Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 01-06-25

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

CONTENTS

[01] THE CHURCH ON THE SIGNATURE COLLECTION RESULTS

[02] KARAMANLIS-BURNS MEETING

[03] THE PARTY CONGRESS WILL BE A NEW START FOR THE GOVERNMENT COURSE

[04] REPPAS ON THE BURIAL OF TWO GREEK FORCE IN CYPRUS OFFICERS

[05] BULGARIAN MAJOR GENERAL VISITS THRACE

[06] REPPAS ON THE ALBANIAN ELECTIONS

[07] THE ASE UNABLE TO REACT - LOSSES OF -3.02%

[08] PAPANDREOU-CEM DIRECT COMMUNICATION

[01] THE CHURCH ON THE SIGNATURE COLLECTION RESULTS

The Holy Synod of the Church of Greece unanimously decided today to postpone the announcement of the results of the signature collection demanding a referendum to be held on the optional listing of religion on the state-issued identity cards.

After the meeting of the Holy Synod, Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens and All of Greece stated that the announcement of the number of signatures collected will be postponed to take place in a more appropriate time. He clarified that the Church decided that the present political conjuncture does not favor such announcements and added that the Church does not want this announcement to be regarded as an indirect or direct involvement in the political developments.

The Archbishop stressed that the Church remains firm in its position favoring the optional listing of religion on the state-issued identity cards and will deal with the issue when the time is right.

[02] KARAMANLIS-BURNS MEETING

The course of the US-Greek relations, the Greek-Turkish relations, the Cyprus issue and the crucial developments in the Balkans were discussed in the meeting of right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy leader Kostas Karamanlis with US ambassador Nicholas Burns that was held at Mr. Karamanlis' office in Athens today.

Mr. Burns stated that he is satisfied with the talks he had with Mr. Karamanlis. According to information, they also discussed issues concerning the domestic political developments after the decision by the governing socialist party of PASOK Executive Bureau to move up the party congress in October.

At the end of the summer, Mr. Burns will leave for Brussels to assume his new post in NATO's headquarters. Thomas Miller will be the new US ambassador to Athens.

[03] THE PARTY CONGRESS WILL BE A NEW START FOR THE GOVERNMENT COURSE

There is no question of a government reshuffle, reiterated today government spokesman Dimitris Reppas.

Mr. Reppas referring to the governing socialist party of PASOK congress that will take place in October, stated that it will be a new start for the government course, stressing that it will be a congress of creative combination, policy clarification and victorious prospect. He said that the party congress is a democratic option and its decisions will be binding for all, while he defended the right to free expression by saying that everybody has the right to be firm on their views.

He also clarified that the government was elected for a four-year term and the new elections will be held in 2004.

[04] REPPAS ON THE BURIAL OF TWO GREEK FORCE IN CYPRUS OFFICERS

Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas stated that untimely conclusions should not be drawn when he was asked to comment on the fact that no government officials were present in the burial of the remains of two Greek Force in Cyprus, ELDIK, officers identified after being submitted to DNA testing.

Mr. Reppas explained that he is not aware of the representation level in the burial ceremony adding, however, that there should be no doubt that the appropriate honors were paid.

[05] BULGARIAN MAJOR GENERAL VISITS THRACE

Bulgarian 3rd Army Corps commander major general Ivan Doblev will visit the 4th Army Corps and Thrace in northeastern Greece on June 27-29.

The visit is placed within the framework of the friendly Greek-Bulgarian relations.

[06] REPPAS ON THE ALBANIAN ELECTIONS

Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas commenting on the elections in Albania stated that certain malfunctions, irregularities and incidents that were reported by international observers will not affect the final result of the elections.

He said that the ethnic Greek minority had the opportunity to participate in the elections under better conditions compared to the past, adding that in the following days the conditions under which the elections were held will be evaluated and final conclusions will be reached.

[07] THE ASE UNABLE TO REACT - LOSSES OF -3.02%

Under the weight of massive liquidation of stocks that was recorded today, the Athens Stock Exchange was unable to react and as a result the general index recorded losses of -3.02% at 2.702,20 points.

The volume of transactions was at 138.88 million Euro or 47.323 billion drachmas. Of the stocks trading today, just 17 recorded gains and the overwhelming majority namely, 324, had losses, while the value of 40 stocks remained stable.

[08] PAPANDREOU-CEM DIRECT COMMUNICATION

The foreign ministers of Greece and Turkey, Giorgos Papandreou and Ismail Cem agreed on five basic points aimed at strengthening the Greek-Turkish cooperation in the meeting they had in Kusadasi, Turkey yesterday after meeting in the Aegean island of Samos on Saturday.

Specifically, they agreed to establish direct communication between them aimed at avoiding crises by providing the necessary clarifications on issues concerning bilateral relations. Also, they decided to promote bilateral cooperation in order to deal with natural disasters, conduct scientific research on earthquakes and protect the environment.

Mr. Papandreou and Mr. Cem also decided to establish advisory mechanisms aimed at facilitating the transport of goods and people, scientific cooperation on health issues and promotion of the efforts concerning the adoption of Olympic truce in view of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

Also, present in the meetings of the two foreign ministers were businessmen and local administration officials from Greece and Turkey.

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