Athens News Agency: News in English, 00-12-10

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

CONTENTS

[01] France-EU-Summit-Simitis

[02] Sports roundup

[03] Greek captain-Polish colonel-Georgia-Abduction

[04] Man thought dead-Alive

[05] Weather - Monday

[06] Migrant smuggling - Arrests - Kos

[07] Modern-day rustlers - Pregnant goats

[01] France-EU-Summit-Simitis

NICE (ANA - M. Spinthourakis) - Prime Minister Costas Simitis, speaking to reporters here on Sunday night on the course of negotiations on institutional reforms in the 15-nation European Union bloc, said Greece insists that there should be specific rules in a federal Europe on the way decisions are taken in the EU.

The discussion was still continuing Sunday night and Simitis avoided making any prediction on the time work will come to an end. However, he said that at some time, either late at Sunday night or in the early hours of Monday morning, the "15" would be in a position to announce whether or not a compromise agreement was reached.

Simitis said Greece's position is clear: it supports the European Commission's proposal anticipating that for decisions to be ratified in the EU, which will be taken with the special majority system, the majority of EU member-states should agree with the decision on condition that these states will also represent the majority of the EU's population.

He said consultations are difficult, adding that despite the fact that the "15" are in the fourth day of negotiations, for the time being the Presidency has made no proposal acceptable by all.

Simitis attributed the French EU Presidency's failure to submit a consensual proposal to its adherence to "historic factors which are not valid today."

"This approach is arbitrary and for this reason we request the assessment of each country's special weight in procedures for taking decisions in the EU should be made on the basis of rules proposed by the European Commission," Simitis said.

He said that many other EU member-states agree with Greece's view. However, he did not name them because "consultations are continuing at the moment and it would not be appropriate for us to announce who supports what."

Simitis said the dual majority system benefits Greece, but pointed out that there might be other proposals with which Greece could agree.

He further underlined the importance of decisions taken on European defence, saying that it will be built in close cooperation with NATO but, in parallel, it will have an autonomous character.

He also said the EU is not going through a crisis but it is at an extremely crucial point because, in light of its enlargement from 15 to 27 member-states, it should adjust it ways of operation to the new factors.

[02] Sports roundup

Soccer

AEK Athens beat Aris Thessaloniki 3-1 in a Greek national soccer division match played on Sunday and kept up its pursuit of Olympiakos Piraeus and Panathinaikos Athens.

In the other matches played, PAOK Thessaloniki defeated cross-town rivals Iraklis 4-2, Panathinaikos Athens beat Athinaikos Athens 1-0, PAS Ioannina subdued Kalamata 4-3 away, Paniliakos Pirgos beat Ethnikos Asteras Athens 1-0 at home and Panachaiki Patras was held to a 1-1 draw by Panionios Athens at home. Ionikos Piraeus beat OFI Crete 1-0 at home on Saturday, while Xanthi and Olympiakos will play on Monday.

Standings after 10 games played:Olympiakos Piraeus (nine games) 23 points, Panathinaikos Athens 22, AEK Athens 20, Ionikos Piraeus 18, Iraklis Thessaloniki 17, Ethnikos Asteras Athens 17, PAOK Thessaloniki 16 and Xanthi (nine games) 15.

Basketball

Peristeri Athens beat AEK Athens 70-64 in the most important match played for the Greek first division basketball championship over the weekend.

Other matches had the following results: Aris Thessaloniki-Near East Athens 78-96, Irakleio Crete-Iraklis Thessaloniki 97-110, Panionios Athens-Daphne Athens 93-81, PAOK Thessaloniki-Marousi Athens 81-79, Olympiakos Piraeus-Milonas Athens 102-84 and Panathinaikos Athens-Makedonikos Thessaloniki 90-71.

Standings after seven games played:Panathinaikos Athens 13 points, Peristeri Athens (six games) 12, Panionios Athens 12, AEK Athens 12, Olympiakos Piraeus (six games) 12 and PAOK Thessaloniki 11.

[03] Greek captain-Polish colonel-Georgia-Abduction

A Greek infantry captain and a Polish colonel, both UN observers, were abducted by unknown persons on Sunday while on a mission 50 kilometres southeast of Sokhumi, Georgia.

The Greek was identified as Efstathios Kokkinidis. Their abductors have not yet contacted the Georgian authorities.

[04] Man thought dead-Alive

A man considered dead for seven years by his parents, who every day used to light a lamp by his grave, was found alive and safe in the streets of Athens.

Paschalis Tatsigris, 33, from Alexandroupolis, was taken to a police station in Athens on Sunday for identification for failing to have an identity card on him.

After giving his full name, police checked his file and discovered that he was "dead" since 1993. They contacted his parents in Alexandroupolis who said their son was dead. When they discovered the mistake, they came immediately to Athens to be reunited once again with him.

[05] Weather - Monday

Scattered cloud throughout the country on Monday, with rain possible in the Thrace province and light snowfall in the mountains. Northwesterly winds, moderate to strong, in the Aegean; very strong in the SE Aegean. In the north, temperatures will range from 1C to 13C; in the west and Ionian from 4C to 17C; and in the rest of the country from 10C to 15C. Mostly sunny weather in Athens, with temperatures between 6C to 16C. The same for Thessaloniki, with temperatures between 5C and 13C.

[06] Migrant smuggling - Arrests - Kos

Fourteen Iraqi illegal immigrants, all Kurds, were detained on the eastern Aegean island of Kos early Sunday morning along with a Turkish teenager charged with ferrying them onto Greek territory.

The coast guard said the illegals were spotted near the islands remote Psalidi region after having disembarked from a fishing boat.

The young Turk charged with migrant smuggling was identified as Arslan Sev Fiali.

Over the past few years Kos has become a favourite drop-off point for Turkey-based smugglers attempting to land mostly Third World migrants on Greek territory, the eastern-most boundary of the European Union.

Meanwhile, on the mainland, two local men were charged with migrant smuggling when a total of 15 illegal immigrants -- Iraqi Kurds -- were discovered hidden in two trucks loaded with cotton seed.

All of the suspects were apprehended west of Athens near the coastal industrial district of Megara, police said.

According to authorities, the two lorry drivers were headed for the port of Corinth in order to unload both ?cargoes? onto a vessel headed for Ancona, Italy.

The two drivers charged with migrant smuggling were identified as Dimitrios Skokos and Christoforos Psomas.

[07] Modern-day rustlers - Pregnant goats

Consumers concerns amid the ?mad cow? scare sweeping across Europe appear to have made other meats besides beef very enticing -- thieves not withstanding -- as 36 pregnant? goats were reported missing on Saturday from a Thessaloniki-area barn.

Police in the town of Filyro, northern Greece, said they believed modern-day rustlers cut a fence surrounding the barn where the goats were located, making off with the animals in the early morning hours without being seen or heard.

An investigation is pending.

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