Kranidiotis: Decision to base EU agency in Thessaloniki final

Athens 28/07/1999 (ANA)
Alternate Foreign Minister Yiannos Kranidiotis said yesterday that  the decision to base the organisation for the reconstruction of the Balkans in Thessaloniki was final and beyond all doubt. Mr. Kranidiotis was speaking in Thessaloniki after talks in the port city in preparation for the procedure for the establishment of the organisation's headquarters.

The decision to base the agency in Thessaloniki was taken recently by European Union leaders on the sidelines of an EU-Latin American summit in Rio de Janeiro.

Mr. Kranidiotis said the European Parliament's negative opinion on the basing of the organisation in Thessaloniki has no effect on the final decision.

Commenting on the importance of the development, Mr. Kranidiotis said "headquarters means that the decision-making centre and central services of the organisation will be in Thessaloniki".

"In addition to the Balkans Reconstruction Organisation, the Stability Pact will also unfold in the region with Thessaloniki hosting part of its activities", Mr. Kranidiotis said. "The Stability Pact is something different from the Reconstruction Organisation. It is a pact among countries worldwide aiming at assisting with the reconstruction of the region and it will include three axes, security, human rights and the economic de velopment of the region. All its activities will be coordinated by a single body, mainly meeting in Brussels, but also in Thessaloniki which will host its Secretariat", he said.

"The economic reconstruction process for Kosovo and the wider region will commence in September and 250 million euros will be allocated during the first phase", Mr. Kranidiotis said, stressing that "prospects will not be very promising in the absence of a generous financial assistance".

Macedonia-Thrace Minister Yiannis Magriotis, who participated earlier in the talks with Mr. Kranidiotis, said Thessaloniki already had a good infrastructure in place and had suitable buildings available for housing the agency's services.
The actual choice of the buildings to be used will be made by organisation officials, Mr. Magriotis said, adding that this would take place sometime in the next few days.