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News from Bulgaria, 96-06-25Bulgarian Telegraph Agency Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Embassy of Bulgaria <bulgaria@access1.digex.net>EMBASSY OF BULGARIA - WASHINGTON D.C.BTA - BULGARIAN TELEGRAPH AGENCY25 June, 1996CONTENTS
[01] FOREIGN MINISTRY DELEGATION LEAVES FOR U.S.A.Sofia, June 24 (BTA) - A bulgarian delegation, headed by deputy Foreign Minister Irina Bokova, left for New York today, the Foreign Ministry Spokesman said. Mrs Bokova will attend the session of the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations on June 25 and 26. She will also hand UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali an invitation to attend the meeting of South European foreign ministers to be held in Sofia on July 6-7, 1996. Mrs Bokova will meet UN Under Secretary General for Public Information Shemir Sambar in connection with the opening of a UN information centre at the SS Cyril and Methodius Cyril National Library. Other bilateral meetings are also on the agenda.Later the Bulgarian delegation will leave for Washington for bilateral consultations on June 27 and 28. The invitation was extended by Lynn Davis, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Affairs. The sides will focus on export controls for conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies and Bulgaria's bid for accession to the Wassenaar Arrangement, security in Europe and the world, the role of the European and Euro-Atlantic structure in this field, the development of the Partnership for Peace programme and cooperation within the framework of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the North Atlantic Cooperation Council. The sides will consider the profgress of the Dayton agreement, including armament control, confidence-building measures and the civil aspects of the peace accords. On behalf of Foreign Minister Georgi Pirinski, Mrs Bokova will hand Sectretary of State Warren Cristopher an invitation to attend the meeting of South European foreign ministers in Sofia on July 6-7. [02] DEPUTY P.M. GECHEV VISITS CROATIAZagreb, June 24 (BTA spec. corr. Viktoria Nestorova) Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economic Development Roumen Gechev arrived on a two-visit to Croatia this morning at the invitation of his counterpart Davor Stern. Gechev is accompanied by a delegation including business representatives. The first day of the visit ended with the signing of an intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in plant protection between Bulgaria and Croatia.Earlier today Gechev had talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Development and Reconstruction Jure Radic. The sides considered the opportunities of Bulgaria's participation in the rebuilding of Croatia and the region. There are good prospects for cooperation in this area and the tenders announced in the "Financial Times" should be followed, the sides noted. Zagreb believes it is possible to include Bulgaria in the reconstruction of the Bosnian town of Mostar. Ninety percent of the companies enrolled for its rebuilding are Croatian ones and the Bulgarian side will receive information about their specific requirements. Croatia may import steel and steel sections from Bulgaria. It was mentioned that the construction of the Zadar-Ploce highway, which is 250 km long, had not been assigned to any company yet. Deputy Prime Minister Gechev met with Deputy Prime Minister in charge of economy and finance Borislav Skegro. The sides discussed the problems of structural reform in the two countries and privatization in particular. Gechev proposed to his Croatian counterpart to start negotiations on a free trade area. The proposal was accepted and will be handed over for detailed consideration to the Bulgarian-Croatian Commission for economic, industrial, trade and technological cooperation. Bulgaria expressed its desire to buy bread and animal feed wheat from Croatia. The Croatian side will study the possibilities and give an answer when the amount of this year's harvest becomes clear. Experts of the two countries will be assigned to study the possibility of cooperation in banking. All this is expected to boost trade between the two countries which was only about 20 million dollars in 1995 and dropped further this year. The reason for the downward trend is the hard times the two countries are having with the restructuring of their economies. Zagreb asked that the Croatian vessels anchored in the Bulgarian ports on the Danube since the beginning of the war in the former Yugoslavia be given preferential treatment until making arrangements for their return via Serbia. Zagreb expects that there will be some progress in the regulation of relations with Serbia by the end of June or at the beginning of July. This is the fourth Bulgarian high-level visit to Croatia in the past 12 months. It comes a year after Foreign Minister Georgi Pirinski's visit here. In January President Zhelyu Zhelev made an official visit to Croatia and signed a bilateral friendship and cooperation treaty. Defence Minister Dimiter Pavlov recently made a visit to Zagreb. These facts, along with Deputy Prime Minister Gechev's visit, are a sign of the increasingly closer ties between the two countries and peoples. They have had no conflicts throughout their history, which is unusual for the Balkans. Croatia will take part in both Bulgarian initiatives - the Sofia meetings of the defence ministers and of the foreign ministers of the Balkan countries. [03] CONDOLENCES ON PAPANDREOU'S DEATHSofia, June 24 (BTA) - Bulgarian President Zhelyu Zhelev cabled condolences to Greek President Costis Stephanopoulos in connection with the death of Andreas Papandreou, the President's press office said.Zhan Videnov, Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), sent a letter of condolences on the death of former leader of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) Andreas Papandreou, reads a press release of the BSP and the parliamentary group of the Democratic Left. In the letter Videnov praises the role of Greece's great politician and statesman in his country's modern history and his contribution to the promotion of the friendly relations between the two neighbouring countries. Former head of state Todor Zhivkov expressed his sorrow over the death of Andreas Papandreou in a telegram to Papandreou's family and to the PASOK leadership. [04] BULGARIA, FR YUGOSLAVIA SETTLE PENSIONS PAYMENTBelgrade, June 24 (BTA correspondent L. Mitakev) - Bulgaria and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia will start in the nearest future paying pensions to each other's citizens who have worked as foreigners respectively in the other country. This will be done most probably already in July, it was agreed between working groups of the Bulgarian State Insurance Institute and of the Yugoslav's Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Policy. The two states also agreed on the procedure for settling by the end of the year the pensions, which were not paid during the time of the UN sanctions against Yugoslavia.[05] BULGARIAN OFFICIALS DENY ALLEGATIONS ABOUT EXISTENCE OF A POMAK NATIONSofia, June 24 (BTA) - Bulgarian officials deny the allegations about the existence of a pomak nation that appeared in the Greek press last week."There is no pomak nation, such a thing is out of the question," yesterday's "24 Chassa" cites Foreign Minister Georgi Pirinski as saying. "It should be understood that these are unofficial allegations and we are studying them carefully," the Foreign Minister said. He is expected to answer a question about the issue in Parliament this week. "It should not create any problems in the development of relations between Bulgaria and Greece," Pirinski added. "Bulgaria's position is clear. A pomak nation is out of the question,' Foreign Ministry Spokesman Pantelei Karassimeonov said replying a reporter's question today. "The information received so far comes all from newspapers and other media. The issue is being studied carefully. We would not like it to create problems in the development of relations between Bulgaria and Greece," the Foreign Ministry Spokesman said. [06] EXTRAORDINARY CABINET MEETING TO DISCUSS GRAIN PROBLEMSSofia, June 24 (BTA) - Bulgaria needs to import bread and animal-feed grain, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economic Development Roumen Gechev said before his departure for Croatia today. Gechev stressed that Bulgaria has the technical and financial ability to do it. The import of grain will push bread prices up; however, the Cabinet commits itself to provide social protection for people with low income, Gechev said.At its closed meeting last night, the Cabinet issued a decree determining the new minimum wheat purchase prices as follows: 17 leva/kg for first grade grain, 15 leva/kg for second grade and 14 leva/kg for third grade, Agriculture Minister Krustyo Trendafilov said on the national radio. "Naturally, bread prices will go up," he said. According to Trendafilov, the expected grain imports will amount to 400,000 to 600,000 tonnes. Today's press runs views of private wheat growers who say that they will not sell grain at prices below 25 leva/kg. In late 1995, the purchase price of bread wheat was 5,100 leva/t. Yesterday, Trendafilov proposed that the price be set at 14,000, 15,000 and 16,000 leva/t, depending on the quality of the grain. Speaking in the Nedelya 150 weekly political talk show on the national radio yesterday, Deputy Agriculture Minister Roumen Popov said that this year's projected grain harvest will not exceed 2.5 million tonnes, down from last year's 3,200,000 tonnes and the 5 million tonnes reported during the 1980s. The projected poor harvest will necessitate the import of bread grain, Popov said. After last night's closed meeting of the Cabinet, Trendafilov said that Bulgaria needs 1.6 million tonnes of bread grain to meet its domestic demand. If the Ministry manages to purchase the necessary minimum of 1.2 million tonnes of grain, Bulgaria will have to import some 400,000 tonnes. Speaking on the national radio yesterday, Popov projected that the bread price will reach 60 leva/kg, up from the current 25-30 leva/kg. [07] BULGARIAN OFFICE OF INTERPOL REQUESTED TRACING OF 36 PERSONS, 17 CARS IN 1995Sofia, June 24 (BTA) - The Bulgarian bureau of INTERPOL put 36 persons and 17 vehicles on its wanted list. The figures are small but these are the cases in which police offices nationwide addressed Interpol.Recently the Bulgarian National Central Bureau was inspected by the General Secretariat of the organization. The emphasis was on criteria and European standards which Bulgaria is not yet up to, the chief of the bureau, Lieutenant Colonel Peter Hristov, told BTA. Hristov worked for the Interior Ministry for 17 years, climbing each step of the career ladder. The General Secretariat official commended to work of bureau and Bulgaria's joining of the advanced INTERPOL telecommunications system two months ago, said Hristov, who heads to bureau since its opening in 1990. That year Bulgaria restored its membership in the organization. This country was among INTERPOL'S co-founders in 1923. The office expects the passage of regulations governing its activity and interaction with Interior Ministry (police) services, the Ministry of Justice, prosecutors, the National Investigative Service, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance and other departments. The office recruits personnel on a competitive basis, primarily among police employees. An officer should speak at least one of INTERPOL's working languages (English, French, Spanish and Arabic) and have practical experience and legal knowledge. [08] CYPRIOT BUSINESSMEN OFFER PARTNERSHIPSofia, June 24 (BTA) - The possibilities for an inflow of Bulgarian investments into Cyprus and for the establishment of joint ventures are on the agenda of a Bulgarian-Cypriot business meeting which started at the Intercontinental hotel in Sofia today. The meeting was opened by the chairmen of the Bulgarian and Cypriot chambers of commerce and industry, Bozhidar Bozhinov and Andreas Avramidis, respectively."We are here with an invitation to do business together," Avramidis who is an honourable chairman of the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in his address. The goal of the Cypriot businessmen is to familiarize their Bulgarian colleagues with the conditions for trade with their country which is an internationally recognized business centre due to the tax preferences offered, Avramidis added. According to him, his fellow businessmen take advantage of the favourable geographical position of Cyprus between Europe and the Middle East. The Cypriot side was presented by 14 companies operating in the sphere of services and light industry. Under the preliminary schedule today the participants in the meeting will be familiarized with the conditions for trade, joint production and investing in Cyprus. There are 24 Bulgarian-Cypriot joint ventures in the sphere of light and food-processing industry, trade and tourism. The Bulgarian-Cypriot agreements for economic, scientific and technical cooperation, avoidance of double taxation, encouragement and reciprocal protection of investments ensure good prospects for promotion of contacts. In 1995 bilateral commodity exchange totalled 19 million US dollars. Bulgarian exports to Cyprus were of 12 million US dollars' worth and the imports of 7 million US dollars' worth. [09] USD 80 MLN FROM I.M.F. IN JULY?Quoting unnamed knowledgeable sources "24 Chassa" says the International Monetary Fund is likely to extend 80 million US dollars on July 15 if Prime Minister Zhan Videnov's reform programme gets the approval of the IMF Board of Governors. The report says the lending agreement with Bulgaria will probably be on the agenda of a July 12 sitting of the IMF Board of Governors. The whole sum the IMF is expected to provide to Bulgaria is some 500 million US dollars, writes this daily. It says Bulgaria is entitled to a total of 644 million but the IMF is reluctant to make available the remaining 140 million. The report further says that following a sitting of the IMF Board of Governors in October Bulgaria is likely to get the second tranche under the lending agreement.[10] HEALTH MINISTER VITKOVA ON DRUG MISUSESofia, June 24 (BTA) - There are some 18,000 to 20,000 heroin dependent addicts in Bulgaria, it became clear at a news conference of the National Council against Narcotic Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking today.The misuse of drugs and the number of drug abusers are continuously growing, Mimi Vitkova, Minister of Health and Chairman of the Council, said. The first few HIV-positive drug addicts have already been registered, Vitkova added. More than 20 percent of Bulgarian drug misusers are carriers of hepatitis virus B and 57 percent of hepatitis virus C. Every three in five drug abusers started taking drugs before the age of 18. According to Minister Vitkova, Bulgarians started to use drugs more actively after 1990. A closed addicts community has already been formed which makes it difficult to dissuade young people from drug- taking, she added. "Bulgaria is vulnerable being on the Balkan drugs route. The traffic of precursor chemicals from Western Europe to Bulgaria's southern neighbours where the drugs are synthesized also crosses Bulgaria," Vitkova said. A special act and a government decree on drug abuse control are being drafted, the Health Minister said. In 1995 the Interior Ministry authorities hauled the total of 278.3 kg of narcotic substances, of them 32.6 kg of heroin, 6.8 kg of cocain, 184 kg of marijuana, 50 kg of hashish, 3.9 kg of amphetamine, 116,500 tablets of captagon and 320 litres of acetic anhydride, Slavcho Markov, Head of the Drugs Trafficking Department with the Central Service for Organized Crime Control, said. Cannabis plantations on an aggregate 1.2 hectares were detected and burnt in this country in 1995, Markov added. A kilogram of heroin is sold at 20,000 to 40,000 Deutsche marks and one dose of this substance costs between 9 and 14 Deutsche marks. Depending on its purity a kilogram of cocaine is traded at 50,000 to 70,000 Deutsche marks. Bulgarian customs officers hauled acetic anhydride for the first time last year. In 1996 the customs authorities seized 4,527 litres of this substance and 72.434 kg of heroin. In five of the cases the couriers were Bulgarians. [11] FREUD CONFERENCE ENDS IN SOFIASofia, June 24 (BTA) - An international conference on the 140th birth anniversary of Sigmund Freud ended in Sofia today. The two-day forum was organized by the Austrian Institute for Eastern and Southeastern Europe and the Institute for Philosophical Studies with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences with the assistance of the Austrian Embassy in Bulgaria, the British Council, Goethe Institute and the Open Society Foundation."My grandfather worked all day long with patients and wrote his papers in the evening, which would have been impossible without the many female relatives who surrounded and helped him. His marriage was the most harmonious one can imagine and for 50 years he and my grandmother did not exchanged a single harsh word," Freud's grandson, Anton Freud, said in an address to the forum where he was a guest. Following Austria's Anschluss, Anton Freud immigrated to Britain with his grandfather where he graduated chemistry. Throughout World War Two, he served in the British army in a special task force. Now he is a retired major of the British military intelligence and holds the copyright for his grandfather's works. Anton Freud told journalists Bulgaria has long ago won the reputation of an extremely hospitable country, "especially for Jews across the world. Said he, "The destructive policy of Hitler against my people did not find support in the Third Bulgarian Kingdom. Each Jew knows perfectly well that Bulgarians were the only nation that saved its Jews and prevented their sending in concentration camps." It is the first time Anton Freud has participated in a conference on his grandfather. And the last time, he acknowledges himself, as he is already 75. His address to the Sofia audience is the first written reminiscence of his famous grandfather. Bulgarian Telegraph Agency Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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