Subject: Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 17-04-29 From: "HR-Net News Distribution Manager" CONTENTS [01] Tsipras: No country can prosper if Europe does not change [02] ND leader: Britain's exit from EU does not entail its exit from Europe [03] EU Parliament's priority is to defend the rights of EU citizens living in UK, President Tajani says [04] President Pavlopoulos stresses importance of Greek Scouts' volunteerism --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [01] Tsipras: No country can prosper if Europe does not change Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras informed the preparatory meeting of the Socialist Party about the initiative of the Greek government - which was also accepted in the minutes of the EU Summit on Brexit - to include a statement according to which the guidelines, the Brexit negotiations and their results do not constitute any legal or political precedent for another act within the EU and its relations with third countries. In his intervention, the Greek prime minister referred to the presidential elections in France saying that if Le Pen achieves a 40 pct in the second round of the elections, this would be of concern. This result would reflect the discontent of the citizens to Europe, he stated and stressed that "no country in Europe can prosper if Europe does not change." Tsipras expressed his concern about the developments in the Western Balkans, especially in Skopje. At the same time, he stressed that Greece is a pillar of stability in the region and a key axis for stabilization in any Balkan country. [02] ND leader: Britain's exit from EU does not entail its exit from Europe By no means does Britain's exit from the European Union translate into its exit from Europe, main opposition New Democracy (ND) leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Saturday said. Mitsotakis is in Brussels, where he participated in the European People's Party Summit. "Britain's exit from the European Union will not be an easy task. First of all, Britain's financial obligations to Europe need to be settled. Especially its obligations to the cohesion funds," he underlined and added: "At the same time the rights of the European citizens living and working in Britain must be protected, including the 70,000 Greek students and workers." In conclusion, the leader of main opposition stressed that the European Union is united in this negotiation and willing to find a mutually accepted solution. "And we can do so provided that common sense prevails," he stated. [03] EU Parliament's priority is to defend the rights of EU citizens living in UK, President Tajani says BRUSSELS (ANA/ N.Roubos) --- The European Parliament's priority is to defend the rights of the three million EU citizens living in the United Kingdom, the President of the European Parliament Antonio Tajani on Saturday said at the summit in Brussels. It is crucial for us to defend the rights of European citizens working and studying in the UK. We want them to have the same rights after Brexit, Tajani underlined and added that the European Parliament will also defend the rights of the one million British people living in EU countries. The president of the European Parliament stressed that without an agreement on the rights of European citizens, "we cannot vote on the agreement" for exiting the EU. He explained that the EU is not against Britain, it is them that decided to leave. The clearest feature of the negotiation, he said, is that the 27 member states of the EU are united as well as the European institutions. [04] President Pavlopoulos stresses importance of Greek Scouts' volunteerism Greek President Prokopios Pavlopoulos on Saturday stressed the importance of volunteerism, in particular the volunteerism of the Greek Scouts whose offer prevents the rupture of the social fabric. Pavlopoulos was addressing a two-day conference on volunteerism organised by the Greek Scouts. "I have always supported the efforts of the Greek Scouts and I will continue to do so because I deeply believe that scouting is synonymous with volunteerism in its most original form, which means social offer in terms of solidarity and altruism," he noted. The President highlighted the great importance of volunteerism, which nowadays acquires "a virtually existential importance for the community." "In the deep crisis that we are going through which puts pressure on our people, volunteerism protects the social fabric itself. It is an offer that prevents the rupture of the social fabric. Its offer is significant as it supports social cohesion. Under these circumstances, scouting and its actions contribute to the Social State, and Social Justice. And we all know that the Social State is today suffering in our country," said Pavlopoulos. The President of the Republic also pointed out that volunteerism "does not only concern our place. It is inherent in our culture, our European culture."