Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 02-06-26

Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

CONTENTS

[01] PAPANDREOU-CEM NO AGREEMENT

[02] STEPHANOPOULOS MEETS PRESIDENT OF KAZAKHSTAN

[03] REMARKS ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

[04] PROTOPAPAS ON THE CEM STATEMENT

[05] EU AGRICULTURE MINISTERS' COUNCIL

[06] SIGNIFICANT LOSSES IN THE ASE

[07] THE OECD ON THE GREEK GDP

[08] D. OSWALD IN ATHENS TODAY

[09] THE GREEK PRESIDENT MET WITH HIS KAZAKH COUNTERPART

[10] MAGRIOTIS' CONTACTS IN ALMATY

[01] PAPANDREOU-CEM NO AGREEMENT

Foreign Minister Giorgos Papandreou had a private meeting with his Turkish counterpart Ismail Cem, in the margin of the meeting of the Organization for the Cooperation and Development of Countries of the Black Sea, which is being held in Istanbul.

Answering a journalist's question on the Euroarmy, Mr. Cem stressed that he did not know of a new EU position on this issue, thus calling into question the results of the Seville Summit Meeting and insisting on the Ankara text.

On the same issue, Mr. Papandreou stated that if there is no solution during the Spanish Presidency, negotiations will continue based on the decisions that have been made and the agreement which the 15 came to during the Summit Meeting at Seville.

According to information, during the meeting with Mr. Cem, Mr. Papandreou also raised the issue violation of Greek air space by Turkish fighter aircraft, as well as the reopening of the Chalki Theological School.

At the meeting of the two countries' delegations that took place earlier in the framework of the exploratory Greece-Turkey meetings, the entire spectrum of bilateral relations was discussed.

[02] STEPHANOPOULOS MEETS PRESIDENT OF KAZAKHSTAN

President of the Republic Kostis Stefanopoulos will meet with the President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayef, in order to discuss bilateral and international issues.

Mr. Stefanopoulos, who is continuing his 3-day visit to Kazakhstan accompanied by deputy Foreign Ministers Giannis Magriotis and Andreas Loverdos, met with the Pontians living in the Asian country yesterday.

Tomorrow the Greek mission will travel to Astana, while in the evening they will return to Athens.

[03] REMARKS ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

Greek government spokesman Christos Protopapas reiterated today that Greece is not a country of open borders and added that the government does everything in its power to offer satisfactory living conditions and the best possible treatment to the illegal immigrants that are being held in the country.

The issue of illegal immigration will be raised in the governmental committee meeting tomorrow.

[04] PROTOPAPAS ON THE CEM STATEMENT

Greek government spokesman Christos Protopapas said that it is clear that there is a common European position on the issue of the Euro-army. He made the statement in response to Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem, who stated that there was no common European stance in Seville on the issue of the Euro-army.

Mr. Protopapas referred to the communication Mr. Solana had with Mr. Cem after the Summit meeting to convey to him the new framework on the issue of the Euro-army. Mr. Cem did not give a final response and stated that the new framework adopted by the 15 will be assessed by the Turkish government when he returns to Ankara.

Mr. Protopapas stressed that what is important for Greece is national unity.

[05] EU AGRICULTURE MINISTERS' COUNCIL

The EU Agriculture Ministers will meet in Luxembourg tomorrow and the Greek interest is focused on the proposal to change the regulation concerning the name of feta cheese.

After a period of controversy and judicial interventions, the European Agriculture Ministers Council proposal on the feta cheese leads to the reintroduction of feta in the products of protected Greek geographic indications, according to a statement by the Greek Ministry of Agriculture.

Greece will be represented in the meeting by Agriculture Minister Giorgos Dris, who will be accompanied by European Affairs General Secretary Andreas Korakas.

[06] SIGNIFICANT LOSSES IN THE ASE

Significant losses were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange today. The general index dropped to -1.69% at 2.205,06 points, while the volume of transactions was at 112 million Euro or 38 billion drachmas.

Of the stocks trading today, only 37 recorded gains and the overwhelming majority of 289 had losses, while the value of 47 stocks remained unchanged.

[07] THE OECD ON THE GREEK GDP

The prediction that the Greek GDP will have a growth rate of 3.5% in 2002 and 4.25% in 2003 was expressed by OECD economists, according to a report published today.

The moving force for the Greek economy will be consumer spending, the completion of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games projects and the inflow of capital from the 3rd Community Framework of Support.

Regarding the cost-of-living index, the OECD economists believe that it will be at higher levels compared to the rest Euro-zone countries while at the same time, they warn of inflationary pressures as a result of the high cost of employment.

On the government ability to control public spending, the OECD appears pessimistic and the general government surplus in 2002 will be at 0.5% instead of 0.8% which was the goal set in the budget and the Stabilization and Development Program. The international organization also suggests more strict fiscal discipline to deescalate inflationary pressures and create surpluses that will finance the increased needs of the social security system.

[08] D. OSWALD IN ATHENS TODAY

The President of the IOC coordination committee, Dennis Oswald, will be in Athens today, heading a small delegation.

Mr. Oswald is expected to meet with the relevant Ministers and the President of the Athens 2004 organizing committee, Gianna Aggelopoulou Daskalaki. Tomorrow he will meet with Prime Minister Kostas Simitis at the Maximos Mansio.

Also, during his stay in Athens, Mr. Oswald is expected to discuss issues concerning the functioning of sports facilities in view of the 2004 Games, trasnsportation, the image of the capital, and other issues concerning hosting.

[09] THE GREEK PRESIDENT MET WITH HIS KAZAKH COUNTERPART

Greek President Kostis Stephanopoulos, speaking in the formal dinner his Kazakh counterpart gave in his honor, expressed optimism on the wider development of the economic and political relations between Greece and Kazakhstan.

Mr. Stephanopoulos stated that in the talks he had with Kazakh President Nazarbayev it was established that the two countries share the same views on peace and stability. They also play a stabilizing role in the Balkans and Central Asia, while they express interest in the implementation of international law principles, the UN decisions and the respect of international law.

The Greek President said that Greece has condemned terrorism, while he also referred to the normalization of the Greek-Turkish relations through the step-by-step approach. Mr. Stephanopoulos also stressed that Greece wants a permanent solution to the Cyprus problem.

[10] MAGRIOTIS' CONTACTS IN ALMATY

Greek Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Yiannis Magriotis met in Almaty today with the Kazakh Foreign Minister.

The Undersecretary referred to the priorities set by Greece concerning the cooperation with Eurasia countries and especially with Kazakhstan, which is the most stable country in the region after the September 11 terrorist attack.

Mr. Magriotis stated that Greece could become the bridge linking Kazakhstan with Europe and Kazakhstan could become the bridge linking Greece with the region of Eurasia.

The Kazakh Foreign Minister referred to his country's will to open systematic political consultations with Greece and focused his interest in the expansion of bilateral economic relations and cooperation within the framework of TRACECA (Transport Corridor Europe Caucasus Asia). He also agreed with the Greek Undersecretary on the importance the Burgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline could have for the Kazakh energy resources.

Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article