Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 01-06-29

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

CONTENTS

[01] PAPADIMOS: THE GDP GROWTH RATE UNDER 4.5% IN 2001

[02] VENIZELOS AND FLORIDIS IN THESSALONIKI

[03] THE GREEK EMBASSY IN TIRANA IS NOT UNDER SIEGE

[04] THE GREEK GOVERNMENT ON MILOSEVIC'S SURRENDER

[05] GAINS IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

[06] EUROPEAN PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY ON ORTHODOXY IN PATMOS

[07] EURO-MEDITERRANEAN CONFERENCE OF PARLIAMENT PRESIDENTS

[08] THE GREEK MERCHANT MARINE FLEET IS THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD

[09] FOLLOWING THE STEPS OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT

[01] PAPADIMOS: THE GDP GROWTH RATE UNDER 4.5% IN 2001

The GDP growth rate will be under 4.5% in 2001, according to Bank of Greece governor Loukas Papadimos in statements he made after the meeting he had today with prime minister Kostas Simitis.

Regarding inflation, Mr. Papadimos said that there are upward tendencies in 2001 but it is expected to be stabilized by the end of the year.

[02] VENIZELOS AND FLORIDIS IN THESSALONIKI

Central Macedonia Region general secretary Basilis Valasopoulos will meet in Thessaloniki on Monday with culture minister Evangelos Venizelos and undersecretary of sports Giorgos Floridis to discuss issues concerning the Olympic Games infrastructure projects, with an estimated budget of 40 billion drachmas.

According to statements made to MPA by Mr. Valasopoulos, 12 billion drachmas will be allocated for the construction of projects like sports arenas in central Macedonia in view of the 2004 Olympic Games.

[03] THE GREEK EMBASSY IN TIRANA IS NOT UNDER SIEGE

The Greek embassy in Tirana is not under siege, stated Greek government spokesman Dimitris Reppas, responding to a relevant question by a reporter and pointed out that the movement of groups in Albania is placed within the framework of the free and democratic operation of a society such as the Albanian.

He said that the Greek diplomatic services are not under siege and there are no incidents that can create a problem, pointing out that Greece's role in the developments in the region "is recognized by the Albanian government and publicly recognized".

[04] THE GREEK GOVERNMENT ON MILOSEVIC'S SURRENDER

Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas stated that developments in Yugoslavia are being watched with great interest and the course of the country must be respected, adding that its government must be left alone to make the moves it has to make to safeguard stability in the region.

Meanwhile, right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy honorary president Konstantinos Mitsotakis stated that the surrender of former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic to The Hague Tribunal in order to be tried for war crimes is not an act of justice and accused the United States and Europe of continuing the serious mistakes in the case of Yugoslavia.

[05] GAINS IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

Significant gains were recorded again today in the Athens Stock Exchange. The general index rose to +1.61% at 2.741,18 points, while the volume of transactions was at 264.90 million Euro or 90.266 billion drachmas.

Of the stocks trading today, 216 recorded gains and 99 had losses, while the value of 66 stocks remained stable.

[06] EUROPEAN PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY ON ORTHODOXY IN PATMOS

The 8th annual general assembly meeting of the European Parliamentary Conference on Orthodoxy will open in the Aegean island of Patmos today and will last until Sunday.

Greek parliament president Apostolos Kaklamanis will open the conference that will be held with the participation of delegations from 20 European parliaments, the Euro-parliament, and US and Canada House Representatives, while Russia will be represented by former president Gevgeni Primakov.

The issues under discussion will concern the role of Orthodoxy in Europe and internationally as well as questions concerning the challenges faced by modern societies.

[07] EURO-MEDITERRANEAN CONFERENCE OF PARLIAMENT PRESIDENTS

The 3rd Euro-Mediterranean Conference of Parliament Presidents will be held in Athens on Saturday under the auspices of the Greek parliament with the participation of delegations from the parliaments of Greece, Egypt, Italy, Spain and Tunisia.

The conference working group that will meet at the parliament building will be made up of Greek parliament president Apostolos Kaklamanis, the presidents of the parliaments of Egypt and Italy, the vice-president of the Spanish parliament and the Tunisian parliament political and foreign affairs committee president.

[08] THE GREEK MERCHANT MARINE FLEET IS THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD

The Greek ownership fleet is the largest in the world, as it represents 17% of the world fleet and 40% of the European Union fleet.

According to the annual report of the Greek Shipowners Association, the Greek orders for new ships in 2000 correspond to 14% of the overall orders placed for new ships worldwide and 21% in terms of tonnage.

[09] FOLLOWING THE STEPS OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT

Two young educators sharing the same visions in the area of education and a passion for motorcycle trips left from Thessaloniki last night on a trek following the course of Alexander the Great.

They are gym professor Konstantinos Mitsakis and German literature professor Olga Papadoyiannis, who are known in Greece for their motorcycle trip in 1997 following the road of silk namely, the path of the silk merchants.

In their new venture the young couple will cover a distance of 25.000kms in a period of 75 days. Their trip will follow the steps of Alexander the Great passing through 13 countries namely, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan, Israel, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tadjikistan.

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