Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 99-06-25

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

NEWS IN ENGLISH

Athens, Greece, 25/06/1999 (ANA)

MAIN HEADLINES

• FM Papandreou to reply to Cem proposal
• Police making inroads on crime
• Corinth quake measures 4.7
• 23 illegal immigrants arrested
• Narcs attend drug centre anniversary
• Equities end week with moderate gains
• Weather
• Foreign Exchange

NEWS IN DETAIL

Foreign Minister George Papandreou will today send a letter of response to Turkish counterpart Ismail Cem, who has proposed the signing of a bilateral accord for cooperation on terrorism issues, acting government spokesman Yannis Nikolaou said today. Nikolaou said Papandreou's letter outlined a range of issues on which there could be proposals and prospects of cooperation, such as in the sectors of economy, trade, the environment and tourism, as well as issues concerning combatting organised crime, illegal immigration, drugs and general matters of public safety and public order.

Police making inroads on crime

The government said on Friday it was succeeding in containing a growing crimewave and urged the public not to exaggerate the problem. "There is a problem with increasing crime but efforts to contain it are succeeding and will continue," government spokesman Yannis Nikolaou said. He presented figures showing that the police had solved 19 of the 35 homicides reported in first half 1999. Fourteen of these cases involved perpetrators who were Greek nationals, he noted. He said the Greek Police was not discriminating between "domestic or imported" crime and said the fight against both would continue.

Corinth quake measures 4.7

A strong earthquake registering 4.7 on the Richter scale shook the Corinth area on Friday morning but no injuries or damage were reported. Seismologists said the epicentre was located in the seabed, east of the Gulf of Corinth. It was felt in surrounding areas and the Attica basin.

23 illegal immigrants arrested

Thirty-two illegal immigrants from Albania were arrested near Ioannina on Friday along with a compatriot who had agreed to drive them to Athens in his truck for a fee of 30,000 drachmas each. The driver, Yanni Zafiri, 22, and the illegal immigrants were arrested when police stopped the vehicle at a roadblock on the Ioannina-Kozani highway. They were due to appear before a public prosecutor in Ioannina later today.

Narcs attend drug centre anniversary

A group of officers of the Attica drugs squad on Friday paid their first visit to the 'Strofi' counselling and support centre for young drug users since it opened in 1988. The reason for the visit by the twelve officers, headed by the chief of the drugs squad, George Angelakos, was not to make arrests but to attend events marking the eleventh anniversary of the centre, just one day before World Day against Narcotics. The officers exchanged views with the head of the centre and discussed narcotics-related problems at length with seven young drug users.

Equities end week with moderate gains

Equity prices ended the week with moderate gains helped by selective demand in blue chips, particularly in the banks sector. Traders said the market was nervous because of worries over a possible interest rate rise in the US, a prospect hitting international bond markets. The general index ended 0.58 percent higher at 3,948.79 points, reversing an early 0.76 percent drop, but off the day's highs. Turnover was 153.6 billion drachmas with 28,167, 000 shares changing hands.

WEATHER

FOREIGN EXCHANGE

Friday's rates (buying)
U.S. dollar          311.002
Pound sterling       491.258
Japanese yen (100)   254.865
French franc          49.058
German mark          164.536
Italian lira (100)    16.620
Irish Punt           408.608
Belgian franc          7.977
Finnish mark          54.124
Dutch guilder        146.028
Danish kr.            43.348
Austrian sch.         23.386
Spanish peseta         1.934
Swedish kr.           36.817
Norwegian kr.         39.630
Swiss franc          201.431
Port. Escudo           1.605
Can. dollar          211.276
Aus. dollar          204.660
Cyprus pound         556.730
Euro                 321.805

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