From: "Theodoros Sp. Zarros" Subject: News (in ENGLISH)- Tue, 25 Jan 1994 (Greek Press Office BBS, Ottawa). Athens News Agency Bulletin, Athens, 25/1/1994 (ANA): A former director of Greece's largest commercial bank was killed yesterday after a gunman pumped six bullets into his chest in a terrorist attack in central Athens. Michalis Vranopoulos, 47, was rushed to the hospital where he died shortly after undergoing six hours of surgery. A medical communiqui issued by the Evangelismos hospital said the managing director of the Bank of Greece until October died as a result of the multiple injuries he had suffered from the attack. Notification of his death came an hour after the elusive 'November 17' terrorist group claimed responsibility for the deadly hit. Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou last night expressed indignation at the assassination of Vranopoulos, calling it an "unhesitant terrorist act". Extending condolences to Vranopoulos' family, the Prime Minister wished to Public Order Minister Stelios Papathemelis "to find a solution" which, he said, "it can be difficult but not impossible". "The Greek people stand united and say no to terrorism", Mr. Papandreou added. In a proclamation sent to a private news media station, 'November 17' said the hit against Vranopoulos was linked with the sale of AGET-Heracles, Greece's largest cement factory, to Calcestruzzi, a subsidiary of the debt-ridden Feruzzi group. Under his direction, the National Bank of Greece joined a surprise joint bid for Heracles, teaming up with Italy's Calcestruzzi cement producer. The proclamation said Vranopoulos, former Conservative Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis and his National Economy minister Stephanos Manos shared kickbacks amounting to three billion drachmas from the deal. 'November 17' said the banker's murder had been decided last June but was postponed "for various reasons after three unsuccessful attempts". It did not elaborate. The extreme leftist group has carried out 24 attacks since it emerged in 1975, in which 19 Greek politicians, diplomats and businessmen were killed. The terrorist tract, dated December 1993, referred to the sale of AGET saying it was sold for "peanuts" and accused the three men, architects of the sale, of high treason. Also shot in yesterday morning's attack was Vranopoulos' driver and body guard, 38-year-old Nicos Grispos, but doctors said his condition was out of danger. Shortly after he was hit, Mr. Grispos underwent surgery at the Hippokration Hospital. Police said Vranopoulos, 47, was shot four times at close range in the chest, abdomen, arm and thigh. His driver was shot in the chest. The attack was carried out by two unidentified gunmen riding a motorcycle. Newspaper publisher Grigoris Michalopoulos, an eyewitness to the shooting, stopped a passing taxi which rushed Vranopoulos to nearby Evangelismos Hospital. Vranopoulos, was on his way to his law office on Solonos Street in central Athens when the gunmen shot him and is driver, at close range, and sped away. Their motorbike was found by police a few minutes later abandoned behind the Franch Cultural Institute a few blocks away from the site of the shooting. Fifteen suspects were being interrogated by police. Vranopoulos was governor of the National Bank, Greece's largest commercial bank, when it joined with the Italian cement distributor Calcestruzzi to acquire the majority holding of Aget-Heracles, one of the country's largest cement companies, sparking a controversy over involvement in bribes. Calcestruzzi is a member of the Feruzzi group. Athens Appeal Court prosecutor Christophoros Tzanakakis is currently in Milan investigating the case. Told of the Vranopoulos death, Mr. Tzanakakis, said it "is certainly a loss for the judiciary in its effort to investigate the AGET case". "It would be daring to say that the situation changes", he said. "Of course it becomes more difficult because the witnesses from now on will not feel comfortable to testify". - Briefed on the shooting, President of the Republic Constantine Karamanlis, early yesterday, expressed "indignation over this abhorrent act". The government also expressed abhorrence over the attack. Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou expressed revulsion over the assassination attempt against Vranopoulos saying that "the political world, the people and the social classes were united in its denunciation and condemnation". Government spokesman Evangelos Venizelos said "such acts of violence and terrorism provoke the common sentiment and are condemned by all the political forces and the entire Greek society". Main Opposition New Democracy leader Miltiades Evert stressed the need to "investigate who are behind these terrorist acts". In his statement, Mr. Evert launched an attack against the government for the modifications it brought on the anti-terrorist law. The ND leader said "we have pointed out to the Justice Minister that the abolition of these provisions, without being replaced by new ones, might lead to bloodshed". Political Spring leader Antonis Samaras in a statement denouncing the attempt said democracy was able to resist the bullets and the violence. Coalition of the Left and Progress Nikos Constantopoulos denounced the attack saying that "once more, the Greek society was shaken and provoked by terrorism". Athens, 25/1/1994 (ANA): Greece yesterday called on the United States and its European Union partners to pressure the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) to accept Greek demands for a UN-sponsored dialogue aimed at resolving a pending dispute between the two neighboring states. "It is up to the international community and particularly the European Union to exert pressure on Skopje. It is not an issue of solidarity only, but constitutes the only direction that guarantees future stability and security in the region", Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou said. Speaking in parliament during a debate on Greece's policy towards the former Yugoslav republic, he said Athens was prepared to resume talks provided Skopje abandoned its "aggressive" stance. The debate was requested by the conservative New Democracy leader Miltiades Evert after several EU states announced their decision to set up diplomatic links with FYROM last month. "If Skopje presents tangible examples of good will then Greece will enter into a dialogue under the auspices of the UN", Mr. Papandreou said. Athens has insisted that the neighboring state change its constitution, remove a Greek symbol from its flag and cease hostile propaganda against Greece. "Skopje will either officially accept (the Greek demands) or there will be no negotiations", Mr. Papandreou said. He added that if there were a resumption of UN-talks after Skopjan acceptance of the three Greek demands, these talks would not be "completed unless Skopje accepts a name free of the term Macedonia or any of its derivatives", said the Socialist Premier. Mr. Papandreou said he recently explained Greek positions to US President Bill Clinton and called on opposition parties to expound these positions as part of their international activities. "The country needs all its forces", he said, adding that they can only be assembled through the adoption of positions of national dignity, prospect and historical memory. Stressing that the government undertook the handling of the issue several months ago, Mr. Papandreou said the responsibilities of the previous government "are great and the Greek people will not forget them". Mr. Papandreou said the curve followed on the FYROM issue from December 1991 until 1993 is tragically negative and pointed to three landmarks. The first, he said, is the joint decision taken by Community foreign ministers on December 16, 1991 concerning the dissolution of Yugoslavia. The second is Edinburgh where the granting of economic aid to FYROM was decided and as a result, he added, FYROM was encouraged to activate its accession to the UN. Mr. Papandreou said the third landmark was FYROM's entry to the UN with the joint custody of the Greek government. This accession, he said, led to about 40 countries establishing diplomatic relations with FYROM. Mr. Papandreou said that until October 1993 Greece accepted a compromise on the name and stated this in all directions and the result was that FYROM maintained and stepped up its intransigence. As of May 1993, he concluded, the FYROM issue and negotiations were included in the needs of intra-party feuds. - Main opposition leader Miltiades Evert criticized the government saying it had proven incompetent of handling the Skopje issue. "Attempts to cover-up inconsistencies do not facilitate issues of national interest. The people believe that the political leadership has proven incapable of handling the Skopje issue", Mr. Evert said. Mr. Evert said Greece's aim should be the turning of the state of FYROM into a neighbor dependent on Greece and accused the government of trying with talk of the past to cover up inept moves it has made and which have led to "mass recognitions" of FYROM. "For two and a half years FYROM was neither recognized by the US nor by European partners. One Hundred days with PASOK was enough for it to be recognized by all the countries of Europe", he said. Mr. Evert assessed the problems of foreign policy, saying the FYROM issue is fourth in line and is preceded by Turkish expansionism, the issue of ethnic Greeks in Northern Epirus (southern Albania) and the danger which could result from the development of the concept of a "Greater Bulgaria". - Political Spring (Pol.A) party leader Antonis Samaras accused both the government and the New Democracy party of "collusion", adding that "what weighs the most for the two parties in the scales of national decisions is partisan calculation". Mr. Samaras referred at length to developments on the FYROM problem over the last three years and accused former Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis of being absolutely responsible for the course of the problem. Describing as a "forecast of shame" Mr. Mitsotakis' prediction that "in a year we will have forgotten the name Macedonia", he accused the New Democracy party of "hypocrisy". Mr. Samaras further proposed a six-point action plan on the FYROM issue comprising a referendum, activation of the Maastricht Treary on European Union common foreign policy, the intensifying of Greece's campaign on an international level, rendering new and strong incentives for a quicker economic penetration of the Balkans by Greek enterprises, the taking of measures to counter FYROM's policy, and a gradual closure of borders. - Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Secretary-General Aleka Papariga strongly criticized the government and the other two opposition parties, accusing them for "refusal of a direct dialogue, and concealing the truth from the Greek people". Ms. Papariga called for talks with the neighboring republic. "At a time when threat of the spreading of war is still pending, the government's perception of 'first guarantees, then dialogue', is just another form to perpetuate the problem", she said. Bonn, 25/1/1994 (ANA - P. Stangos): German Alternate Foreign Minister Helmut Schaefer arrives in Greece tomorrow on a three-day visit aiming at the improvement of Greco-German relations. According to a diplomatic source, Mr. Schaefer will offer his good offices towards influencing the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) to restore good relations with Greece. Although Mr. Schaefer's visit was said to be foremost aimed at the inauguration of the German embassy's renovated building in Athens, sources said that it will focus on improving relations with Greece. During his stay, Mr. Schaefer will have talks with Foreign Minister Karolos Papoulias, Foreign Under-secretary George Papandreou, Culture Minister Melina Mercouri and Public Order Minister Stelios Papathemelis. He will also meet with New Democracy party leader Miltiades Evert, Political Spring (Pol.A) party leader Antonis Samaras and give a lecture on Greco-German co-operation in Europe. "Neither Germany nor Greece can afford the luxury of not having good relations between them because both countries want the European Union to move ahead", a reliable source told the ANA, underlining the importance of co-operation between the two countries in the successive holding of the EU presidency. On the question of FYROM, the source said the establishment of diplomatic relations between Germany and FYROM was of no great importance and therefore not liable to affect good bilateral relations. Athens, 25/1/1994 (ANA): Austrian Chancellor and Social Democratic party chairman Dr. Franz Vranitzky will pay a one-day visit to Greece tomorrow, government sources said yesterday. They said Mr. Vranitzky would meet with President Constantine Karamanlis, Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou and several ministers of the ruling socialist PASOK party. Athens, 25/1/1994 (ANA): Foreign Under-secretary George Papandreou expressed his grief over the repercussions of the disastrous earthquake that recently devastated Los Angeles, California. In a message to the Greeks of Los Angeles, conveyed via the Greek Embassy in Washington, Mr. Papandreou expressed the Greek government's support for the earthquake victims, assuring the Greek community there that "I am monitoring the development of the situation, and am at every moment prepared to contribute to the confrontation of your problems".