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Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English, 99-04-07Macedonian 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, April 7, 1999TITLES
NEWS IN DETAIL[01] SIMITIS: UNILATERAL CEASEFIRE OFFER IS “ONLY A FIRST STEP”Athens, April 7 (MPA)Greece’s Prime Minister Kostas Simitis has welcomed Belgrade’s initiative to declare a unilateral ceasefire in Kosovo as a "first step", albeit he stressed that it has to be followed with "clarifications and assurances" from the Yugoslav side. “Belgrade must now guarantee, among others, the unimpeded return of refugees, the evacuation of the Yugoslav army and peace in Kosovo through the employment of an international peacekeeping force. This proposal must be followed by an effort at political dialogue with Yugoslavia,” Mr. Simitis stated. A.F.[02] SERBIA DECLARES UNILATERAL CEASEFIRE, NATO ESCALATES RAIDSBelgrade, April 7 (MPA)Although Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic declared a unilateral ceasefire in honor of the orthodox Easter this weekend, NATO intensified the air raids against Yugoslavia killing a score of civilians. According to reports, the allied aircraft also struck a military air base near Belgrade., while other infrastructure facilities in Prishtina were destroyed. According to the Alliance’s secretary-general Javier Solana, before any talks of ceasefire is made, President Milosevic must accept the terms set forth by the international community. A.F.[03] GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER TRAVELS TO SKOPJE, TIRANA TODAYAthens, April 7 (MPA)Foreign Minister George Papandreou is departing for FYROM and Albania today where he will meet with his counterparts in order to discuss the massive refugee influx to the aforementioned countries. Mr. Papandreou stated that his talks would focus on coordinating the safe distribution of humanitarian aid and reiterated that Greece had not yet specified how many refugees it would take. He added that the Greek government will decide on the matter depending on the stance adopted by its European Union partners.Following his talks in the Balkan capitals, Mr. Papandreou will travel to Luxembourg where European Union foreign ministers will meet to discuss the humanitarian and refugee problems in the Balkans. A.F. [04] THOUSANDS OF REFUGEES IN TENT CITIES, RISK OF EPIDEMIC ABOUNDSSkopje, April 7 (MPAAs tens of thousands refugees are being crammed into makeshift tent cities propped up at the Kosovo-FYROM border, the risk of epidemic illnesses abounds as the people are forced to live in unsanitary conditions for days on end. Approximately 5,500 refugees have been transported to other countries, in spite of their distress at the unknown destination and at being separated from their families. So far, FYROM is hosting more than 70,000 refugees, while over 200,000 are in Albania. A.F. [05] ATHENS OFFERS GRD800 MILLION FOR FREE TRADE ZONE WITH SOFIAAthens, April 7 (MPA)The Greek government will provide GRD800 million for the creation of a free-trade zone with Bulgaria, near the city of Svilengraad, following an agreement reached between the prefectures of Bulgaria’s Haskovo and Greece’s Alexandroupolis.The zone in expected to result in 1,200 new jobs, while the businesses included in the zone will be Greek, staffed by Bulgarians who live near the border regions. A.F. [06] GREECE’S POLITICAL YOUTH GROUPS TO HOLD TORCHLIGHT MARCHESAthens, April 7 (MPA)Greece’s political youth organizations, in cooperation with the Yugoslav Youth of Greece, are to hold torchlight marches throughout the country tonight, in protest to NATO’s raids on Yugoslavia. The marches will be held in Athens, Thessaloniki, Patra, Ioannina, Irakleio, Komotini, Alexandroupoli, Larisa, Kalamata, Rhodes and outside the NATO base of Aktio in Preveza.The youth organizations have stated their solidarity to the Yugoslav people who are fighting for survival, defending their country’s integrity. A.F. [07] AEK-PARTIZAN PLAY FRIENDLY BALLGAME IN BELGRADE TODAYThessaloniki, April 7 (MPA)Athens’ AEK Athens football team and Belgrade's Partizan are to play a friendly game in the Yugoslav capital this afternoon, sending a clearly anti-war message to NATO. Members of the AEK delegation, which departed yesterday for Belgrade via Hungary, stated that it is “a visit of peace” and the game will be “a historic match.”. AEK President Dimitris Melissanidis stated that “sports and soccer are over and above politics. And this match is over and above any political expediency.” A.F.[08] ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE ON THE REBOUND, GENERAL INDEX UPAthens, April 7 (MPA)The general index at the Athens Stock Exchange marked an impressive increase, even during the first trading hour, with the general price index showing profits of 5.62% and the trading volume having reached 38 billion drachmas. A.F.[09] NATIONAL BANK OF GREECE SHAREHOLDERS OK IMPRESSIVE CAP RISEAthens, April 7 (MPA)National Bank of Greece's shareholders unanimously approved an impressive share capital increase of 170.6 billion drachmas, during their general meeting held yesterday. The plan envisages the issue of 14,843,024 new shares at a nominal value of 1,450 drachmas each to be offered to existing shareholders, at 11,500 drachmas each. Following the increase, which will begin on April 26 and last until May 28, the National Bank's share capital will total 226 billion drachmas, or 156,450,000 shares at a nominal value of 1,450 drachmas each. A.F.[10] GREEK FM: WE WON’T TAKE PART IN A NATO GROUND OPERATIONAthens, April 7 (MPA)Greece will not participate in a ground operation in Yugoslavia, if one should take place, but, instead, will press on with its efforts to contribute diplomatically towards the end of the war, according to Foreign Minster George Papandreou. Speaking to an Athens radio station, Mr. Papandreou also referred to the (unilateral) ceasefire proposal made by Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic and said that it constitutes a first step that could serve as the starting point for reaching a political solution. Moreover, Mr. Papandreou stated that Greece has fulfilled its standard obligations towards the Alliance, by participating with troops in FYROM. He pointed out that the sole role of the Greek forces’ presence in FYROM is to contribute to the enforcement of a peacekeeping agreement, should one ensue, and to assist in setting up of refugee camps. Concerning the refugee issue, and the refusal of European countries to host them, Mr. Papandreou stated that Greece, too, believes that the refugees should remain near their homes, i.e. Albania and FYROM. He stated that Greece intends to assist these countries in every way possible, so that the refugees can stay on their grounds, either through financial aid, or through camps set up by the Greek military. Those refugees who arrive in Greece will be hosted in controlled camps and will return to their homelands after the end of the war. A.F.[11] MACEDONIA-THRACE MINISTER IN FYROM WITH HUMANITARIAN AIDThessaloniki, April 7 (MPA)The Minister of Macedonia-Thrace Yiannis Magriotis departed for Skopje today, heading a humanitarian aid mission for the refugees. Shortly before his departure, Mr. Magriotis stated that the residents and authorities of Thessaloniki “displayed their solidarity to other peoples, regardless of religions, nationalities and other differences.” The mission comprises 12 tons of pharmaceutical and medical supplies that has been amassed from hospital and private donations. He will meet with FYROM’s Minister of the Interior and Public Order Pavle Trianov, City Planning Dusko Kadievski and the European Commission’s representative to Skopje Pinto Tehera. Later today, Mr. Magriotis will visit a refugee camp where humanitarian aid will be distributed with the cooperation of the non-governmental organization “European Perspective”. Moreover, a train transporting humanitarian aid from Thessaloniki, the second route so far, is to arrive at the Skopje train station this evening. A.F.Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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