan nations should not be
left out of that expansion.
The agenda for the meeting, whose sessions continue until on Friday,
includes the development of bilateral defence cooperation, the situation in
the southeastern Mediterranean and other regional issues.
Apostolakis said later that the talks were being held in a very good
atmosphere but that no specific agreements had yet been reached.
''The issues were raised and discussed and we are trying to push them
forward as far as possible. It is known that nearly all our friends and
allies are trying to influence us to come into contact with Turkey. The
same is true with respect to Turkey, in order for issues to be settled,''
Apostolakis said.
''This is what happened now. We have not reached any decisio. We heard
their views and they heard ours. We made an effort to convince them and I
believe that we convinced them just how right we are,'' he added.
No Greek-British clash over Elgin marbles, minister says
Culture Minister Evangelos Venizelos today denied there had been a clash
between Greece and Britain over the return of a Parthenon frieze handed
over to Lord Elgin by the Ottoman rulers in the early 19th century and
known as the "Elgin marbles".
"There is no question of a Greek-British clash," he said at a press
conference this morning, expressing displeasure at foreign press reports
which he said put the issue out of proportion.
The Minister reiterated that the return of the marbles was a basic issue
for Greek foreign policy, adding that a design by Italian architects for a
museum in Athens to house the frieze had been submitted to the Mercouri
Foundation. The late actress and culture minister Melina Mercouri had first
put the Greek demand to the British government and had been met with
sympathy by the Labour Party, then in opposition.
Britain's new Heritage Secretary Chris Smith early this week ruled out
returning the Parthenon marbles to Greece, only days after Venizelos said
he would reinstate the long-standing Greek request.
Today Venizelos noted that the Greek government "is speaking with the voice
of the monument, which desires the return of the marbles stolen by Lord
Elgin".
The Minister declined to disclose the content of a letter he is to send to
his British counterpart outlining the legal and historical foundation for
the Greek demand, invoking protocol. Meanwhile the two ministers are to
meet on 30 June at a European Union Council of Ministers' meeting.
Inflation continues to drop, Papantoniou says
Inflation fell to below the 6.0 per cent mark in April, while tax revenues
marked an impressive rise, according to a statement by National Economy
Minister Yiannos Papantoniou yesterday after his regular briefing of Prime
Minister Costas Simitis.
The minister said that positive tendencies that had appeared earlier in the
year were being confirmed, and that the government was "steadily following
the course mapped out". He added that the budget was being adhered to,
while European Union funds were being absorbed at a satisfactory rate.
According to sources, inflation in April fell to 5.8 per cent from 6 per
cent in March, raising hopes that the government's target of 4.5 per cent
for 1997 can be attained.
Turnover, prices buoyant on the Athens Stock Exchange
The volume of trade on the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE) has seen a dramatic
rise in the first four months of the year, with turnover activity improving
more than 100 percent over the same period last year.
At the same time, there has been a significant increase in stock prices,
according to initial reports from the ASE.
The latest figures show turnover in January-March reaching 938 billion
drachmas, in comparison to 444 billion drachmas in the same period last
year, an increase of 111.31 percent.
Sources at the bourse described the first quarter "the golden quarter",
despite the fact that in February the steady increase was abruptly
interrupted, with a subsequent slide in stock prices.
The biggest gains during the period were noted in telecommunications and
bank shares. Hotels and wine and beverages, on the other hand, lost their
footing.
WEATHER
Fine weather with some humidity is forecast for most parts of Greece today
except in the northwestern regions where it will be cloudy with the
possibility of light rainfall starting in the afternoon. Winds will be
south-southwesterly, light to moderate, turning strong in the Ionian.
Athens will be hot and humid with temperatures between 16-28C. Similar
weather in Thessaloniki with temperatures between 14-27C.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Tuesday's closing rates - buying US dlr. 272.393
Pound sterling 443.761 Cyprus pd 529.232
French franc 46.697 Swiss franc 185.097
German mark 157.559 Italian lira (100) 15.924
Yen (100) 216.504 Canadian dlr. 197.785
Australian dlr. 211.574 Irish Punt 409.398
Belgian franc 7.641 Finnish mark 52.290
Dutch guilder 140.075 Danish kr. 41.358
Swedish kr. 34.579 Norwegian kr. 38.204
Austrian sch. 22.389 Spanish peseta 1.867
Port. Escudo 1.567
(M.P.)
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