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Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English, 99-01-22Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Macedonian Press Agency at http://www.mpa.gr and http://www.hri.org/MPA.BRIEF GREEK NEWS BULLETIN BY THE MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCYThessaloniki, January 22, 1999TITLES
NEWS IN DETAIL[01] STUDENTS RELENTLESS, CRISIS IN EDUCATION SECTOR CONTINUESThessaloniki, January 22 (MPA)Thousands of students throughout Greece are continuing their mobilizations in protest to the education reforms. Education Minister Gerasimos Arsenis is to meet with the leaders of the students organizations, although the group officially coordinating the sit-ins at the schools, which has already declared another rally on Thursday, has not been invited to participate in the meeting.The Education Ministry has forwarded a newsletter to the schools, notifying the teachers that this year's first academic semester will be extended by one month. Teachers have joined the protests as their unions have given them the go-ahead to hold a 24-hour strike on Monday. A.F. [02] ESP CONFERENCE BEGINS IN THESSALONIKI TODAYThessaloniki, January 22 (MPA)The European Socialist Party is embarking on a three- day conference concerning southeastern Europe today in Thessaloniki, featuring the participation of the Party's leader and German Defense Minister Rudolph Scharping, the President of the European Parliament's Socialists Pauline Green and other Socialist leaders from European and Balkan countries.The delegates are expected to address the fermenting crisis in Kosovo. Greece's Defense and Foreign Ministers, Akis Tsochatzopoulos and Theodoros Pangalos respectively, will also be present, as well as the ruling PASOK party's central committee secretary Kostas Skandalides, the undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Yiannos Kranidiotis and EU Commissioner Christos Papoutsis. The inauguration of the conference, to be held this afternoon, will be addressed by Mgrs. Skandalides, the ESP's Secretary-General J.F. Vallin, eurodeputy Paraskevas Avgerinos and representatives from Greek political parties. The first session will address the overall political situation and security in the Balkan region, while Mr. Scharping, along with Mgrs. Tsochatzopoulos, and Kranidiotis will give a press conference. A.F. [03] ROMANIAN COAL MINERS CLASH WITH POLICE, CRISIS INTENSIFIESBucharest, January 22 (MPA)Romanian President Emil Constantinescu has stated that he will declare a "state of emergency" in his country if the coal miners press on with their rally towards Belgrade.Yesterday, the miners clashed with police forces when the latter tried to block the march. Dozens of policemen were injured during the episodes. The miners are demanding a 35-percent wage increase and the cancellation of government plans to close thirty non-profitable plants which would cost the jobs of 6,500 workers. A.F. [04] GREEK CABINET MEETS TODAY TO DISCUSS EMPLOYMENT, SCHENGENAthens, January 22 (MPA)Greek Prime Minister Kostas Simitis is to chair a cabinet meeting today in order to discuss ways to boost employment in addition to the implementation of the Schengen Treaty allowing the free movement of EU citizens.According to government spokesman Dimitris Reppas, the issue of student protests over the education ministry's reforms is not on the meeting's agenda but added that the Premier is likely to refer to the issue. A.F. [05] GREECE'S AMBASSADOR TO CANADA IS DIPLOMATS ASSOC. CHAIRMANOttawa, January 22 (MPA)Greece's Ambassador to Canada, Ioannis-Alexandros Thomoglou, has been elected unanimously as chairman of Ottawa's Organization of Diplomats.Canada's governor-general, Romeo Leblanc, will be the honorary president of the newly-established organization, which aims to promote relations amongst diplomats in Ottawa and assist newly-arrived diplomats, develop relations between the diplomats and the Canadian government, and organize cultural and social events. A.F. [06] ARMS DESTINED FOR FYROM REMAIN AT THESSALONIKI'S PORTThessaloniki, January 22 (MPA)Thessaloniki's Magistrate Court Board is to imminently rule on the case of the FYROM-bound arms shipment bonded on the orders of Thessaloniki's prosecutor earlier this month and which remains confiscated in the city's port for almost 20 days now.The board is to rule on whether or not the 18 containers with US military aid - including guns, cannons, rockets and missile components - will be handed over to FYROM or remain confiscated. The shipment was held up at port when it was discovered that it lacked basic accompanying documentation. According to reports, the government of FYROM has drawn an agreement with the United States for military aid, half of which had already been transported legally, accompanied by the proper documentation, through Thessaloniki's port. A.F. [07] GREEK DEVELOPMENT MINISTER IN THE UNITED STATESWashington, January 22 (MPA)Greece's development minister, Vasso Papandreou, is presently on a seven-day visit to the United States, where she has embarked on a series of meetings and contacts with US government officials and Greek-American leaders, among them the US Secretary of Energy, the assistant Secretary of State Mark Grossman, and others.In Washington, Ms Papandreou will meet with energy secretaries Bill Richardson and William Daly and the undersecretary for financial affairs, Stuart Eisenstadt. During her stay in the US, Ms. Papandreou will give an interview to CNN and will visit Houston's energy installations. On Monday she will attend a luncheon given in her honor by the Foreign Policy Association, at Manhattan's Yale Club. Ms. Papandreou will also be received by the Archbishop of America Spyridon. A.F. [08] DEUTSCHE BANK RECOMMENDS GREEK BONDS TO FOREIGN INVESTORSThessaloniki, January 22 (MPA)Deutsche Bank recommends that foreign investors opt for Greek bond placements, touting the value appreciation during its January economic report.The German financial institution points out that Greek bonds remain an attractive option since the country's EMU convergence aim is still feasible. However, it does warn that the renewed crisis in rising markets could hamper the convergence aim and adds that the Greek government's efforts would fall on dead water if the state's privatization plans were delayed or its inflation-reducing measures were relaxed. A.F. [09] MAIN OPPOSITION PARTY LEADER TRAVELS TO ISTANBUL TODAYAthens, January 22 (MPA)The leader of Greece's main opposition party, New Democracy's Kostas Karamanlis, is to travel to Istanbul this evening in order to participate in the joint meeting of the presidium and directing committee of the European Democratic Union (EDU), of which he is vice-chairman.The EDU meeting will discuss the ongoing political developments in Turkey, the growth strategy of EDU's members, the upcoming euro-elections and the EDU budget for 1999-2000. Mr. Karamanlis will also meet with the Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos. A.F. [10] SWISS ACCOUNTS INACTIVE SINCE 1945 CAN NOW BE COMPENSATEDGeneva, January 22 (MPA)Switzerland has publicized a list containing the names of 580 individuals-bearers of inactive bank accounts since 1945, which had been confiscated by the Swiss-government.The said list is publicized in the on-line edition of the Swiss government's Gazette at www.switzerland.taskforce.ch. The interested parties can request further information at any Swiss embassy or consulate abroad or at the Swiss Foreign Ministry's "centrale d' annonce 1962 / 1999" agency. The deadline for filing compensation claims is September 30, 1999. A.F. [11] GREEK MINISTER OF INTERIOR SATISFIED OVER CONTACTS IN ALBANIATirana, January 22 (MPA)Greece's Minister of the Interior and Public Administration Alekos Papadopoulos has expressed his satisfaction at the contacts he has had during his official visit to Tirana, which concluded today.Mr. Papadopoulos, who was invited to Albania by Vice- President Ilir Meta, was received by Albanian President Rexhep Mejdani, Prime Minister Panteli Majko, Speaker of the House Skender Ghinushi and Public Order Minster Petro Koci. During a joint press conference, Mgrs. Papadopoulos and Meta stated that the ties between the two countries are excellent and the cooperation level is at the highest point in the history of bilateral relations. During his meeting with Mr. Meta, he said Greece's support for Albania's efforts will become more specific through a protocol of cooperation the two countries will sign in the near future. In addition, Mr. Papadopoulos and the Albanian government leaders discussed the developments in Kosovo. A.F. [12] GREEK DEPUTY FM: CYPRUS NEEDS MEDIUM-RANGE MISSILESAthens, January 22 (MPA)Greece's Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Yiannos Kranidiotis stated that Cyprus needs medium-range missiles, "a more flexible system than the S-300", during a television interview in Cyprus.According to Mr. Kranidiotis, Cyprus's purchase of the Russian-made S-300 missiles in January 1997 was "problematic", both diplomatically and militarily. "Diplomatically because it would complicate the Cyprus issue and Cyprus' prospects for EU accession and militarily because long-range missiles were not appropriate for Cyprus," he explained. Commending on the S-300's deployment in Crete as opposed to Cyprus, he stated that the decision was a "painful" one, albeit stressing that the worst was averted. "The worst would prospectively have been an incident, which would have led us into an (adverse) adventure and definitely to a freeze of the negotiations for Cyprus' EU accession," Mr. Kranidiotis stated. A.F. [13] BELGRADE RECALLS ITS DECISION TO EXPEL OSCE'S WALKERBelgrade, January 22 (MPA)The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has decided to recall its decision to expel the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) head of the verification mission from Kosovo "until the reasons for his unacceptable behavior are clarified."In its statement, the Yugoslav government said that the decision was drawn following last night's meeting between Foreign Misnter Zivadin Jovanovic and OSCE chief Knut Volebec. Furthermore, the said announcement refers to the contributions made by Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Premier Yevgeni Primakov, as well as UN'S Secretary- General Kofi Annan, in defusing the crisis. A.F. [14] FRENCH YOUTH HOSTED IN THESSALONIKI THROUGH EU PROGRAMThessaloniki, January 22 (MPA)Eight young persons from the Kreolissimo association of France's Reunion are presently being hosted in the municipality of Polihni, near Thessaloniki, within the framework of the European program "Youth for Europe II".The program's theme is "youth discuss environment, free time and social isolation of young persons". Their Greek counterparts are to outline their activities in fighting racxism, as well as their experiences from last September's visit to Brussels, while the French youth will make a similar presentation. A.F. [15] GERMAN, TURKISH, GREEK UNIVERSITIES EMBARK ON COOPERATIONBonn, January 22 (MPA)The German University of Paderborn and the Turkish University of Mersin are to embark on a cultural cooperation program and will soon be joined by Greece's Ionian university.The said agreement was signed during the course of a European forum held in Paderborn and calls for student and faculty exchanges, as well as intensive political, scientific and economic cooperation between the EU and Turkey. The forum was attended by Ionian University representatives, which school will host the next forum during 1999. Ionian will become the cooperation agreement's third member in the imminent future. A.F. Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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