Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 14-01-09

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

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[01] German foreign minister meets Venizelos, says Greece 'is on a good path'

[01] German foreign minister meets Venizelos, says Greece 'is on a good path'

"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: ANA-MPA -- Arriving in Athens on Thursday, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier was the first foreign official to visit Greece after the official opening of the country's presidency of the European Council. His first stop during his 36-hour stay in the Greek capital was at the foreign ministry, where he held talks with Greek government vice-president and Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: In a joint press conference after their meeting, the two ministers referred to the crisis in Greece and in Europe. Steinmeier said that Greece was "on a good path" in terms of carrying out reforms and that the sacrifices made by the Greek people, combined with the implementation of the necessary policies, appeared to be bringing results. Commenting on the primary surplus, he said this made the reforms "sustainable and lasting". "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Steinmeier also urged Greeks "not to talk constantly of new bailout packages," adding that this undermined both the reform efforts but also stability. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Referring to the role and actions of the troika, the German minister stressed that, in his personal opinion, "the right institutions were represented" within it and described it as an important tool deriving from institutions that have democratic legitimacy. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Venizelos, replying to questions, underlined that the basic goal was "the sustainability of Greek debt," while adding that the positive developments concerning the primary surplus would be made official when Eurostat confirmed the figures for 2013. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Referring to Steinmeier's statements about the need to boost efforts for Greece's economic growth with German assistance, Venizelos said that the debt problem would not be solved by meeting fiscal targets alone but also required a steady rate of real growth. "The assistance of German agencies in this will be decisive, given that the international private sector is already showing interest in our country," he added. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: With reference to the troika, Venizelos said that he respects the institutions represented in the troika but also the democratic legitimacy of the European Parliament, "which wants to be informed and have an opinion on everything that happens in the EU". "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Replying to questions about the goals of Greece's EU presidency, Venizelos said he would be satisfied if two conditions had been met when Greece's term in the rotating presidency came to an end: that the European Parliament elections had "confirmed the European idea and the narrative of European integration," and also that Greece, with the "valuable support of its partners, without which we would have been led to an uncontrolled default," had reached the turning point for a final exit from the crisis.

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