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Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 98-12-18
MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Thessaloniki, December 18, 1998
SECTIONS
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
NEWS HEADLINES
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] CABINET DISCUSSES LARGE PROJECTS
[02] DISGRUNTLED STUDENTS OCCUPY HIGH SCHOOL BUILDINGS
[03] PARLIAMENT TO VOTE ON BUDGET MONDAY AT MIDNIGHT
[04] GREEK DEFENSE MINISTER: US, BRITAIN ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE
FOR THEIR ACTIONS
[05] ALTERNATE FM: THE EU SHOULD TAKE AN INITIATIVE OVER IRAQ
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[06] NATO DEFENSE MINSTERS CONVENE IN BRUSSELS
[07] RAIDS OVER IRAQ CONTINUE, WORLD OPINION IS DIVIDED
[08] GREEK EURODEPUTY: THE EU COULD HAVE STOPPED THE WAR
[09] CLARK: MILOSEVIC IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE SAFETY OF OSCE'S
OBSERVERS
[10] UKRAINE IS AGAINST ATTACKS ON IRAQ
NEWS IN DETAIL
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] CABINET DISCUSSES LARGE PROJECTS
The Cabinet convened today in a meeting chaired by Prime
Minister Kostas Simitis, where the participating ministers
discussed the course of the country's large infrastructure works,
while the Iraq crisis was also brought up.
Deputy Foreign Minister Yiannos Kranidiotis stated that the
United States have not requested military assistance from Greece
in regards to the raids launched against Baghdad. The
Undersecretary of Defense Dimitris Apostolakis stated that the
government is closely watching the developments and is hopeful
that the raids will soon stop.
[02] DISGRUNTLED STUDENTS OCCUPY HIGH SCHOOL BUILDINGS
High school students throughout Greece continue to barricade
themselves in their high school buildings, occupying 48% of them
throughout the country, and vow to spend the Christmas holidays at
their empty desks if the academic reforms are not canceled.
In Thessaloniki, students are planning another march through
the city's major arteries, which will disrupt traffic to the
center of the city. Meanwhile, Education Minister Gerasimos
Arsenis is concerned that the students are misinformed on the
proposed changes, but states that he will proceed with the reform
as planned. Meanwhile, Archbishop Christodoulos, who favors the
reforms, has appealed to the students that they return to class.
[03] PARLIAMENT TO VOTE ON BUDGET MONDAY AT MIDNIGHT
The 1999 state budget, submitted by the ruling PASOK party,
will be voted upon by the country's parliamentarians on Monday at
midnight.
Until yesterday, 162 deputies were lined up to take the
podium during the -at times- heated debate. PASOK's mover Minas
Stavrakakis emphasized that the proposed budget justifies the
government's policies, while main opposition party mover, New
Democracy's George Voulgarakis proposed another draft for the
budget, aimed at improving the economy.
[04] GREEK DEFENSE MINISTER: US, BRITAIN ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE
FOR THEIR ACTIONS
Greece's Minister of National Defense Akis Tsochatzopoulos,
referring to the US-Britain air raids over Baghdad, stated that
there was no prior discussion of the event within NATO.
Moreover, Mr. Tsochatzopoulos said that the matter has a
certain peculiarity since two members of the Alliance decided to
deal with the refusal of Iraqi President Saddam Husein to comply
with the Security Council's demands.
"The two countries which proceeded to take this action are
solely responsible," Mr. Tsochatzopoulos stated, adding that
Greece has expressed its chagrin since "the diplomatic venue did
not lead to a positive outcome, as was the case with Kosovo."
Furthermore, the Greek Defense Minster said that the
government would prefer that political solutions were adopted, a
mean it supports with Kosovo being an example.
[05] ALTERNATE FM: THE EU SHOULD TAKE AN INITIATIVE OVER IRAQ
Greece's alternate Foreign Minister George Papandreou
expressed the hope that the military operation in Iraq will come
to an end soon and that the international community will undertake
initiatives to resolve the matter through political means.
Furthermore, Mr. Papandreou stated that aside from the
conduct of Iraq's leadership, which, as he said, has been
condemned by all, the world must not forget the Iraqi people
whose need for food and medicines will increase after the latest
raids.
"We have a duty as the European Union to handle , even at
this hour, the matter with gravity. If we truly want to fortify
the European identity, especially when it concerns the Common
Foreign Policy and Security Policy, the EU needs to have its own
voice," Mr. Papandreou said, stressing that Greece is expressing
its readiness to contribute to diplomatic and humanitarian
initiatives, within the framework of international law principles,
which should be enforced with the due respect to all.
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[06] NATO DEFENSE MINSTERS CONVENE IN BRUSSELS
The Defense Ministers of the Alliance's member-countries,
with the exception of the Russian Federation's Igor Sergeyief,
convened in Brussels this morning, while the committee for the
NATO-Russia association, presided by Greece's Defense Minister
Akis Tsochatzopoulos also convened and Russia was represented by
its permanent representative in NATO.
Secretary-General Javier Solana stated that the Iraq crisis
is not a matter that concerns the Alliance, and it is an issue of
the United States ands Britain.
[07] RAIDS OVER IRAQ CONTINUE, WORLD OPINION IS DIVIDED
Another air strike was launched against Baghdad last night by
US and British aircraft. According to the Iraqi Minister of
Health, 25 persons have been killed and hundreds have been
wounded. United States Vice President Al Gore and Britain's
Defense Secretary have stated that the raids could continue during
the Muslim religious holiday of Ramazani.
Meanwhile, high-ranking military officials have announced
that the raids have caused extensive damage to Iraqi military
targets such as the information center of Iraq's armed forces.
Russia, indignant over the raids, has recalled its ambassadors
from Washington and London.
[08] GREEK EURODEPUTY: THE EU COULD HAVE STOPPED THE WAR
The imminent impeachment vote against United States President
Bill Clinton on the one hand, and the European Union's absence
from the dramatic developments in Iraq on the other, constitute
the primary assessments of Greece's eurodeputy Alekos Alavanos
(Coalition of the Left and Progress) over the US-Britain air
strikes over Baghdad.
Speaking to the Macedonian Press Agency from Strasbourg, Mr.
Alavanos stated that the true motives of the American attack do
not aim at punishing a regime that violates international
regulations, but, rather, in order to buy time for the US
government and grant President Clinton the time to convince some
Representatives not to vote for his impeachment.
In regards to Europe's stance, Mr. Alavanos stated that
Europe was once again absent and, to the degree that it was
present., it was divided.
"Europe could have, in my opinion, stop this development, but
it lacked this ability since many states, and I say this with
great sadness, see Europe as a subsidiary of the United States,
they think Brussels is an annexation of Washington," he stated.
[09] CLARK: MILOSEVIC IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE SAFETY OF OSCE'S
OBSERVERS
The President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Slobodan
Milosevic is fully responsible for the safety of the 2,000 unarmed
observers assigned to Kosovo and working for the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe, according to NATO's supreme
commander in Europe Wesley Clark.
"In case the Yugoslav President does not fulfill this
obligation, NATO knows what actin to take," Mr. Clark stated.
Belgrade views the rapid intervention force as a threat to
its national security, especially in the case operations are
conducted in Kosovo.
[10] UKRAINE IS AGAINST ATTACKS ON IRAQ
The Ukrainian government is opposed to the US and British
missile attacks against Iraq and has expressed its support to the
innocent victims, according to an announcement issued by the
Foreign Ministry in Kiev.
Furthermore, the announcement stresses that Ukraine supports
the resolution of conflict through diplomatic means and does not
advocate the use of military force.
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