Athens News Agency: News in English, 00-07-23

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

CONTENTS

[01] Sports roundup

[02] Sounio - Fischer - Europe

[03] PM Simitis-ND-Democracy-Restoration

[04] Mount Olympus-Mountaineers

[05] Weather Forecast-Monday

[01] Sports roundup

Tennis

Greece's national men's tennis team beat Norway 4-1 on Sunday in the semifinals of the 2nd division of the Euro-African Zone of the Davis Cup being held in Athens and qualified for the final where it will play with the winner of the Poland-Slovenia match.

The final will be held in Athens between October 6-8 and Greece will qualify for the 1st division if it wins.

Greece's victory against Norway was completed on Sunday when Solon Peppas beat Yian Fronte-Andersen 3-0 sets (7-5,6-2,6-2) and Tassos Vassiliadis defeated Stian Boretti 2-0 sets (6-2,6-0).

Basketball

Greece's national youth basketball team beat Italy 71-65 (halftime 46-34) on Sunday in the European Championship's match for third and fourth place and won the bronze medal.

The tournament is being held in Croatia and was due to end late Sunday night in Zadar, Croatia.

[02] Sounio - Fischer - Europe

German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer outlined the federal prospects of unified Europe at the 3rd annual Conference of Symi, organised by the "Andreas Papandreou" foundation, which came to an end at Sounio, south of Athens, on Saturday.

Fischer said the prospects of a European federation will be based on national states and will not be a superstate levelling differences and particularities.

Presenting his ideas on Europe, Fischer said unified Europe is the reply to the destruction of Europe. He said artificial differences delayed European unification. However, present prospects are for a Europe having 20, 25 or 30 countries which will have to decide together and function in a unified manner and therefore a step towards their political unification is essential. He further said this future federation or confederation will have nothing to do with federal states known until now.

Fischer spoke of enlargement, Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and globalisation which is the third and most important challenge, saying that European countries can no longer handle all the political, economic and other problems alone.

He considers a constitution allowing a balance among the peoples of Europe as being essential. However, he left open the issues of central executive power, the president and Parliament or the Senate and said they will have to be discussed in the years to come.

In a brief address, Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou said all agree on values and ideals, values which started here, while individual differences might exist, "but all should contribute to the discussion on the prospects of Europe and the ideas of Joschka Fischer are useful and important".

[03] PM Simitis-ND-Democracy-Restoration

Political parties issued messages on Sunday on the 26th anniversary of the collapse of the military junta which ruled Greece between 1967-1974 stressing that its downfall coincided with the tragedy of Cyprus.

A message by Prime Minister and PASOK leader Costas Simitis and the party's Executive Bureau said "July 24 is a day of memory and honour for all the known and unknown who stood their ground and even gave their lives in the struggle against the colonels."

It said the government's target is the creation of a modern and viable social state, the modernisation of Greek society and making Greece a factor of security, stability and peace.

"26 years after the collapse of the seven-year dictatorship, which heightened with the betrayal of Cyprus, we are no longer in danger from wretched coup organisers. Democratic institutions have been widened and strengthened. Democratic legality has been consolidated and popular sovereignty has been established," the message said.

In a similar message, main opposition New Democracy party leader Costas Karamanlis said "Parliamentary rule has been consolidated for good and no force can brush aside democratic institutions."

Karamanlis added, however, that in past years "forces are developing and relations are being shaped which constitute a threat against the quality and the essence of democracy. Precisely for this reason, the duty is presenting itself clearly for new struggles to strengthen the institutions of the form of government and shield the state from phenomena of decadence which deal a crude blow at common interest."

The Coalition of the Left and Progress said in its message the collapse of the junta and the steadfast restoration of democracy constitute an achievement, adding that this achievement was not accompanied by the defeat of anachronistic structures and conservative concepts.

It said a change in the system of governance and of policies applied is necessary to secure economic development, a decrease in social inequalities and the defining of a perceptive foreign policy.

Democratic Social Movement (DHKKI) leader Dimitris Tsovolas said in his message that 26 years after the junta's collapse Parliamentary democracy in Greece is characterised by strong signs of fatigue.

Tsovolas said political life is being poisoned by "unreliability on a daily basis, while the government is selling out national wealth, leading wide popular classes to impoverishment and is promoting, through secret diplomacy and without the people's knowledge, solutions to the major national issues which are dangerous for the country's national interests and sovereign rights."

[04] Mount Olympus-Mountaineers

More than 2,000 mountaineers from all over the world climbed the Mouses plateau, at a height of 2,800 metres on Mount Olympus, over the weekend, participating in the annual meeting of mountaineers from Greece and abroad.

The mountaineers spent the night on the plateau, one of the most beautiful of its kind in Europe, where various events were held such as rescue exercises, discussions on the environment and theatrical performances.

The mountaineers' annual meeting takes place on a different Greek mountain each time, but every 10 years it is held on Mount Olympus, the mountain of the Gods according to Greek mythology.

[05] Weather Forecast-Monday

Fair weather is forecast througout Greece on Monday. Scattered cloud in mainland northern Greece from the afternoon. Winds will be northerly, moderate, turning strong in the Aegean.

In the north, temperatures will range from 16C to 33C; on the rest of the mainland from 18C to 36C; and in the islands from 20C to 29C.

Fair weather in Athens with temperatures between 22C and 35C. Similar in Thessaloniki, with temperatures ranging from 18C to 32C.

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