His schedule has not been finalized yet, but apart from attending all official events for the triple celebration, he will go on two tours. On Friday he will be in Evosmos, Thessaloniki, and on Saturday in Polygyros, Chalkidiki. He will also speak at an e vent at the University of Macedonia on Monday, 27 October, at 6pm, on "Investing in education we conquer tomorrow".

The two Ministers made statements at the "El. Venizelos" airport in Athens and reconfirmed the steady will and determination of the two countries to move to a step-by-step approach.

"We have turned over a new leaf in Greek-Turkish relations, we have contributed to decreasing the tension", said Mr. Papandreou, adding: "The message is to learn from the mistakes of our past, for historians to process them, but we are here for today and

tomorrow. We must build the foundation for future generations to live in peace and prosperity".

Mr. Gul stated that the mutual determination of the two sides to resolve their problems with peace and understanding is evident. "What encourages the two governments is the will of the two peoples to turn the Aegean into a sea of peace and cooperation of

the people. When there is the will for something better from both sides, then there is potential to move even further", he said.

The Turkish Foreign Minister arrived in Athens shortly before noon, for a series of meetings and discussion he is to have with Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Papandreou.

His meetings with Mr. Papandreou will begin at 5pm. Prior to that, Mr. Gul will visit Olympic works, he will sign the Olympic Truce and visit the Police Academy.

Tomorrow he will meet with Prime Minister Costas Simitis, President of the Greek Republic Costis Stefanopoulos and the President of the Greek Parliament, Apostolos Kaklamanis. He will depart in the afternoon.

Tomorrow at 7pm, Mr. Papandreou will meet with special coordinator on the Cyprus issue for the State Department, Thomas Weston, who will visit Turkey and Cyprus after visiting Athens.

As was underlined in the conference's findings, the basic principle for inter-state agreements is the participation of the citizens and local societies, decentralization and proper administration. The new European directive - framework on water (2000/60) , provides opportunities for cooperation through the formation of inter-border administration bodies for inter-state water parting. "We must pass from the era of resolving crises, to preventing them in time and avoiding disputes and conflict due to water.

Water, rivers and lakes in the Balkans can become paths towards cooperation, peace and culture, in a region with a troubled past, both for it's environment and regarding it's environmental integrity, as well as for the peaceful coexistence of our peoples ".

Of the stocks trading today, the overwhelming majority of 277 recorded gains and 44 had losses, while the value of 63 stocks remained unchanged.

Mr. Protopapas added that the government policy on the demolition of unlicensed constructions is going to continue.

During the contacts he had, Mr. Gul received a detailed briefing on the 2004 Olympic Games preparations, while he expressed the willingness of the Turkish side to contribute to the preparations in the sectors of security, transportation and communication s. The Greek and Turkish delegations met to discuss issues concerning the Greek-Turkish dialogue, the Cyprus issue and the course toward the implementation of the so-called low diplomacy agreements.

"If we can stop the war for 16 days, maybe we can have peace forever", stated Mr. Papandreou and pointed out that Greece's initiative for the revival of the Olympic Truce was warmly received. He also stated that a new resolution will be signed in the UN issuing an appeal for the support of the Olympic Truce.

Mr. Papandreou pointed out that the declaration has been signed by personalities from around the world among them, Kofi Annan, Nelson Mantela and Bill Clinton as well as, football teams Galata Saray, Olympiakos, Fener Bahce and Panathinaikos. At this poi nt, he reminded that this initiative got underway with his own signature and that of former Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem, underlining that Turkey has a significant share in this initiative.

Mr. Gul expressed satisfaction for the signing of the Olympic Truce and congratulated all those participating in the process and the Olympic Games preparations in general.

He also stressed that a preparation will be made in Turkey to expand the sectors in which his country could contribute within the framework of the Olympic Games preparations.

The Turkish Foreign Minister stated that bilateral understanding for the cooperation of Greece and Turkey at Olympic Games preparations level will have a positive effect on bilateral political and economic relations and concluded by wishing success to al l the efforts that are being made.

The Turkish Foreign Minister in comments he made afterwards stated that the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens will be a big success.

Mr. Papandreou spoke of the great honor that was done to Greece when it was picked to host the 2004 Olympic Games. He said that it was a great opportunity not only to upgrade Athens and offer a prospect of development to the area but send a message of co operation and peace to the wider Balkan region as well.

The Greek Foreign Minister also referred to the cooperation between Greece and Turkey during the Olympic Games.

The meeting was held in a very warm and friendly atmosphere and they discussed developments in the Cyprus issue, the Greek-Turkish relations and Turkey's European prospect.

During the brief dialogue they had before the television cameras, Mr. Stephanopoulos asked Mr. Gul about the helicopter guided tour he had over the Olympic projects.

The Turkish Foreign Minister stated that he got an overall picture of Athens and added that he was impressed by the Olympic projects.

Mr. Marinos had stated that non-Muslim communities like Greek Orthodox Christians, Armenians, Jews, Catholics and others live in Turkey. The institutions they have founded own real estate and the Turkish authorities try to take away their property by usi ng legal and other techniques.

In a written statement the Italian EU Presidency expressed the Council of Ministers serious concern over the issue and stressed that in all recent meetings with Turkey it was underlined that the existing situation in the country regarding religious insti tutions is restrictive and called on Turkey to adopt a different approach.

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