Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 99-04-07
MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Thessaloniki, April 7, 1999
SECTIONS
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
NEWS HEADLINES
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] SIMITIS: UNILATERAL CEASEFIRE OFFER IS "ONLY A FIRST STEP"
[02] GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER TRAVELS TO SKOPJE, TIRANA TODAY
[03] GREECE'S POLITICAL YOUTH GROUPS TO HOLD TORCHLIGHT MARCHES
[04] AEK-PARTIZAN PLAY FRIENDLY BALLGAME IN BELGRADE TODAY
[05] ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE ON THE REBOUND, GENERAL INDEX UP
[06] NATIONAL BANK OF GREECE SHAREHOLDERS OK IMPRESSIVE CAP RISE
[07] GREEK FM: WE WON'T TAKE PART IN A NATO GROUND OPERATION
[08] MACEDONIA-THRACE MINISTER IN FYROM WITH HUMANITARIAN AID
[09] MR. REPPAS ASKS FOR GUARANTEES ON MILOSEVIC'S CEASE FIRE
PROPOSAL
[10] REPPAS COMMENTED ON THE TRANSFER OF THE THREE US SOLDIERS
FROM BELGRADE
[11] VENIZELOS-BURNS MEETING IN ATHENS
[12] THE CRISIS IN YUGOSLAVIA WILL NOT AFFECT THE GREEK ECONOMY
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[13] SERBIA DECLARES UNILATERAL CEASEFIRE, NATO ESCALATES RAIDS
[14] THOUSANDS OF REFUGEES IN TENT CITIES, RISK OF EPIDEMIC
ABOUNDS
[15] ATHENS OFFERS GRD800 MILLION FOR FREE TRADE ZONE WITH SOFIA
[16] THE SERB PRESIDENT GAVE A WARM WELCOME TO THE GREEK FOOTBALL
TEAM
[17] BELGRADE ACCUSES THE CIA OF FALSIFYING INFORMATION
[18] SPIROS KIPRIANOU WILL BE IN BELGRADE THIS AFTERNOON FOR THE
RELEASE OF THE THREE US SOLDIERS
[19] SHOCKING PICTURES IN THE REFUGEE SITES AT THE BORDERS OF
FYROM WITH YUGOSLAVIA
[20] MILOSEVIC SURRENDERS THE THREE US MARINES
[21] NEW EXPLOSIONS ROCKED PRISTINA
[22] 270.000 REFUGEES IN ALBANIA
[23] THE REFUGEES ARE PEOPLE WHO WANT TO RETURN TO THE HOMES
NEWS IN DETAIL
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] SIMITIS: UNILATERAL CEASEFIRE OFFER IS "ONLY A FIRST STEP"
Greece's Prime Minister Kostas Simitis has welcomed
Belgrade's initiative to declare a unilateral ceasefire in Kosovo
as a "first step", albeit he stressed that it has to be followed
with "clarifications and assurances" from the Yugoslav side.
"Belgrade must now guarantee, among others, the unimpeded
return of refugees, the evacuation of the Yugoslav army and peace
in Kosovo through the employment of an international peacekeeping
force. This proposal must be followed by an effort at political
dialogue with Yugoslavia," Mr. Simitis stated.
[02] GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER TRAVELS TO SKOPJE, TIRANA TODAY
Foreign Minister George Papandreou is departing for FYROM and
Albania today where he will meet with his counterparts in order to
discuss the massive refugee influx to the aforementioned
countries.
Mr. Papandreou stated that his talks would focus on
coordinating the safe
distribution of humanitarian aid and reiterated that Greece had
not yet specified how many refugees it would take. He added that
the Greek government will decide on the matter depending on the
stance adopted by its European Union partners.
Following his talks in the Balkan capitals, Mr. Papandreou
will travel to
Luxembourg where European Union foreign ministers will meet to
discuss the humanitarian and refugee problems in the Balkans.
[03] GREECE'S POLITICAL YOUTH GROUPS TO HOLD TORCHLIGHT MARCHES
Greece's political youth organizations, in cooperation with
the Yugoslav Youth of Greece, are to hold torchlight marches
throughout the country tonight, in protest to NATO's raids on
Yugoslavia.
The marches will be held in Athens, Thessaloniki, Patra,
Ioannina, Irakleio, Komotini, Alexandroupoli, Larisa, Kalamata,
Rhodes and outside the NATO base of Aktio in Preveza.
The youth organizations have stated their solidarity
to the Yugoslav people who are fighting for survival, defending
their country's integrity.
[04] AEK-PARTIZAN PLAY FRIENDLY BALLGAME IN BELGRADE TODAY
Athens' AEK Athens football team and Belgrade's Partizan are
to play a friendly game in the Yugoslav capital this afternoon,
sending a clearly anti-war message to NATO.
Members of the AEK delegation, which departed yesterday for
Belgrade via Hungary, stated that it is "a visit of peace" and the
game will be "a historic match.".
AEK President Dimitris Melissanidis stated that "sports and
soccer are over and above politics. And this match is over and
above any political expediency."
[05] ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE ON THE REBOUND, GENERAL INDEX UP
The general index at the Athens Stock Exchange marked an
impressive increase, even during the first trading hour, with the
general price index showing profits of 5.62% and the trading
volume having reached 38 billion drachmas.
[06] NATIONAL BANK OF GREECE SHAREHOLDERS OK IMPRESSIVE CAP RISE
National Bank of Greece's shareholders unanimously approved
an impressive share capital increase of 170.6 billion drachmas,
during their general meeting held yesterday.
The plan envisages the issue of 14,843,024 new shares at a
nominal value of 1,450 drachmas each to be offered to existing
shareholders, at 11,500 drachmas each.
Following the increase, which will begin on April 26 and last
until May 28, the
National Bank's share capital will total 226 billion drachmas, or
156,450,000 shares at a nominal value of 1,450 drachmas each.
[07] GREEK FM: WE WON'T TAKE PART IN A NATO GROUND OPERATION
Greece will not participate in a ground operation in
Yugoslavia, if one should take place, but, instead, will press on
with its efforts to contribute diplomatically towards the end of
the war, according to Foreign Minster George Papandreou.
Speaking to an Athens radio station, Mr. Papandreou also
referred to the (unilateral) ceasefire proposal made by Yugoslav
President Slobodan Milosevic and said that it constitutes a
first step that could serve as the starting point for reaching a
political solution.
Moreover, Mr. Papandreou stated that Greece has fulfilled its
standard obligations towards the Alliance, by participating with
troops in FYROM. He pointed out that the sole role of the Greek
forces' presence in FYROM is to contribute to the enforcement of
a peacekeeping agreement, should one ensue, and to assist in
setting up of refugee camps.
Concerning the refugee issue, and the refusal of European
countries to host them, Mr. Papandreou stated that Greece, too,
believes that the refugees should remain near their homes, i.e.
Albania and FYROM.
He stated that Greece intends to assist these countries in
every way possible, so that the refugees can stay on their
grounds, either through financial aid, or through camps set up by
the Greek military.
Those refugees who arrive in Greece will be hosted in
controlled camps and will return to their homelands after the end
of the war.
[08] MACEDONIA-THRACE MINISTER IN FYROM WITH HUMANITARIAN AID
The Minister of Macedonia-Thrace Yiannis Magriotis departed
for Skopje today, heading a humanitarian aid mission for the
refugees.
Shortly before his departure, Mr. Magriotis stated that the
residents and authorities of Thessaloniki "displayed their
solidarity to other peoples, regardless of religions,
nationalities and other differences."
The mission comprises 12 tons of pharmaceutical and medical
supplies that has been amassed from hospital and private
donations.
He will meet with FYROM's Minister of the Interior and Public
Order Pavle Trianov, City Planning Dusko Kadievski and the
European Commission's representative to Skopje Pinto Tehera.
Later today, Mr. Magriotis will visit a refugee camp where
humanitarian aid will be distributed with the cooperation of the
non-governmental organization "European Perspective".
Moreover, a train transporting humanitarian aid from
Thessaloniki, the second route so far, is to arrive at the Skopje
train station this evening.
[09] MR. REPPAS ASKS FOR GUARANTEES ON MILOSEVIC'S CEASE FIRE
PROPOSAL
Greek government spokesman Dimitris Reppas called for
guarantees on the cease fire proposal submitted by Yugoslav
president Slobodan Milosevic and added that for the time being
there is still hope for a peaceful solution to the problem in
Kossovo.
Mr. Reppas clarified that in order to give credibility to his
proposal Mr. Milosevic should offer guarantees for the unhindered
return of the refugees to their homes, the withdrawal of the Serb
forces and the deployment of an international force in Kosovo.
However, Mr. Reppas stated that the international factor
should not see in a negative way the cease fire proposal made by
the Yugoslav leader.
Also, Mr. Reppas confirmed that prime minister Kostas Simitis
had telephone communication with his counterparts D'Alema from
Italy and Lionel Jospen from France as well as with German
chancellor Gerhard Schroder.
[10] REPPAS COMMENTED ON THE TRANSFER OF THE THREE US SOLDIERS
FROM BELGRADE
Greek government spokesman Dimitris Reppas confirmed today
that Greece will send an aircraft to Belgrade to take the three US
soldiers to Cyprus.
The Greek government is in consultations aimed at offering
its assistance by securing the means of transportation providing
the aircraft, said Mr. Reppas, who also added that the Greek
government will do what it should in order to deal with the issue
in the best possible way.
[11] VENIZELOS-BURNS MEETING IN ATHENS
There was no travel advisory issued by the United States
against Greece and there will not be in the future, according to
an assurance that was given by US ambassador to Athens Nicholas
Burns to minister of development Evangelos Venizelos during their
meeting in Athens today.
Mr. Venizelos stated that there is close cooperation with
factors of the tourist market to examine the precautionary
measures that should be taken aimed mainly at stopping the
circulation of such rumors that can become harmful.
Earlier, Mr. Venizelos had a meeting with representatives of
hotel and tourist businesses.
[12] THE CRISIS IN YUGOSLAVIA WILL NOT AFFECT THE GREEK ECONOMY
The crisis in Yugoslavia will not affect the Greek economy
stated minister of national economy and finance Yiannos
Papantoniou after his meeting with prime minister Kostas Simitis
and Bank of Greece governor Loukas Papadimos.
The minister of national economy and finance confirmed that
inflation closed at 3,4% at the end of March and predicted that in
June or July will drop to 2%.
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[13] SERBIA DECLARES UNILATERAL CEASEFIRE, NATO ESCALATES RAIDS
Although Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic declared a
unilateral ceasefire in honor of the orthodox Easter this weekend,
NATO intensified the air raids against Yugoslavia killing a score
of civilians.
According to reports, the allied aircraft also struck a
military air base near Belgrade., while other infrastructure
facilities in Prishtina were destroyed.
According to the Alliance's secretary-general Javier Solana,
before any talks of ceasefire is made, President Milosevic must
accept the terms set forth by the international community.
[14] THOUSANDS OF REFUGEES IN TENT CITIES, RISK OF EPIDEMIC
ABOUNDS
As tens of thousands refugees are being crammed into
makeshift tent cities propped up at the Kosovo-FYROM border, the
risk of epidemic illnesses abounds as the people are forced to
live in unsanitary conditions for days on end.
Approximately 5,500 refugees have been transported to other
countries, in spite of their distress at the unknown destination
and at being separated from their families.
So far, FYROM is hosting more than 70,000 refugees, while
over 200,000 are in Albania.
[15] ATHENS OFFERS GRD800 MILLION FOR FREE TRADE ZONE WITH SOFIA
The Greek government will provide GRD800 million for the
creation of a free-trade zone with Bulgaria, near the city of
Svilengraad, following an agreement reached between the
prefectures of Bulgaria's Haskovo and Greece's Alexandroupolis.
The zone in expected to result in 1,200 new jobs, while the
businesses included in the zone will be Greek, staffed by
Bulgarians who live near the border regions.
[16] THE SERB PRESIDENT GAVE A WARM WELCOME TO THE GREEK FOOTBALL
TEAM
Serb president Milan Miludinovic gave a warm welcome to the
players of the Greek football team AEK upon their arrival in
Belgrade for a football match with Belgrade's Partisan. Mr.
Miludinovic received the team at the presidential building and
thanked the Greek people for the solidarity toward the Yugoslavs
in those difficult times for Serbia and Yugoslavia.
Before the opening of the match a moment of silence was
observed and AEK vice-president Makis Angelopoulos stated that the
presence of his team in Belgrade is symbolic, adding that it is
one of the most glorious moments in its 75yearold history.
[17] BELGRADE ACCUSES THE CIA OF FALSIFYING INFORMATION
The Serb ministry of information accused the CIA of
counterfeiting its page on the Internet and channeling falsified
information on the events in Yugoslavia.
In statements he made to Serbian state television, Serb
minister of information Aleksandar Vutsic stressed that this is a
crime on information as the "American information criminals" have
made a page on the Internet with the address www.serbiainfo.com
using almost an identical address with that of the formal page of
the Serb ministry of information namely, www.serbia-info.com.
The Serb minister pointed out that in spite of the efforts
made to falsify events in Yugoslavia the truth will shine through.
[18] SPIROS KIPRIANOU WILL BE IN BELGRADE THIS AFTERNOON FOR THE
RELEASE OF THE THREE US SOLDIERS
Cypriot parliament president and former president of the
Cypriot Republic Spiros Kiprianou will be in Belgrade this
afternoon to meet with Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic and
discuss the issue of the release of the three US soldiers.
Mr. Kiprianou expressed the hope that everything will go well
and he will return to Cyprus with the US soldiers. He set as basic
pre-condition the respect of some kind of cease fire and asked for
a 24hour break in the NATO air strikes.
Mr. Kiprianou stated that this is a humanitarian gesture and
has no relation whatsoever to negotiations, while he also added
that the US government will be briefed on the developments. The
aircraft for the transportation of the three US soldiers will be
provided by the Greek government.
[19] SHOCKING PICTURES IN THE REFUGEE SITES AT THE BORDERS OF
FYROM WITH YUGOSLAVIA
Makeshift shelters, mountains of rubbish, abandoned articles
of clothing, photographs of small children scattered around, are
what is left behind at the border outpost of Blace at the borders
of FYROM with Yugoslavia, 25 kilometers from the city of Skopje,
to remind of the thousands of destitute people who fled the war in
Yugoslavia.
The Kosovo refugees, who were in FYROM, were moved during the
night and in the early morning hours today and were taken to two
new refugee camps that were created 10 kilometers away, while at
the same time, thousands of people who were on the other side of
the borders were also moved in a mysterious way. In the past few
days it is estimated that on the Yugoslav side of the borders had
gathered 50-70.000 people and were waiting to cross over to FYROM.
The Skopjan government officials can not explain the reason
for the massive removal of the refugees, who were waiting
patiently for 10 days to cross over to Skopjan territory.
The government of FYROM in spite of the efforts it makes can
not deal with such large number of refugees and there is great
concern regarding the likelihood of epidemics as in many cases
even the basic sanitary conditions are lacking. This is the main
reason that led the Skopjan authorities to stop hundreds of
foreign journalists from getting close to the refugee camps as
there have been reports of dysentery, meningitis, typhoid fever
and cholera.
According to official sources, about 10 deaths were reported
daily among the refugees on the Yugoslav side of the borders,
while formal figures of deaths and injuries in FYROM will be given
to publicity by the FYROM government later today.
Minister of information Redjep Zlatku, speaking to MPA,
stated that over 130.000 refugees are in FYROM and 70.000 of them
have entered the country from the border crossings, while other
50.000 entered FYROM from other passages. The government of FYROM
expressed concern that the number of refugees could exceed the
200.000 mark by the end of the week.
[20] MILOSEVIC SURRENDERS THE THREE US MARINES
In a significant development at the initiative of the Greek
government Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic will surrender in
a good will gesture the three US soldiers who were arrested a few
days ago by Serb soldiers.
According to information, former Cypriot president Spiros
Kiprianou is on his way to Belgrade to get the three US marines
and deliver them to US ambassador to Cyprus Kenneth Brill. From
there the three US soldiers will be able to go back to their
country. The Greek government will also send a airplane if
necessary for the transportation of the US soldiers to Cyprus.
[21] NEW EXPLOSIONS ROCKED PRISTINA
Two new strong explosions rocked Pristina at 11:30am this
morning. The Serb television reported that people were killed.
Meanwhile, NATO rejected the proposal of Yugoslav president
Slobodan Milosevic for a unilateral cease fire. General secretary
of NATO Javier Solana will meet today in Brussels with US
secretary of defense William Kohen.
[22] 270.000 REFUGEES IN ALBANIA
The influx of refugees from Kosovo to Albania continues and
the Albanian president stated that he will allow all the refugees
gathered at the borders of Kosovo with Skopje to enter the country
as well. Albania is opposed to flying refugees out of the region
maintaining that this would benefit Milosevic as it will
contribute to the policy of ethnic cleansing in Kosovo.
According to the ministry of information, the refugees are
270.000 and most of them, 120.000, are in the city of Kukes with a
population of 20.000. In Tirana there are 26.000, in Durres
13.000, in Fieri 12.000 and in Elbasan 10.000 refugees.
[23] THE REFUGEES ARE PEOPLE WHO WANT TO RETURN TO THE HOMES
FYROM's minister of information Redjep Zlatku in an interview
with MPA stated that the government of his country even before the
start of the war had estimated that FYROM would be able to take
about 20.000 refugees from Kosovo. However, their number is now
130.000 and in spite of the fact that they are 6 1/2 times more
than expected the borders of FYROM were not closed.
Mr. Zlatku said that the situation is very difficult because
the country has to deal with hard economic problems. He said that
there is no fear of political consequences that could be caused by
the refugees, stressing that there are reporters who dramatize the
situation maintaining that the refugees will change the
demographic map of FYROM and added that he does not believe this
because the refugees are people who want desperately to return to
the homes.
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