Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 2000-02-14
MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Thessaloniki, February 14, 2000
SECTIONS
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
NEWS HEADLINES
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] GREEK PM URGES BALKAN COOPERATION WITH EU
[02] GREECE WILL ASK EU TO LIFT YUGOSLAVIA FLIGHT BAN
[03] OTE GETS READY TO FLOAT SUBSIDIARIES ON ASE
[04] ECONOMY SUB-MINISTRY IN THESSALONIKI PROPOSED
[05] GREECE ADAPTS TO EU'S DECENTRALIZATION PROGRAM
[06] TECHNICAL BIDS FOR ELVO SUBMITTED TODAY
[07] THE ANNUAL THESSALONIKI FORUM ON MAY 8 AND 9
[08] VOCATIONAL TRAINING ORGANIZATION CONFERENCE IN ATHENS
[09] EXHIBITION OF COPIES OF FRESCOS FROM KOSOVO MONASTERIES IN
THESSALONIKI
[10] CYPRUS: THE ACCESSION INTO THE EU IS A PRE-CONDITION FOR A
SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM
[11] LOSSES OF 0.75% IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[12] QUAKE OF FIVE RICHTER JOLTS TURKEY
[13] SUPERSTITION COLORS ALL ASPECTS OF RUSSIAN LIFE
[14] THE WORK OF A GREEK PAINTER TO BECOME A US STAMP
[15] THE EU COMMISSION ON THE TEACHING OF ANCIENT GREEK AND LATIN
IN SCHOOLS
[16] GRIGORIS NIOTIS VISITED MARIUPOLI IN UKRAINE
NEWS IN DETAIL
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] GREEK PM URGES BALKAN COOPERATION WITH EU
The six leaders of the Southeast European countries, namely
the Premiers of Greece, Bulgaria, Albania, Romania, Turkey and
FYROM, signed the Pact of Stability, Security and Good
Neighborliness in S.E. Europe and renewed regional cooperation in
a Bucharest-held Summit conference last weekend.
Addressing the conference, Prime Minister Costas Simitis said
great effort must be expended in promoting development,
cooperation policies and relations with the European Union. He
called on Balkan leaders to relax the isolation of Yugoslavia and
promised to continue helping countries in the region - including
Turkey - forge closer ties with the European Union.
"We want (Balkan) countries to take part in the process of
European Union... progress for the region will benefit us all,"
the Greek Premier stated.
Mr. Simitis and Foreign Minister George Papandreou met with
their Turkish counterparts, Bulent Ecevit and Ismael Cem,
respectively, on the sidelines of the Bucharest-held summit. In
addition to his Turkish counterpart, Mr. Simitis also met
privately with Bulgaria's Premier Ivan Kostov, and his counterpart
from FYROM Liupcko Georgievski. This was the third inter-Balkan
conference of heads of state or government, with the two previous
ones held in Greece's Crete and Turkey's Antalya.
[02] GREECE WILL ASK EU TO LIFT YUGOSLAVIA FLIGHT BAN
Greece is to ask for a lifting of a European Union ban on air
links with Yugoslavia, during today's EU's General Affairs
Council.
"What we would like to see is to make sure that the sanctions
do not affect the actual average citizen of Serbia," Mr.
Papandreou stated, adding that "there are some proposals we will
be bringing to the General Affairs Council, hopefully, such as
lifting the flight ban."
The Greek FM said that Greece wants to send a signal to
ordinary people in Serbia that the international community was not
seeking to hurt them, but to encourage democratic reform.
"We very much support the process in Yugoslavia for
democratization," he said, adding "Greece will be taking a number
of initiatives in trying to see how it can bring in Serbia into
this process in a more constructive way."
Britain has won the backing of the United States for a
suspension of the flight ban, but, although EU airlines would
resume flights to Belgrade, the Yugoslav airline JAT would still
be banned from the EU.
[03] OTE GETS READY TO FLOAT SUBSIDIARIES ON ASE
The Hellenic Telecommunications Organization (OTE), is
reportedly ready to float a number of its subsidiaries on the
Athens Stock Exchange, namely, OTE Leasing, Hellas Com, OTE Net
and Cosmote.
According to the Athens daily "To Vima", OTE's immediate
strategic plans are to ensure the entry of its subsidiaries to
the Greek bourse, strengthen the company's operations abroad and
broaden its current range of activities
A meeting held last week between George Simeonidis, OTE's
managing director, George Papaioannou, the National Economy
Ministry's secretary-general and Vassilis Rapanos, OTE's
president, focused on when the firms will be introduced to the
Athens bourse.
The Greek telecommunications giant is also looking into
adding two new subsidiaries to its group. One will oversee OTE
property management while the other will be responsible for the
development and marketing of its phone catalog.
[04] ECONOMY SUB-MINISTRY IN THESSALONIKI PROPOSED
Ruling PASOK party deputy and former transportation minister
Haris Kastanides has proposed that a sub-ministry related to the
Ministries of National Economy and Development be established in
Thessaloniki.
In his address before the ISTAME-Andreas Papandreou
international conference, Mr. Kastanides stated that the said sub-
ministry would develop an infrastructure network that would
support a full gamut financial services, thus rendering
Thessaloniki the economy-finance hub of Southeastern Europe.
[05] GREECE ADAPTS TO EU'S DECENTRALIZATION PROGRAM
As a result of the European Commission's drive to promote
decentralization of Community Support Framework (CSF) management,
Greece's National Economy Ministry is preparing a draft bill
reforming implementation and monitoring regulations of the CSF III
subsidized investment program, according to press reports.
The bill calls for the establishment of 26 new departments as
management authorities, each of which will be responsible for
creating reliable mechanisms for collecting financial and
statistical data on the progress of the projects, and the
submission of annual reports.
These mechanisms will be supervised by the relevant
ministries and staffed by personnel from the private and public
sector.
[06] TECHNICAL BIDS FOR ELVO SUBMITTED TODAY
Eight Greek and foreign investors are to "cross their swords"
today, by submitting sealed technical bids for the 43% buyout of
the state-run Hellenic Vehicle Industry SA, (ELVO).
The 43 percent stake is the result of the state's
conservative policy regarding ELVO's privatization process, which
is to be completed in two phases. The strategic investor will
maintain the right to seek an additional 17 percent once the
investment has come through.
The list of interested foreign investors in ELVO includes
Britain's Vickers, U.S. General Dynamics Germany's Craus Maffei
and Steyer, as well as Greece's Michaniki construction company,
the Greek Kokkalis- Mytilinaios consortium, Petropoulos (Scania
vehicle importers) and the Syggelidis - Bitros - Zilkha group.
Following the technical offers, which have to include a
business plan, the company's advisers will proceed to
constructing a short list, probably comprising three or four
candidates.
[07] THE ANNUAL THESSALONIKI FORUM ON MAY 8 AND 9
Thessaloniki will be at the center of international attention
on May 8 and 9 when the 7th annual Thessaloniki Forum will be held
in the presence of prime ministers and government ministers from
south-eastern Europe.
The forum will be attended by Reconstruction Organization for
south-eastern Europe president Mr. Migareli, Stability Pact
coordinator Mr. Hobach and SECI head Mr. Busek. The forum
organizers are the Northern Greece Industries Association and the
US-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with the
Organization for the Balkan Reconstruction and SECI.
The Thessaloniki Forum is a unique chance for a formal
meeting of senior government officials and leading businessmen
from Albania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia, FYROM, Romania, Turkey, Greece, the United States and
European Union.
[08] VOCATIONAL TRAINING ORGANIZATION CONFERENCE IN ATHENS
The role of vocational training in the south-eastern Europe
reconstruction process is the topic of a conference organized by
the Vocational Training Organization to be held in Athens on
February 17 and 18 with the participation of the European
Vocational Institute.
The conference will be attended by state representatives and
representatives of vocational training institutes from Balkan
countries as well as by experts in the field and representatives
of the European Commission, the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development and UNESCO.
[09] EXHIBITION OF COPIES OF FRESCOS FROM KOSOVO MONASTERIES IN
THESSALONIKI
Forty one exact copies of wall-paintings from Kosovo
monasteries and churches dated back to the 13th and the 14th
centuries will be exhibited in Thessaloniki until March 1. The
frescos as well as the 197 banners included among the exhibits
come from Belgrade's National Museum which together with the Paris
Museum are the only ones that have a wall-painting wing. The wall-
paintings presented come from Granitsanica, Liebiska and Detsanoi.
The exhibition is organized by Belgrade's National Museum and
Serbia's International Scientific, Cultural and Technological
Cooperation Center.
[10] CYPRUS: THE ACCESSION INTO THE EU IS A PRE-CONDITION FOR A
SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM
Cyprus' accession into the European Union will create the pre-
conditions for a viable solution to the problem, stated Nicosia
based Intercollege Research Center director professor Andreas
Theophanous.
Mr. Theophanous, who was in Thessaloniki to attend the
Defense Analyses Institute conference, stated to MPA that only
after Cyprus' accession into the EU Turkey will realize that it is
to its benefit to have serious and meaningful talks on Cyprus.
He also pointed out that Cyprus is situated at the heart of
Eastern Mediterranean which always had a big geo-strategic
importance.
[11] LOSSES OF 0.75% IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE
The week started for the Athens Stock Exchange with losses of
0.75% dropping below the 5.500 points mark to 5.490,96, while the
volume of transactions remained low at 188 billion drachmas.
However, in spite of the downward course followed investors
remain optimistic expecting positive news from the bank interest
rate front. The Greek stock market is expected to be upgraded to
mature in the near future and this will give a new boost to the
Athens Stock Exchange.
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[12] QUAKE OF FIVE RICHTER JOLTS TURKEY
An earthquake measuring five points on the logarithmic
Richter scale shook northwestern Turkey this morning, with victim
and damage reports as-of-yet unavailable.
According to the Turkish television network NTV, the quake
occurred north of the Bolu region, between Ankara and Istanbul.
Eight hundred people were killed from November 12's
earthquake in the same area.
[13] SUPERSTITION COLORS ALL ASPECTS OF RUSSIAN LIFE
After spilling salt, do you throw a pinch over your left
shoulder? Do you avoid walking under a ladder? Do you carry a
lucky rabbit's foot?
Even though most of them know that these actions are the
result of finding unreasonable causes and effects where none
exist, superstition is deeply ingrained in Russian culture, where
students don't wash their hair the day before the exams, just as
musicians also stay clear of shampoo the day before a concert, as
it's considered "bad luck" to do so.
More evident in agrarian regions, although apparent in city
dwellers as well, these complex and paradoxical customs are as
colorful as they are varied.
For example, passing the salt directly into the hand of
another person may mean the start of a fight, while the same is
true for soaps and knives. So, just to be sure, most Russians
prefer to simply place these objects before the recipient.
Many Russian superstitions are variations on western themes,
for example mirrors. Should Russians leave the house having
forgotten to take something with them , they usually avoid
returning to get it. But, if they must, then they will definitely
take a look in the mirror before exiting again.
As far as animals, scarves or watches are concerned, they are
considered no-no's for gift-giving to close friends or family
members as they may be a prelude to separation. The same goes for
kissing someone at the door.
What about that chance event of a knife falling at your
doorstep? It means that a man is about to pay you a visit, or, if
its a spoon or fork, then you should expect female company,
Russian folklore foretells.
If you want to walk to the altar any time soon, then you
should never take a corner seat at a table since this means seven
years without a wedding in sight.
Most Russians will shiver when a black cat crosses their
path, the same with seeing a woman carrying an empty bucket.
Death is also a frequent theme among the numerous Russian
superstitions. On the nine-day or forty-day memorium for the dead,
the relatives will place a bottle of vodka and a small piece of
bread in order to ease the journey of the deceased person's soul.
It's been reported that when Russia's former Premier Yevgeni
Primakov received cutlery as a gift during a recent visit to the
province, he was quick to pull a few rubles out of his wallet so
that "the friendship won't be cut in two".
It's like what Aristotle wore in Poetics: "Probable
impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities."
[14] THE WORK OF A GREEK PAINTER TO BECOME A US STAMP
The work of a Greek painter was selected by the US Postal
Service to become a stamp. Dimitris Nalbantis from Didimoticho,
north-eastern Greece participated in an international painting
competition under the title Our World in the year 2000 organized
by the US Postal Service.
Mr. Nalbantis was informed by the US Postal Service that his
painting was among the 225 that had been selected to be reproduced
as stamps this year. The winners of the competition will exhibit
their work in New York in July and August 2000.
The painting of Mr. Nalbantis was a synthesis of statue
parts.
[15] THE EU COMMISSION ON THE TEACHING OF ANCIENT GREEK AND LATIN
IN SCHOOLS
The European Commission examines in detail the problem
created due to the abolition of the teaching of ancient Greek and
Latin in the EU secondary education schools as well as, the issue
of the establishment of a Center for the Promotion of Classical
Studies in the European Union.
The above were stated by responsible EU Commissioner Viviane
Reding in response to a question by Greek Euro-deputy from the
Coalition of the Left party Alekos Alavanos who raised the issue.
Mr. Alavanos reminded the memorandum that has been submitted to
the EU Education ministers council since 1995 for the
establishment of a Classical Studies Promotion Center and
presented the views of the representatives of Italy, France,
Greece and Spain according to which, the classical studies are now
more than ever an education means of great value for the new
generation.
[16] GRIGORIS NIOTIS VISITED MARIUPOLI IN UKRAINE
The support of Greece to the 150.000 members of the Greek
community in the Ukraine was expressed by Greek undersecretary of
foreign affairs Grigoris Niotis, who is visiting the city of
Mariupoli.
It should be noted that a model health center will soon open
in the city for all the people in the region, regardless of being
Greek or not.
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