Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 01-02-03

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

CONTENTS

[01] THE "MAD COW" DISEASE HAS NOT BEEN TRACED IN GREECE

[02] THE GREEK PRIME MINISTER WILL BE IN INDIA TOMORROW

[03] PAPANDREOU: A NEW CONFLICT IS POSSIBLE IN THE BALKANS

[04] MORGAN STANLEY EXPRESSES GUARDED OPTIMISM ON THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

[05] TWO EUROPA NOSTRA PRIZES WERE WON BY GREECE

[06] GREECE WILL PARTICIPATE IN A LARGE SCALE NATO EXERCISE

[07] CAR SALES DROPPED IN THE MONTH OF JANUARY

[08] THE ITALIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION MINISTER IS ON A VISIT TO GREECE

[09] ΕΠΙΣΗΜΑΝΣΕΙΣ ΣΡΕΝΤΕΡ ΓΙΑ ΣΥΝΕΡΓΑΣΙΑ ΕΥΡΩΠΗΣ-ΗΠΑ

[10] EXHIBITION IN STRASBOURG ON THE HOLOCAUST OF THE GREEK JEWS

[11] ΚΟΝΚΟΡΝΤ: ΠΙΘΑΝΟΤΗΤΑ ΕΠΑΝΑΛΗΨΗΣ ΤΩΝ ΠΤΗΣΕΩΝ ΕΝΤΟΣ ΤΟΥ 2001

[12] TALKS ON FYROM'S NAME

[01] THE "MAD COW" DISEASE HAS NOT BEEN TRACED IN GREECE

The lab tests that were conducted in Greece in the month of January concluded that the "mad cow" disease is not traced in the country. The above were stated by Greek minister of agriculture Giorgos Anomeritis on the occasion of his visit to the 17th AGROTICA agricultural sector exhibition in Thessaloniki.

Mr. Anomeritis stated that there are two basic factors that have essentially saved the Greek beef production. The first one is the fact that the disease usually appears in animals over the age of 30 months when in Greece cattle are slaughtered before they reach the 17th month of their lives. Also, another factor is that of the 1.650.000 tons of animal feed used in Greece only 30.000-35.000 tons are meat-and-bone meals.

[02] THE GREEK PRIME MINISTER WILL BE IN INDIA TOMORROW

Prime minister Kostas Simitis will depart tomorrow for a formal visit to India accompanied by five government ministers, his advisers, diplomats and businessmen.

During his visit, the prime minister will have the opportunity to meet with the state and political leadership in India, while it should be noted that in spite of the devastating earthquake that hit the country the Indian government did not postpone the visit.

The talks in India will concern political, economic and cultural issues, the undertaking of joint initiatives, technological issues and possible investments. India is interested in the participation of Greek companies in the construction of road networks, airports and ports that are underway in the country.

The president of India is scheduled to visit Greece in April.

[03] PAPANDREOU: A NEW CONFLICT IS POSSIBLE IN THE BALKANS

Greek foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou warned that in spite of the calm observed in the past few hours a new conflict is possible to erupt in the Balkans after the recent developments witnessed in Mitrovica, Kosovo.

Mr. Papandreou issued an appeal for cooperation to the countries in the region so that terrorist elements will not be allowed to interrupt the course toward peace.

Greek undersecretary of defense Dimitris Apostolakis stated to Athens radio station "Sky" that his wish is for peace and order to be implemented in the region without bloodshed and more unrest, while he pointed out that he is not very alarmed regarding the Greek soldiers deployed in the region, adding that it will be very difficult to have unpleasant developments.

New Democracy parliament deputy Dora Bakoyiannis stated that the effort to maintain peace in the region through military means has not solved the problem and called on the Greek government and the foreign ministry to bring the issue to the European Union and NATO.

The Greek Communist Party mentioned in a statement that the Balkans are in a boiling state and called on the government to withdraw the Greek forces from the region.

[04] MORGAN STANLEY EXPRESSES GUARDED OPTIMISM ON THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE COURSE

Morgan Stanley expressed guarded optimism on the course of the Athens Stock Exchange. According to a report it has issued, the upgrading of the Greek stock market next May can be accompanied by an inflow of US$1.4 billion in investment capital.

The international investment firm points out, however, that the foreign capital inflow will be selective and will be directed to certain high capitalization stocks, adding that it will depend on the progress that will be made in the structural changes sector.

[05] TWO EUROPA NOSTRA PRIZES WERE WON BY GREECE

Greece won two "Europa Nostra" prizes for the protection of cultural heritage, one for the restoration of the church of St. Panteleimon in Thessaloniki and a second for the restoration of the Acropolis and the Parthenon in Athens.

Ioannis Arbilias received the medal of honor for the restoration work of the Acropolis and the Parthenon. He dedicated 18 years of his life to this project restoring extensive parts of the Parthenon and dealing with each marble piece as if it was a unique sculpture.

A honorary diploma was given to the project for the restoration of St. Panteleimon church because it was based on an extensive research and preserved the authentic character of the building.

[06] GREECE WILL PARTICIPATE IN A LARGE SCALE NATO EXERCISE

Greece will participate with a submarine in the large scale exercise that will be held by NATO in the region of the Ionian Sea and the Adriatic Sea on February 15-18.

In the exercise, code-named "Dogfish 2001", will take part 7 submarines, 17 Naval cooperation aircraft and 9 surface vessels. The submarines will come from Germany, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Greece and the United States, while other forces will also come from Canada, France, Holland, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Britain.

[07] CAR SALES DROPPED IN THE MONTH OF JANUARY

The car sales in Greece dropped by 3.5% in the month of January, according to figures provided by the Importers and Car Dealers Association.

The drop in the number of car sales started at the end of last year at a rate of 15% compared to the same period in 1999. According to the available sales figures, this means that the rate of decline was slowed down in the month of January.

[08] THE ITALIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION MINISTER IS ON A VISIT TO GREECE

Greek interior minister Vaso Papandreou met with Italian minister of public administration Franco Basanini, who is on a visit to Greece.

They discussed issues concerning cooperation in the sector of public administration which is promoted by both countries, while they also exchanged views on the reform of the public administration system.

The Italian minister presented his country's experience speaking in an event organized by the Greek interior ministry at the Old Parliament Building.

[09] ΕΠΙΣΗΜΑΝΣΕΙΣ ΣΡΕΝΤΕΡ ΓΙΑ ΣΥΝΕΡΓΑΣΙΑ ΕΥΡΩΠΗΣ-ΗΠΑ

Την άποψη ότι η Ευρώπη και οι ΗΠΑ οφείλουν να αντιμετωπίζουν με υπευθυνότητα ενδεχόμενη διάσταση στις απόψεις και τα συμφέροντά τους, διατύπωσε στην εναρκτήρια ομιλία της 37ης υπουργικής σύσκεψης για την πολιτική ασφάλειας, ο γερμανός Καγκελάριος Γκέρχαρντ Σρέντερ.

Παράλληλα, κάλεσε τη νέα αμερικανική κυβέρνηση σε διάλογο με τη Ρωσία, ενώ επιφυλακτική στάση υιοθέτησε αναφερόμενος στα σχέδια εθνικής πυραυλικής άμυνας της διοίκησης του Τζορτζ Μπους τζούνιορ, τονίζοντας ότι μόνο στο πλαίσιο μιας στενής συνεταιρικής σχέσης θα μπορούσαν Αμερικανοί και Ευρωπαίοι να ανταποκριθούν στις διεθνείς προκλήσεις.

Σημειώνεται ότι στις διήμερες εργασίες της σύσκεψης, που διεξάγεται στην πρωτεύουσα της Βαυαρίας, το Μόναχο, λαμβάνουν μέρος 200 ειδικοί πολιτικοί σε θέματα εξωτερικής πολιτικής και ασφάλειας από τριάντα συνολικά χώρες.

Στ. Τ.

[10] EXHIBITION IN STRASBOURG ON THE HOLOCAUST OF THE GREEK JEWS

An exhibition of photographs, documents and objects under the title "The holocaust of the Greek Jews - Hunted and saviors" will be inaugurated in Strasbourg on February 12.

The exhibition will include 170 photographs from the period of the Holocaust as well as documents and objects from the Photography Archives and the Jewish Museum in Greece.

The exhibition will be divided into 18 entities presenting the historical course of the Greek Jews until the 1940s.

[11] ΚΟΝΚΟΡΝΤ: ΠΙΘΑΝΟΤΗΤΑ ΕΠΑΝΑΛΗΨΗΣ ΤΩΝ ΠΤΗΣΕΩΝ ΕΝΤΟΣ ΤΟΥ 2001

Ειδικοί επιστήμονες της διεθνούς αεροπορικής βιομηχανίας δεν απέκλεισαν το ενδεχόμενο επανάληψης των πτήσεων των υπερηχητικών αεροσκαφών τύπου Κονκόρντ

εντός του 2001, μετά από ενδελεχείς δοκιμές ασφαλείας γαλλικής Κονκόρντ στο προάστιο Ιστρές της Μασσαλίας.

Μάλιστα, εκπρόσωπος του ευρωπαϊκού αεροπορικού φορέα EADS, που ανέλαβε να διευθύνει τις δοκιμές, χαρακτήρισε θετικά τα πρώτα αποτελέσματα, ωστόσο πρόσθεσε ότι τα υπάρχοντα στοιχεία θα πρέπει να αναλυθούν περαιτέρω και να κατατεθούν στις καθ΄ ύλην αρμόδιες υπηρεσίες.

Ακόμη, ο ίδιος επιβεβαίωσε τα δημοσιεύματα που είδαν τις τελευταίες ημέρες το φως της δημοσιότητας και που κάνουν λόγο για διεξαγωγή αντίστοιχων δοκιμών με βρετανικό Κονκόρντ.

Υπενθυμίζεται ότι μετά την πτώση του μοιραίου γαλλικού Κονκόρντ τον περασμένο Ιούλιο, που είχε παρασύρει στο θάνατο 113 άτομα, είχε αφαιρεθεί η άδεια πτήσης των υπερηχητικών αεροσκαφών των γαλλικών αερογραμμών Air France και του βρετανού συμμάχου της British Airways.

Στ. Τ.

[12] TALKS ON FYROM'S NAME

The ambassadors of Greece and FYROM in the United Nations had another meeting under the auspices of the UN within the framework of the efforts for the settlement of the issue of the FYROM name.

In a statement issued by the UN headquarters in New York, it is mentioned that Greece's ambassador Elias Gounaris and his FYROM counterpart Ivan Tosevski met last Wednesday and Thursday and exchanged views under the auspices of Matthew Nimitz, UN secretary-general special representative.

The two ambassadors agreed to meet again on a set date, stated a UN spokesman, while responding to the question if there was any progress made in the talks, he stated that the text issued concerning the talks is the same with those that had been issued after the previous meetings.

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