Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 98-12-01

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

NEWS IN ENGLISH

Athens, Greece, 01/12/1998 (ANA)

MAIN HEADLINES

• Sale of Duty Free Shops annulled
• Greece almost out of gas
• EU President Klima in Athens on Wednesday
• Gov't dismisses Ankara's claims over Ocalan
• AIDS march held
• Search continues for missing monk
• Greece, Cyprus disappointed over lack of progress on Cyprus
• Weather
• Foreign Exchange

NEWS IN DETAIL

The government on Tuesday was poised to declare null and void a second tender for privatisation of listed Hellenic Duty Free Shops after one of the three parties in the winning French-Greek consortium failed to come up with its part of the purchase cost by the deadline, reliable sources told the ANA. The sources said French firm Saresco failed to deposit the money by the deadline, originally November 30 but silently extended to 10:00 a.m. today. Saresco, bidding jointly in a consortium with listed Greek cosmetic firms Papaellinas and Sarandis, last month won an international tender for acquiring a 67 percent majority stake in the Hellenic Duty Free Shops via the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE).

Greece almost out of gas

Handwritten makeshift signs of "No more gas" appeared in most gasoline stations in major Greek cities overnight as fuel shortages became more intense as customs employees continued rolling strikes for the second consecutive day today after the collapse of talks with the labour ministry over the future of their pension fund. At the same time, kilometres-long queues of cars and trucks piled up at Greece's northern borders. A spokesman for the customs employees' union said the queue at the Promachonas border station along the Greek-Bulgarian border had exceeded four kilometres, and three kilometres at the Evzoni border post between Greece and FYROM. The strike is also expected to cause shortages in heating oil.

EU President Klima in Athens on Wednesday

Prime Minister Costas Simitis said on Tuesday that his talks with Austrian Chancellor and European Union President Viktor Klima tomorrow would focus on preparations for the EU summit in Vienna on December 11-12. Speaking to reporters after talks with President Kostis Stephanopoulos, Simitis said the issues to be discussed in Vienna were of particular interest, including developments regarding the Community's funds, the "Agenda 2000", international economic matters and employment. "We expect efforts to be intensified at the Vienna meeting to tackle problems relating to employment, while steps will most likely be taken to help the EU member-states increase their rates of growth," Simitis said.

Gov't dismisses Ankara's claims over Ocalan

The government on Tuesday dismissed as "groundless and unjustified" accusations levelled at Greece by Turkey about Athens' stance on the Kurdish problem and Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan. "Turkey's accusations against Greece do not help the neighbouring country, which remains trapped in its own foreign policy," government spokesman Dimitris Reppas said. The Turkish foreign ministry yesterday accused Prime Minister Costas Simitis over statements he made at a press conference last week regarding the Kurdish problem.

AIDS march held

Dozens of people marched from Parliament to the Old Parliament House on Tuesday morning to mark World AIDS Awareness Day. Among the marchers, which was held under the aegis of Preisdent Costis Stephanopoulos, were Deputy Health and Welfare Minister Theodoros Kotsonis, the president of the Centre for Communicable Diseases Ioannis Stratigos and Metropolitan Damaskinos. The latest figures show 1,835 AIDS cases in Greece to the end of September: cumulative figures show a 30 percent drop over the last few years.

Search continues for missing monk

An eight-member rescue team and a helicopter joined the search on Tuesday for a monk missing on the Mount Athos peninsula in northern Greece. Brother Haralambos, 43, from the Ayios Dionyssos monastery, has been missing since Saturday. Monks from the autonomous community have been combing the hills and ravines of the peninsula since the monk was reported missing but have had no luck.

Greece, Cyprus disappointed over lack of progress on Cyprus

Greece and Cyprus yesterday expressed their disappointment to the US over the lack of progress towards settlement of the 25-year-old Cyprus problem, according to an ANA dispatch from Washington. The disappointment was conveyed by Greece's deputy foreign minister Yannos Kranidiotis to US Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs Mark Grossman and US coordinator for Cyprus Tom Miller at a State Department meeting Monday on the sidelines of a US-led international donors conference to support the Middle East peace process and help the Palestinians build their economy.

WEATHER

FOREIGN EXCHANGE

(M.P.)

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article