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Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 2001-06-18

Macedonian Press Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Macedonian Press Agency at http://www.mpa.gr and http://www.hri.org/MPA.


MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Thessaloniki, June 18, 2001

SECTIONS

  • [A] NATIONAL NEWS
  • [B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS TITLES
  • [Á] NATIONAL NEWS
  • [01] LET THEM EAT APPLES, 2,000 TONS OF THEM
  • [02] G. BUSH, US PRESIDENT'S DAD, ON AEGEAN CRUISE
  • [03] A FIRST: GREEK, TURKISH MUNICIPALITIES TWINNED
  • [04] O.A. SAGA TO END SOON, SUITORS SUBMIT BIDS TODAY
  • [05] BALKAN EDUCATIONAL MEETING SOON IN ISTANBUL
  • [06] GREEK-ISRAELI TECHNOLOGY FORUM ON JUNE 26-27
  • [07] "CYPRUS-AEGEAN-THRACE" NULLIFYING DISTANCES
  • [08] GREEK, TURKISH FMs TO MEET AT SAMOS, KUSADASI
  • [09] OECD: ABOUT A MILLION IMMIGRANTS NOW IN GREECE
  • [10] OVER 1.000 PEOPLE LIVE ON THE STREETS IN GREECE
  • [11] OLYMPIC GAMES ARE A CHALLENGE FOR TRANSPORTATION
  • [12] LOSSES IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE
  • [13] REPPAS ON THE DECISION OF THE BULGARIAN PEOPLE
  • [14] WORLD CONFERENCE OF GREEKS FROM EGYPT
  • [15] REPPAS: THE PRIME MINISTER'S JET IS SAFE
  • [16] NATO FORCE TO BE DEPLOYED IN FYROM
  • [17] REPPAS' RESPONSE TO THE KOSTUNICA STATEMENTS
  • [18] INTERNATIONAL MEETING OF COMMUNIST PARTIES IN ATHENS
  • [B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
  • [19] BULGARIA'S EX-KING RETURNS TO POLITICAL POWER

  • NEWS IN DETAIL

    [A] NATIONAL NEWS

    [01] LET THEM EAT APPLES, 2,000 TONS OF THEM

    Over two thousand tons of apples produced in Greece are to be allocated to Kosovo refugees, according to an amended order issued by the Minister of Agriculture George Anomeritis.

    The fruit, which was destined for the landfills, is to be dispersed to various Orthodox archbishopries and refugee camps.

    The Minister has also called for strict health and quality controls, while the shipment's containers are to bear indications in Greek, Slavic and English.

    [02] G. BUSH, US PRESIDENT'S DAD, ON AEGEAN CRUISE

    Former US President George Bush is presently on a cruise to the Aegean islands, at the invitation of Greek ship magnate Yiannis Latsis.

    Escorted by an entourage of 38 persons, Mr. Bush's first stop was reportedly the island of Myconos, while he is also scheduled to visit Patmos and other, more isolated, islands in the Aegean.

    According to reports, Mr. Bush is also expected to meet with the honorary president of the main opposition party of New Democracy and former premier Constantine Mitsotakis, with whom he enjoys close ties.

    [03] A FIRST: GREEK, TURKISH MUNICIPALITIES TWINNED

    In a ceremony attended by Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos, the municipalities of Gera, on the Greek island of Lesvos, and of Altinoluk in Turkey were twinned on Saturday, a first countries in the history of Greek-Turkish relations. The event was also attended by Minister of the Aegean Nikos Sifounakis, mayors and representatives of social agencies and of the political world.

    Stating that the twinning does not constitute an intervention in the foreign policies of the two governments, the mayor of Gera said that it only symbolizes the will of the two peoples for peaceful cohabitation in the Aegean.

    The mayor of Altinoluk referred to those who allow a group of provocateurs to intervene between the two peoples and to sow hatred, saying that "we should not allow anyone to think he can turn back the river of friendship we have created, confirming the traditions of centuries."

    Mr. Vartholomeos blessed the twinning and planted an olive tree together with the two mayors, while saying that "we believe and proclaim that relations between Greeks and Turks should be relations of friendship, cooperation and good neighborliness in the interest of both countries."

    [04] O.A. SAGA TO END SOON, SUITORS SUBMIT BIDS TODAY

    The four companies that are interested in buying a majority stake of Olympic Airways (OA) are to submit their bids by 7.30 pm today, thus ending a months-long saga regarding the fate of Greece's ailing national air carrier.

    The four parties are the private airline company Axon (a member of the Liakounakos group), Cyprus Airways (the only international airline company to submit an offer), Golden Aviation Services (belonging to shipowner Stamatis Restis) and the Australian Integrated Airlines Solutions, whose bid is being backed by the airlline's pilots association.

    The submitted dossiers are to be forwarded to the Swiss bank Credit Suisse First Boston, which is acting as an adviser to the government for OA's privatization.

    The bid criteria set forth by the government are that OA should operate mainly as an airline after its privatization and retain its logo retain its logo for a specified period of time. Also, the newly-built Athens airport Eleftherios Venizelos should be used as the main base for OA's aircraft.

    Moreover, the privatized firm should have the financial strength and administrative capacity to post growth as a financially viable company with long-term prospects, while state and affiliate-firm risks and commitments should be minimized after restructuring.

    [05] BALKAN EDUCATIONAL MEETING SOON IN ISTANBUL

    The second educational meeting of leading officials of the Balkan countries on political and economic cooperation and development will take place June 20-23 in Istanbul, organized by the Kokkalis Program, in collaboration with Turkey's Sabaci University.

    The Istanbul meeting, which comprises the third and final part of this year's educational program that was launched in March at Harvard University in the US, will be attended by 25 prominent officials holding key positions in the political and economic sectors of their countries.

    The delegates include the government spokesman of FYROM, ministers from the Serb and Turkish governments, members of Romania's senate, and advisors of the Bulgarian president and the prime ministers of Albania and Greece.

    [06] GREEK-ISRAELI TECHNOLOGY FORUM ON JUNE 26-27

    A Greek Israeli Technology Forum, to be held in Athens June 26-27, will bring together 20 Israeli and more than 30 Greek companies in the fields of information technology, telecommunications and new technologies.

    According to Oded Distel, Trade Attache at the Israeli embassy in Greece, the technology forum is a unique opportunity to expand cooperation, exchange of know-how and creating joint ventures between Greek and Israeli technology and telecommunications companies.

    The Greek market offers a special opportunity to Israeli companies ahead of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games and the significant prospects from Greek enterprises' expansion in the Balkans.

    Bilateral trade in technology products totals 300 million US dollars, while Greek investments to Israel total 30 million US dollars. Cosmote, Intracom, Intrasoft, InfoQuest, Pouliadis Group, Interdata, Petrola and Telestet are among the biggest names to participate in the forum, organized by the Israeli embassy's export department and SEPE.

    [07] "CYPRUS-AEGEAN-THRACE" NULLIFYING DISTANCES

    A meeting focusing on the theme "Cyprus-Aegean-Thrace: Nullifying Distances-Culture-Local Administration-Communication" is to be held at Aigeiros, in the Rodopi prefecture, from June 19- 22.

    The organizers of the meeting are the cultural communication agencies "Poseidonio of Nicosia" and "Poseidonio of Thrace" and the municipality of Aigeiros, while the event will be sponsored by the enlarged Rodopi-Evros prefectural administration.

    Foreign Minister George Papandreou, Culture Minister Evangelos Venizelos and Macedonia-Thrace Minister George Paschalidis have been invited to attend, while a concert will be given at Aigeiros on June 21 by well-known Cypriot composer Marios Tokas.

    [08] GREEK, TURKISH FMs TO MEET AT SAMOS, KUSADASI

    Foreign Minister George Papandreou is to meet with his Turkish counterpart Ismael Cem at the island of Samos and the Turkish navy base at Kusadasi on June 23 and 24, in order to discuss matters related to commerce.

    On the sidelines of the talks between Messrs. Papandreou and Cem, business delegations from both countries are to discuss means to strengthen bilateral trade and investments.

    [09] OECD: ABOUT A MILLION IMMIGRANTS NOW IN GREECE

    In what amounts to about a tenth of the overall population, Greece is home to between 800,000 and a million immigrants, according to data provided by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

    As reported in the Athens daily "Ethnos", OECD also found that less than 60 percent of those immigrants who acquired a "white card" in 1998 proceeded to the next step in the legalization process, which is the "green card".

    Women are most likely to drop out of the race to acquire a green card, especially in the 15-19 age group where 80 percent of female applicants abandon the effort, while women between 45-64 are more inclined to "stick to it" with only 36 percent giving up. The corresponding rates for male green card applicants are 76 and 30 percent.

    [10] OVER 1.000 PEOPLE LIVE ON THE STREETS IN GREECE

    Over 1.000 people live on streets and city squares in Greece. Most of them are found in Athens, Thessaloniki and Patras and they are people of different ages who have no home or family. They do not have money for food, live on handouts or find food at local administration shelters.

    Some of them, are drug addicts without a hope to be included in a detoxification program, some are elderly people suffering from deadly diseases and others have ended up on the streets because for some reason they have lost everything they had.

    The information mentioned above is included in a report published today by the Athens newspaper "TA NEA".

    [11] OLYMPIC GAMES ARE A CHALLENGE FOR TRANSPORTATION

    Transportation minister Christos Verelis expressed the government's intention to extend the bus lanes by 45 kilometers by the year 2003 while the goal is to reach 100 kilometers by 2004.

    Speaking in a conference on the Olympic Games transportation held in Athens, Mr. Verelis referred to the drop in the average speed limit for the cars moving in Athens, from 20 to 12 kilometers per hour, as a result of the rapid increase in the number of vehicles moving in the streets of the Greek capital.

    "Athens 2004" Olympic committee president Ms. Yianna Angelopoulou-Daskalakis characterized the Olympic Games as the biggest challenge for the transportation sector in Greece and stressed that success in this sector will determine to a great extend the successful organizing of the games.

    [12] LOSSES IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

    The losses continue in the Athens Stock Exchange. The general index dropped to -0.57% at 2.843,40 points, while the volume of transactions was very disappointing at 81.6 million Euro or 27.80 billion drachmas.

    Of the stocks trading today, 173 recorded gains and 144 had losses, while the value of 76 stocks remained stable.

    [13] REPPAS ON THE DECISION OF THE BULGARIAN PEOPLE

    The decision of the Bulgarian people has our respect, stated government spokesman Dimitris Reppas referring to the Bulgarian elections and the victory of former King Simeon's National Movement Party.

    Mr. Reppas added that the Greek government is waiting for the formation of the new government for consultations to get underway aimed at a new period of cooperation between Greece and Bulgaria.

    He also pointed out that Greece had the opportunity in the EU and NATO summits to raise the issue of their enlargement and Bulgaria's participation in them.

    [14] WORLD CONFERENCE OF GREEKS FROM EGYPT

    Asia-Africa World Council of Hellenes Abroad, SAE, president Stephanos Tambakis, who is also the president of the Greek community in Alexandria, Egypt underlined the big success of the 3rd World Conference of Greeks from Egypt, in statements he made to MPA.

    He stressed that the presence of undersecretary of press Tilemachos Hitiris, undersecretary of foreign affairs Grigoris Niotis, general secretary for Greeks abroad Dimitris Dollis and other local administration representatives in the conference, that was held in Athens, was very significant. He also said that the presence of the Patriarch of Alexandria and All of Africa was very important, adding that his support to the Greek communities was decisive.

    On the Asia-Africa SAE activities, Mr. Tambakis expressed satisfaction, adding that the adoption of the SAE Youth charter of operation encourages the young people to strengthen the specific network. He also said that the Asia-Africa SAE businessmen network prepares a conference in Cairo and Alexandria to take place in the fall in cooperation with the Greek embassy and the chambers of commerce.

    Music composer and singer George Moustaki, who was born in Alexandria, Egypt came from Paris to attend the conference. He stated to MPA that for him France is his third home country but he has never forgotten his Greek origin. He said that three civilizations co-exist peacefully in him namely, the Egyptian, the Greek and the French, adding that for the French he is always the Greek from Egypt or the Ptolemi Greek as Tsarouchis (the famous Greek painter) once had called him.

    [15] REPPAS: THE PRIME MINISTER'S JET IS SAFE

    Greek government spokesman Dimitris Reppas stated that the prime minister's jet is absolutely safe, responding to a question by a reporter on the occasion of a news report on the Athens newspaper "Ektropi" according to which, the new "Emprair" jet, that replaced the "Falcon", had a problem in the May 30 flight with foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou on board.

    Mr. Reppas added that the specific aircraft belongs to the Air Force, which is responsible for its maintenance, stressing that it is an excellent choice.

    [16] NATO FORCE TO BE DEPLOYED IN FYROM

    The developments in FYROM and the participation of Greek troops in the NATO force that will be deployed in the region, were examined today in the meeting of prime minister Kostas Simitis with foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou and minister of defense Akis Tsochatzopoulos.

    In statements he made after the meeting, Mr. Tsochatzopoulos pointed out that NATO will reach a decision on troop deployment on Wednesday.

    Mr. Tsochatzopoulos said that in the meeting were also examined issues concerning the European Union and Turkey, while an analysis was made on the future prospects for NATO's cooperation with the EU within the framework of the joint security and defense.

    Foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou referred to the outcome of the NATO and EU summit meetings in which the issue of FYROM had dominated. The Greek foreign minister reiterated that Greece backs the country's integrity, stressing that the terrorist acts are condemned and the peaceful solution of the political problems is supported. He said that these positions were adopted in the summit meetings, while a common will to offer assistance to FYROM in the sector of security was expressed.

    Concerning the Euro-defense, he stated that this issue has caused a complication between the EU and NATO especially due to Turkey's positions. Mr. Papandreou stated that there was no development last week but the exchange of viewpoints on the further moves and prospects of this issue, was very useful.

    [17] REPPAS' RESPONSE TO THE KOSTUNICA STATEMENTS

    There is no such question concerning Greece's integrity, stated government spokesman Dimitris Reppas when he was asked to comment on the statement made by Yugoslav president Voislav Kostunica according to which, the Albanian irredentism is targeting the Greek Epirus as well.

    Mr. Reppas stated that these are the views of the Yugoslav president, and added that from time to time such positions are being expressed by groups of the self-styled Chams.

    The Greek government spokesman stated that no discussion can be made on the state of the borders in the region, adding that history is clear, as clear is the policy followed on the issue by the governments of the region for years.

    [18] INTERNATIONAL MEETING OF COMMUNIST PARTIES IN ATHENS

    The 4th annual International Meeting of Communist Parties will be held in Athens on June 22-24.

    The meeting will be held with the participation of 57 Communist parties among them, Communist parties from southeastern Europe, the US Communist Party, Communist parties from Europe, the former Soviet Union and Africa.

    [B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS

    [19] BULGARIA'S EX-KING RETURNS TO POLITICAL POWER

    Bulgaria's former King Simeon II is returning to political power, the first such feat accomplished by a monarch in ex- communist Europe, after his resounding victory in yesterday's general elections.

    The 64-year-old Simeon's party, the National Movement, amassed 45 percent, leaving second the governing Union of Democratic Forces of Prime Minister Ivan Kostov with 18.40 percent.

    Conceding his defeat last night, Mr. Kostov blamed the loss on the heavy burden of attempts to reform the impoverished economy.

    "We demanded from the Bulgarian people to pay a higher price than the one they were ready to pay," he stated.

    Final official results are expected Wednesday, and it won't be known until after seats are assigned whether the National Movement will need a coalition partner to govern.

    According to the preliminary results, the Socialist Party came in third, with 16 percent; followed by the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, composed mainly of ethnic Turks, which had 4.5 percent; and 4 percent to a new coalition of two center-right parties, Gergyovden-VMRO.

    A total of 50 parties and coalitions ran in the election. Turnout was about 66 percent.

    Simeon acceded to the throne in 1943, at age 6, after the death of his father, Boris III. He reigned under regents until 1946, when the communists called a referendum that abolished the monarchy. The royal family went into exile, eventually settling in Spain.


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