Greece yesterday said that it would not allow Turkey to dictate its policy after Ankara said it would set conditions for the establishment of NATO troop headquarters on Greek territory. "Greece does not discuss and is not inclined to discuss its non-negotiable national rights," said National Defence Minister Gerasimos Arsenis in Brussels where he is attending a Western European Union meeting.
His stern response came after press reports from Ankara quoted Turkish Defence Minister Mehmet Gglhan saying his country was prepared to accept the establishment of a multinational NATO rapid deployment force headquarters in Thessaloniki only under certain conditions.
He said Turkey would set three conditions, namely, that Greece abandon its right to extend its territorial waters to 12 miles in the Aegean, that the first rotating commander in Thessaloniki is Turkish, and that the headquarters of land and air forces in Larissa be set up simultaneously.
"To describe Mr. Gglhan's statement as an untimely April Fool's farce, would be putting it mildly," Mr. Arsenis said. "Mr. Gglhan must know that Greece does not discuss and is not inclined to discuss its non-negotiable national rights.
"With his statements, he confirms his intention to undermine the recent efforts of Nato's Secretary General to conclude the military structure of the Southeast Wing of the Alliance.
"The provocative setting of 'terms' for the operation of the Larissa-based NATO Headquarters and the establishment of the Multinational Division Staff in Thessaloniki, is not Turkey's right (and) neither does it serve as an alibi for its stance to date.
"It constitutes all too clear evidence as to who raises obstacles to the implementation of the unanimous decisions of the Alliance.
"Our partners should be concerned by this Turkish attitude because Turkey undermines and 'amputates' the effectiveness of the structures of the Alliance, in a critical period, for our region and the whole of Europe," Mr. Arsenis said.
In statements to the newspaper Cumh0rriyet, reported yesterday, Mr. Gglhan said his country was prepared to accept the establishment of a multinational NATO rapid deployment force headquarters in Thessaloniki only under certain conditions, an ANA dispatch from Ankara said. He said Turkey would set three conditions, namely that Greece abandon its right to extend its territorial waters to 12 miles in the Aegean, that the first rotating commander is Turkish, and that the headquarters of land and air forces in Larissa be set up simultaneously.
He claimed that Greece, by trying to avert the simultaneous founding of the two headquarters, was trying to maintain its unilateral claims on the Aegean, by returning to the regime in force before 1974.
Turkish consent to the Thessaloniki headquarters would involve Greece annulling pre-1974 provisions and accepting a structure applying to mainland Greece only.
In first reactions from the opposition, Political Spring party leader Antonis Samaras yesterday called on the government to condemn the threats and unacceptable conditions set by Turkey, which, he said, "were anything but conditions that should be made by an ally".
Turkey, he added, is obliged to realise that the 12-mile expansion of waters is Greece's inalienable right and is not up for negotiation. Under the Law of the Sea convention, which took effect November 16, 1994 and was ratified by the Greek Parliament last month, signatory countries may extend their territorial waters from six to 12 nautical miles.
Turkey is not a signatory to the convention and has repeatedly threatened that any attempt by Greece to extend its territorial waters in the Aegean would be a "cause for war".
Athens has described the Turkish threats as an effort to manufacture tension between the two and has said it was its sovereign right to decide where, how and when it would exercise it. Greece and Turkey have argued for years over boundaries and rights of passage in the Aegean where Greek islands lie close to the Turkish coast.
National Defence Minister Gerasimos Arsenis, who arrived here yesterday to take part in the session of the permanent representatives of member countries of the Western European Union (WEU), said no official meeting with NATO Secretary-General Willy Claes was planned but he may have a telephone conversation with him or meet with him unofficially.
Mr. Arsenis will have private meetings with WEU Secretary-General Jose Cutilheiro, and Belgium's defence and foreign ministers, Karel Pinxten and Eric Derycke respectively. Mr. Arsenis will be representing Greece at its first Western European Union meeting as a full member and will address the meeting on the security system in Europe and the Balkans.
The prime minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) has said that his government is willing to enter negotiations to resolve its dispute with Athens even though the continuing Greek trade sanctions on the fledgling state posed difficulties.
"We are willing to sit around the negotiation table, even if it is difficult to negotiate calmly as long as the embargo is still on," Branko Crvenkovski told the French daily Le Monde.
Athens and Skopje's long-running dispute focuses on the usurpation by the former Yugoslav republic of ancient Greek symbols and names and clauses in the FYROM constitution which harbours territorial designs on Greece's northern province of Macedonia.
Attempts by the UN to mediate the dispute have resumed with mediator Cyrus Vance inviting both parties to direct talks on Thursday. Greek Foreign Minister Karolos Papoulias has said Greece will attend while Skopje has yet to give a definite reply. Greece has also said that the trade sanctions will stay and will be lifted only if there are "tangible moves" from Skopje on the issue of the ancient Greek symbols and FYROM's constitution.
Le Monde quotes Mr. Crvenkovski as wondering "what would happen to our sovereignty if we allowed (others) to dictate our flag and national symbol? Such a thing is contrary to all international principles." Mr. Crvenkovski alleged that Belgrade and Athens were co-ordinating their policy against Skopje.
"The fact that Serbia has not recognised 'Macedonia' is indicative (of such policy)," he said, adding that "officially the Serbs cite as an excuse the solidarity to their Greek ally." "But, undoubtedly, there are more serious reasons (than that)," he said. "Belgrade and Athens co-ordinate their policies and (Serbian President Slobodan) Milosevic dreams of the creation of a confederation between Serbia and Greece, erasing 'Macedonia' from the map."
Outlining his country's current problems, Mr. Crvenkovski said FYROM "shares common problems with all former socialist countries, problems such as social tension resulting from economic reforms, reduction in productivity, an increase in unemployment and the resurgence of nationalism."
"But what especially characterises our country," he said, "is that we have to deal with all these difficulties at a time when we focus our efforts in consolidating the international status of 'Macedonia'." "But Greece tries to block this procedure taking advantage of its participation in the European Union and its good relations with the United States, which has resulted in the Greek embargo lasting for more than a year and causing our economy damage of approximately 500 million dollars."
A letter Greece's permanent representative at the UN Christos Zaharakis addressed to UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali on March 27 was circulated as an official Security Council document yesterday, referring to Mr. Boutros-Ghali's recent report on restructuring UNPROFOR and more specifically the part concerning the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).
Mr. Zaharakis expresses surprise because Mr. Boutros-Ghali speaks of "an economic blockade Greece imposed on FYROM" despite the fact Greece had explained at the UN and at other international fora that it was forced to take economic retortion measures due to a long series of provocations by FYROM.
Mr. Zaharakis reaffirms in his letter that "Greece looks forward to a continuation of efforts aimed at a just and objective solution to the problem of existing differences with FYROM, a solution benefiting both countries and at the same time contributing to peace and stability in the region."
The Cabinet will meet today at 2 p.m., after the swearing in of the new Public Order Minister Sifis Valyrakis which is scheduled for 1.30, according to an announcement.
The cities of Athens and Moscow are to sign a protocol of co-operation today during a visit to Moscow by Mayor of Athens Dimitris Avramopoulos. Mr. Avramopoulos will arrive in the Russian capital today and will sign the protocol with Mayor of Moscow Yuri Luzkov. He is also expected to meet with a senior Russian Foreign Ministry official and the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia, Alexios II, during his visit.
George Anastasoulis, the presumed leader of a group of men arrested near the Greek-Albanian border last month in possession of firearms, yesterday testified to the investigating magistrate concerning the arms cache found buried in the Athens suburb of Pallini.
Recently resigned Public Order minister Stelios Papathemelis has stated that the men implicated are connected with the Liberation Front of Northern Epirus (MAVI) organisation, which claimed responsibility for an attack on the Albanian army border outpost of Episkopi last April, in which two Albanians were killed and a number of weapons stolen. Evidence supplied by Albanian authorities, he said, confirmed that the seven, when arrested, were carrying some of the stolen arms.
The European Union's Council of Ministers yesterday discussed a proposal by the European Commission on the imposition of tougher restrictions on foreign radio and TV programmes broadcast by European networks. The proposal presented in Brussels recently by Commissioner Marcelino Oreja tries to maintain a "balance" between the conflicting views of certain countries (led by France) who want rigid quotas for foreign productions broadcast in Europe and others favouring market deregulation.
Press and Media Minister Evangelos Venizelos, who represented Greece at the Council, told reporters the process of discussing the revision of the directive on "TV without borders" would be prolonged since objections were many. "National legislation has much to do in the transparency sector, prohibiting the accumulation of power in the media and imposing rules organising the radio and TV market," he added.
The Commission's latest proposal to be discussed yesterday insisted on what was set out in the current directive that European programmes should account for at least 51 per cent of European network broadcasts.
Iraqi Ambassador in Athens Issam Saud Khalil yesterday dismissed a London newspaper report alleging that the Iraqi secret services had abducted an Iraqi nuclear scientist from an Athens seaside suburb. The report, appearing in the Sunday Times, is "fabricated and ridiculous", the Iraqi envoy told a press conference.
Quoting Middle East intelligence sources, the newspaper alleged that Khidir Abdul Abas Hamza, who worked in an Iraqi nuclear energy centre, disappeared on February 27 from the seaside residential suburb of Glyfada while trying to telephone the newspaper in London from a local phone booth. The Sunday Times said that Mr. Hamza has been missing ever since, adding that one of his slippers was found in the phone booth.
The newspaper claims that Mr. Hamza had promised to show it top-secret documents he had in his possession on Iraq's nuclear capability and how it was close to developing an atomic bomb. The newspaper quoted the scientist's wife as saying that Mr. Hamza had either been abducted or killed by the Iraqi secret service, Mukhabarat.
She also claimed that she had reported his disappearance to the Greek authorities, but a Greek Public Order Ministry official said that no one had filed a missing persons report. The same officials said that the Greek authorities were trying to locate Mrs. Hamza for further clarifications.
The Iraqi ambassador told reporters that his government and the embassy in Athens had "no knowledge of Hamza's existence." Replying to questions, the envoy called on reporters to seek information from the Greek Interior Ministry on whether a visa had been issued in such name.
"Visas issued by Greece to Iraqis are few and given with great difficulty, since even diplomats need to wait at least two weeks for one," the ambassador said. A public prosecutor yesterday ordered the Greek police to begin a preliminary investigation into the matter.
National Economy Under-Secretary Ioannis Anthopoulos will present the government's policy on the promotion of Greek-US economic and trade relations during the Hellenic-American Business Council to be held in Washington on April 6-7. The council, to be attended by the major Greek and Greek-American businessmen, will discuss the possibilities for joint ventures in the Balkans, the Eastern European countries and the Middle East. While in Washington, Mr. Anthopoulos will inaugurate the Hellenic-American Business exhibition "Hermes 95," representing 150 enterprises.
Regarding the results of his recent trip to Australia to forge closer Greek-Australian trade relations, Mr. Anthopoulos said Australian businessmen were interested in the Greek textiles and plastics sector, as well as cosmetics and paints. He said agreements have been signed between Greek and Australian businessmen for exports of marble to Australia. Mr. Anthopoulos said a group of Australian businessmen were expected to visit Greece in the following six months to explore further investment opportunities in northern Greece.
Only days after farmers dismantled the blockades on national roads and let traffic flow freely to Greece's north again, Greek air traffic controllers walked off the job for three hours Sunday and yesterday, forcing the rescheduling of dozens of domestic and international flights.
The 500 air traffic controllers are protesting the legal status of their employer and work conditions and have alleged that the transport ministry broke a deadline for talks with unions over a draft bill to alter the legal status of the Civil Aviation Authority (YPA).
The controllers are seeking autonomy from YPA, changes to their grades and pay scales, and modernisation of air traffic control systems. Officials at Athens international airport said most airlines had notified their passengers of the situation. "We expect a big rush after the stoppage is over," one official told Reuters.
In other labour issues, doctors syndicated to the Social Security Fund (IKA) yesterday began a five-day strike demanding improvement in the foundation's health services. Reports said, however, that many doctors were still showing up for work. An announcement said the doctor's main demand was the upgrading and modernisation of primary health-care.
Construction workers called a 24-hour nation-wide strike for Wednesday yesterday to press for demands related to unemployment in the sector, better social insurance and pension benefits and the speeding-up of major public works projects. Workers will rally at Kaningos Square at 9.30 am on Wednesday.
Old-age pensioners' organisations yesterday also announced a rally in Athens, for Thursday, terming recent promises and lump sum grants by the government "provocation and mockery." The pensioners' Struggle Co-ordination Committee called for a rally at Kaningos Square and a march to the Maximos Mansion to request a meeting with Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou.
Speaking at a press conference yesterday, representatives of IKA, NAT, TEBE, TSA and other major pensioners' organisations insisted on the request of re-linking lowest pension levels to 20 wages of an unskilled worker or 80 per cent of an employee's salary. They also called for the abolition of "anti-insurance" laws passed by the New Democracy party government, full support for insurance funds and a state guarantee for the payment of pensions.
Trade unionists questioned the allegation by National Economy Minister Yiannos Papantoniou that the measures recently announced to relieve pensioners would cost the budget about 70 billion drachmas and proposed the use of the funds' frozen reserves. They also denounced the appointment of Sifis Valyrakis as Public Order Minister because in a recent statement in Parliament he placed the blame for recent incidents on the pensioners.
Old-age pensioners marching for better pensions were attacked by riot police outside the prime minister's official residence last month. The incident resulted in the suspension of two high-ranking police officers. The committee called on the General Confederation of Workers of Greece (GSEE) and trade unions to participate in the rally and support the pensioners' struggle.