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Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 2004-02-12
MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY
Thessaloniki, February 12, 2004
SECTIONS
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
NEWS HEADLINES
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] CLOSING THE GAP
[02] STANDING BY FOR THE STORM
[03] CZECH AIRPLANE EMERGENCY LANDING IN MIKRA
[04] SIMITIS-PAPANDREOU EMERGENCY MEETING ON CYPRUS ISSUE
[05] A UNIFIED POSITION
[06] PAPANDREOU STATEMENTS ON CYPRUS ISSUE
[07] KARAMANLIS: NEW DEMOCRACY SUPPORTS CYPRUS
[08] SATISFACTORY GAINS IN THE ASE
[09] PAPANDREOU WILL VISIT GERMANY ON SUNDAY
[10] THE PRIME MINISTER BRIEFED THE STATE PRESIDENT ON THE CYPRUS ISSUE
[11] REACTIONS TO THE EPP RESOLUTION
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[12] US INTERVENTION
[13] A CRUCIAL ANSWER
[14] PETTERING MET WITH RELATIVES OF GREEK SAILORS HELD IN PAKISTAN
NEWS IN DETAILS
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] CLOSING THE GAP
ND has a steady lead over PASOK in vote intention, according to the panhellenic poll carried out by Opinion for Mega television. ND has been selected by 39.1% in contrasts to PASOK's 36.9%. The data was collected prior to and immediately following the el
ection of G. Papandreou to the Presidency of PASOK, which brought on a differentiation in the voters' electoral behavior. The KKE is at 5.8%, the Coalition at 2.9%. As far as who is more appropriate for the Prime Minister's position, Mr. Papandreou is ahe
ad of Mr. Karamanlis, who however is more popular than the PASOK President.
[02] STANDING BY FOR THE STORM
The General Direction of Civic Protection recommended increased standby measures for Regions, Prefectures and Municipalities throughout the country, due to the dangerous weather phenomena, as the weather is expected to get severely worse today. The bad w
eather will initially be expressed in western, central and northern Greece and it is later expected to spread to the rest of the countries with strong snowfall and storms at sea. North winds will blow in the west, central Greece, and in the north, and wes
tern winds will blow in the rest of the country turning to the north late at night.
[03] CZECH AIRPLANE EMERGENCY LANDING IN MIKRA
An aerial adventure was in store for the 116 passengers of the Czech CSA airline, which returned to Thessaloniki's "Macedonia" airport, due to a serious mechanical malfunction. The Boeing 737 had departed at 05:11 from "Macedonia" airport for Prague. Aft
er approximately 25 minutes if flight, the pilot located a serious problem in one of the engines and informed the control tower.
[04] SIMITIS-PAPANDREOU EMERGENCY MEETING ON CYPRUS ISSUE
An emergency meeting at the Maximos Mansion will be held today at 11am, between Prime Minister Costas Simitis and Foreign Minister Giorgos Papandreou, regarding the developments on the Cyprus issue. The meeting is expected to deal with and evaluate the d
evelopments of the second meeting of Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulso and Turkish Cypriot Leader Rauf Denktash under UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in New York.
According to valid sources, there may be a telephone communication between President Papadopoulos and Mr. Simitis and Mr. Papandreou during the meeting. Due to the meeting, Mr. Papandreou's election campaign trip to Cyprus, that was planned for today, ha
s been postponed for a few hours.
[05] A UNIFIED POSITION
We have always asked for the resolving of the Cyprus issue and in that sense we are in charge of the game, but we want to ensure that whatever solution is found will be viable, stated Foreign Minister Giorgos Papandreou, following the long meeting presid
ed over by Prime Minister Costas Simitis. Mr. Papandreou stated that any response given will be unanimous. The Turkish side, through Rauf Denktash, has proposed a new round of negotiations and the appointment of the UN Secretary General to fill in any poi
nts of the final document to be submitted for a referendum on which no agreement is reached. US Secretary of State Colin Powell, in telephone communications with his Greek and Turkish counterparts, asked "that they do whatever they can to support the good
services of the UN Secretary General". KKE Secretary General Aleka Papariga accused the US of blackmail. Mr. Papandreou's visit to Cyprus has been postponed.
[06] PAPANDREOU STATEMENTS ON CYPRUS ISSUE
The Greek government is in close cooperation and contact with the President of the Cypriot Republic Tassos Papadopoulos, aiming at a just and viable solution to the Cyprus issue, stated President of PASOK and Foreign Minister Giorgos Papandreou, after hi
s meeting with Prime Minister Costas Simitis and alternate Foreign Minister Tassos Giannitsis.
Mr. Papandreou stressed that Greece has asked that the procedure for the resolving of the Cyprus issue, thus the Greek side is in charge of the game. "But we want to be certain that any procedure followed will lead to a viable solution. We believe this c
an be secured through the good cooperation we have with Nicosia. Of course there are still developments in the talks in New York", he added.
[07] KARAMANLIS: NEW DEMOCRACY SUPPORTS CYPRUS
Right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy leader Kostas Karamanlis expressed the support of his party to the efforts of the Cypriot government for the solution of the Cyprus problem in a statement he made after the meeting he had in Kesariani, At
hens with representatives of small and medium sized businesses.
Cyprus is a European country and nobody can stop its European course, said Mr. Karamanlis adding that in any case New Democracy backs the Cyprus government and stands by Cyprus.
[08] SATISFACTORY GAINS IN THE ASE
Satisfactory gains were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange today. The general index rose to +0.50% at 2468.5 points, while the volume of transactions was at 180.4 million euros.
Of the stocks trading today, 187 had gains and 116 had losses, while the value of 81 stocks remained unchanged.
[09] PAPANDREOU WILL VISIT GERMANY ON SUNDAY
Greek governing Socialist Party of PASOK leader Giorgos Papandreou will visit Germany on Sunday, February 15 to address Greek immigrants in the Baden-Wuerttemberg state.
According to a statement issued by PASOK, Mr. Papandreou will speak in a rally that will be held at the Boblingen sports stadium in Stuttgart.
[10] THE PRIME MINISTER BRIEFED THE STATE PRESIDENT ON THE CYPRUS ISSUE
Greek Prime Minister Kostas Simitis, accompanied by governing Socialist Party of PASOK leader Giorgos Papandreou, briefed President Kostis Stephanopoulos on the latest developments on the Cyprus issue.
In statements he made after the meeting, Mr. Simitis said that earlier in the afternoon he had a telephone communication with Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos and they expressed the position shared by Greece and Cyprus favoring a solution in Cyprus
that will be based on the Annan Plan, guarantee human rights and follow the principles of the European standards.
[11] REACTIONS TO THE EPP RESOLUTION
The European People's Party resolution promoting the exclusion of former Communists, from the new member-states, from taking over European posts and political offices has caused strong disagreements and confusion.
The resolution under the title "condemning totalitarian Communism" attempts to compare the Communists with the Nazis, pointing out that only those guilty of Nazi crimes have been convicted.
It also maintains that the former Communists participated in state security agencies of Communist regimes and were involved in crimes against humanity. Finally, it suggests the establishment of an international memorial day for the victims of Communism.
The EPP President Wilfred Martens stated that the resolution was sponsored by party members from the former Communist states and was approved by the majority.
Greek right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy announced that the party representative participating in the debate had voted against the resolution because it had adopted extreme positions.
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[12] US INTERVENTION
Discussions in New York on the Cyprus issue are continuing today and this evening (at 22:00 Greek time) for the third day, without prospects of a solution. According to diplomatic circles, Mr. Annan will ask for the intensification of US pressures toward
s both sides in order for them to accept the terms and the schedules of the UN Secretary General. US Secretary of State Colin Powell, in telephone communications he has with his Greek and Turkish counterparts, asked "that they do whatever they can to supp
ort the good services of the UN Secretary General, pointing out the importance of a timely resolving of the Cyprus issue, which will allow for the accession of a unified Cyprus to the EU on May 1, 2004.
[13] A CRUCIAL ANSWER
The Greek response to the proposal made by Ankara through Rauf Denktash for a new round of negotiations in Cyprus with the participation of the guarantor powers and the appointment of the UN Secretary General to fill in any blanks that might be left afte
r negotiations, is being discussed in the emergency meeting taking place in Athens. President Papadopoulos' response will be given this evening when the talks continue. I do not think my proposal will be rejected, said Mr. Denktash. US Secretary of State
Colin Powell, in telephone communications with this Greek and Turkish counterparts, asked "that they do whatever they can to support the good services of the UN Secretary General". The Simitis-Papandreou emergency meeting on the Cyprus issue, resulted in
the postponement of Mr. Papandreou's campaign trip to Cyprus. There is also an emergency meeting in Ankara.
[14] PETTERING MET WITH RELATIVES OF GREEK SAILORS HELD IN PAKISTAN
The relatives of the Greek sailors held in Pakistan met in Strasbourg with Hans-Gert Pettering, head of the European People's Party Parliamentary Group, at the initiative of Antonis Trakatelis, head of right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy Eu
ro-deputies.
The members of the delegation delivered a petition to the EPP head concerning the illegal detention of the Greek and foreign sailors from the ship "Tasman Spirit" and called for his immediate intervention to end the international law violation and win th
e repatriation of the captive sailors.
Mr. Pettering sent a protest letter to Pakistani ambassador Tariq Fatemi calling on him to contact the responsible authorities and request the release and repatriation of the captive sailors.
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