Antenna: News in English (AM), 97-12-16

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From: Antenna Radio <http://www.antenna.gr> - email: antenna@compulink.gr

Last Updated: Tuesday, 16-Dec-97 10:11:08

CONTENTS

[01] Turkey-E.U

[02] Tsochatzopolos

[03] Evert

[04] Weather

[05] Psiloritis

[06] Kontoglou

[07] Soccer

[08] Basketball

[09] World Wildlife Fundation

[01] Turkey-E.U

Europe has also made it clear that the admission of the Republic of Cyprus into the EU is in no way conditioned on prior resolution of the Cyprus problem.

EU leaders met in Luxembourg over the weekend to discuss EU expansion.

Confronted with the European Union decision in Luxembourg to go ahead with talks to admit Cyprus into its ranks, the Turkish prime minister is rattling his sabre.

Mesout Yilmaz is threatening to annex Turkish- occupied northern Cyprus if the EU-Cyprus talks go ahead next year.

Those talks will begin in the first half of next year. Cyprus is one of 11 countries up for membership.

Yilmaz also refused an offer to sit on the annual European Conference of EU and EU candidate members, which EU leaders decided to set up during their weekend summit. That Conference will probably convene in March. Yilmaz is angry because the EU is only offering a seat at the annual Conference instead of membership talks.

And he was incensed when the EU explicitly

The EU says Turkey must: restore stable and satisfactory relations with Greece; agree to take any differences with Greece through legal means, especially the International court. This is particularly important for Greece, which has been asking Turkey to take its claim to the Greek isle of Imia to the court for almost two years, since Turkey staged a military landing on it.

Turkey must also support UN attempts to

resolve the Cyprus problem on the basis of UN resolutions, which call for a removal of Turkey's 30 thousand troops from the north.

And Ankara must start respecting human rights at home.

Even if Turkey fulfills all those conditions and gets to sit in on the candidate members' conference, it won't be up for membership in the current round of expansion.

Soured by the setbacks in Luxembourg, Yilmaz says he's cutting off political dialogue with the EU; and Turkey is moving troops to Atalia and Mersina.

Hailing the EU decisions in Luxembourg as historic, Greek prime minister Kostas Simitis said Turkey has a place in Europe, but it has to respect certain principles. Athens believes Turkey is only hurting itself by reacting the way it is to the EU's requests.

On Monday, Greek defence minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos likened Yilmaz's threat to annex Cyprus to Hitler's annexation of the Sudetenland, in opposition to the League of Nations. "This is the first time someone is threatening to repeat such a move", said Tsochatzopoulos.

After the summit both Jean Claude Juncker, the prime minister of Luxembourg, the current EU chair, and European commission president Jacques Santer echoed that sentiment.

Luxembourg expressed regret at the threat, saying that Yilmaz's stance gives little cause for hope that Turkey will be taking part in the European Conference.

Diplomatic observers attribute Yilmaz's hard line to his feelings of insecurity on the home front: over the rising electoral influence of Islamic parties; and toward foreign minister Tansu Ciller, one of his arch political rivals.

Observers add that Yilmaz, having talked of Turkey's European ambitions, feels defeated in the wake of the Luxembourg summit.

He will have taken little solace from the words the

Turkish press used to sum up EU developments, words like "pushed aside", "disappointment", and "sense of injustice".

[02] Tsochatzopolos

Akis Tsochatzopolos was cheered when he announced at a press conference that next year, Greece will have its first female pilot flying a fighter aircraft.

The government recently announced that women will be serving in key positions in the Navy starting

next year, including on ships.

Greece is the latest Nato nation to experiment with having both sexes on its naval vessels. In the past, the need for separate dressing areas was considered a major obstacle, but the necessary changes have been made on a number of ships to accommodate both men and women.

In some Nato countries, bringing women shipside has met with success, in others, with failure.

[03] Evert

All those who believed the prime minister's pre- election claim that he had the economy on the right track, are maintaining a guilty silence now, claimed Evert.

New Democracy has the policies that can modernise the country's productive forces, he added, solve the farmers' problems, and combat the worst problem society is facing: unemployment.

There were some 30 New Democracy MPs present at Evert's speech. And the man who was beaten out of the party leadership by Kostas Karamanlis earlier this year, urged all party members to give their support to the new leader.

[04] Weather

Meteorologists say weather conditions will take a turn for the worse by mid- week.

Temperatures are expected to drop even further by Thursday with possible snowfall in the center of

Athens.

Heavy rainfall is contributing to traffic jams.

Weather conditions are so severe in northern and central Greece, that snowchains are required in many regions.

The Thessaloniki area is seeing quite a lot of snowfall.

And ships have been forbidden to leave the port of Kavala due to gale force winds.

Pilio and Hania in eastern Greece record 25- centimetre deep snow.

But people don't seem to be troubled. One man said, "It's absolutely marvelous. Beautiful, fantastic.. to see all this snow".

A just married couple said, "It's beautiful. We don't care if we are cut off, we're on our honeymoon".

Snow plows are working around the clock in an effort to clear the major thoroughfares in central Greece.

[05] Psiloritis

Greek and German scientists have found sponges a million years old on the island's highest mountain.

They found the fist-sized tubors embedded in the mountainside.

Thrilled at their discovery, the scientists say the new findings reinforce speculation that millions of years ago Crete's highest mountain was once coastal real estate, and the rest of Crete was nowhere to be seen.

[06] Kontoglou

The missives were written to his pupil in the art of iconography forty years ago.

In his letters, Kontoglou advises his student not to take the difficult road he himself had followed.

Fotis Kontoglou always fought his cause, with words, paint, and pictures. Until his death in 1965, he struggled through his work to make people see the grandeur of Greece's orthodox tradition.

It wasn't always an easy road: he sometimes differed with orthodox clerics over how the rituals of that tradition should be conducted.

In his letters to Evangelos Mavrikakis, published for the first time, he advises him not to follow the same arduous road.

"Don't take me as an example", he wrote in 1956. "I paint very harsh pictures. I've become something of a wild animal tamer, I'm not afraid to play dangerous games".

Publisher Giorgos Hatzioakovou says the letters are not complete. Many were half destoryed in a flood in Mavrikakis's home. But the letters are still important, because the writer never thought they'd be published. So in them he speaks freely, he's free of his anxiety to persuade Greeks to renew their relationship with tradition".

Hatzioakovou adds that Kontoglou moved freely in spirit, and in his exchanges not only with Mavrikakis, but with his students and other people, the artist was very loving.

Kontoglou was harsh and sometimes ironic with those whom he felt failed to understand the Orthodox tradition properly.

The artist never sought the limelight. In one of his letters, he complains, "Journalists seem to have radar. I don't want to go on the radio, so they're trying to draw me out by getting me to speak at functions related to my field. But I don't want to do things like that, just as I don't want to enter academia, because I'd lose my independence".

Kontoglou always preferred to say what he wanted, when he wanted, and in the way he wanted.

[07] Soccer

Olympiakos is keeping pace with Aek. The Piraeus club is just a win behind.

Panathinaikos, also a weekend winner, is just a point behind Olympiakos.

Ionikos and Kalamata - that match was called because of poor pitch conditions due to the inclement weather. Ionikos remains in fourth place, but has played a match less than the front- runners.

Elsewehere over the weekend, Paok has no trouble on the road. Neither does Ofi.

Veria and Apollon triumph at home. And Kavala and Paniliakos play to a stand-off.

[08] Basketball

Shackleford scores 14 points on 6 of 8 shooting in just 21 minutes, getting the better of Pao centre Dino Radja who nets 12 points on poor 8 of 13 shooting.

But the big offensive gun for the winners is Pedrag Stoyan-kovich. He fires in 25 points as Paok wins it 76-65.

Paok is now in third place in the standings at 8 and 3.

Outraged at his team's play, Pao's owner has slapped his players and coaching staff with fines.

The Pao loss enables Olympiakos to move into first place. The Piraeus team is 10 and 1 after its narrow escape against Peristeri. Johnny Rogers scores the winning bucket 38 seconds before the final horn.

Iraklio, Aris, Aek and Panionios are all tied for fourth place.

In other games, Sporting holds off Papagou, and Iraklis gets past Larisa.

[09] World Wildlife Fundation

In an effort to help protect animals and plants facing possible extinction, the organization is selling teddy bears and Christmas cards depicting animals and the environment.

Konstantinos Kostooulos, a WWF volunteer says recognizing and trying to do something about the plight facing certain animals and plants is half the battle. Adding, "The money raised from the sales is going toward protecting the environment. The WWF carries out environmental protection programs all over the world".

One girl buying Christmas cards said, "Protecting nature is everyone's responsibility. There's is no room for carelessness. I'm chipping in by making a purchase".

Another said, "I prefer to buy WWF Christmas cards,

because in that way I know I am helping the environment and more importantly, the future of the planet".

Species in Greece in danger of extinction are the brown bear, the Monachus Monachus seal, the careta careta sea turtle and the silver-pelican.

(c) ANT1 Radio 1997

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