Athens News Agency: News in English, 02-05-12

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Turkish deputy PM says Denktash Cyprus proposals inadequate

[02] Transport minister announces airport for Samothraki

[03] Marathon and peace marches converge at Israeli embassy

[04] Conference on internationalisation of Greek language

[05] Weather Forecast: Unsettled, wet weather on Monday

[06] Weather Forecast: Cloudy, some rain on Sunday

[07] Foreign Exchange Rates - Monday

[01] Turkish deputy PM says Denktash Cyprus proposals inadequate

ISTANBUL (ANA - A. Kourkoulas) - Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mersut Yilmaz said over the weekend ''the proposals by (Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf) Denktash on the Cyprus issue are inadequate'' and stressed that ''Turkey should undertake new initiatives on the Cyprus issue.''

Yilmaz categorically said Turkey should make new proposals which will be based ''on parameters which are acceptable by Europe and the international community.''

Elaborating on his views, Yilmaz said ''if Mr. Rauf Denktash wants to help Turkey he should behave in a more conciliatory way.''

It is the most important public disapproval of the tactic applied on the Cyprus issue by the Turkish Cypriot leader, press sources noted.

''We are going through the most crucial month in the most crucial year for our accession to the EU,'' Yilmaz said, adding that ''if the opportunity of Europe is lost for Turkey our national unity will be jeopardised.''

Yilmaz further said that ''if 'southern Cyprus' joins the EU alone, the number of troops Turkey will have to maintain in (northern occupied) Cyprus will be bigger than the number of Turkish Cypriots.''

[02] Transport minister announces airport for Samothraki

Transport and Communications Minister Christos Verelis announced on Sunday that an airport will be built on the island of Samothraki, in the northern Aegean, which will contribute to its economic and tourist development.

Verelis, who attended a local celebration on the island, said the project is budgeted at 50 million euros and will cover all international airline communications.

The airport's runway will have a length of two kilometres, while the project's feasibility study and its preliminary layout plan have already got underway and a final environmental repercussion study will be carried out immediately.

[03] Marathon and peace marches converge at Israeli embassy

A marathon solidarity march for the Palestinian people, which started at the Marathon memorial on Sunday morning, and a peace march organised by athletes and mountaineers from the Peace and Friendship Stadium in Piraeus converged at the Israeli embassy in Athens at 7.30 in the evening.

The marathon march was jointly organised by peace movements, trade union organisations and Palestinian unions.

[04] Conference on internationalisation of Greek language

Scores of ''neo-Hellenists'' from the five continents have scheduled a crusade at world level with the purpose of internationalising the Greek language.

University rectors and professors, researchers, secondary education teachers, scholars, historians and journalists were mobilised to achieve the ''passing'' of the Greek language as official at all European and world forums.

The world linguistics conference held in Kavala, northern Greece, under the auspices of Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos was attended by university, academy and institute representatives from the United States and many European countries.

All speakers said in their addresses that the initiative to internationalise the Greek language has already started to meet with a response.

[05] Weather Forecast: Unsettled, wet weather on Monday

Changeable weather with scattered showers and storms is forecast in the Ionian, mainland Greece and the northern and eastern Aegean on Monday, and scattered cloud in the rest of the country. Winds northwesterly, moderate to strong, in the west and southwest, southerly, weak to moderate, in the rest of the country. On the northern mainland, temperatures will range from 10C to 22C; on the rest of the mainland from 12C to 25C; and in the islands from 14C to 24C. Unsettled weather in Athens, with sunny spells interspersed with showers. Temperatures between 15C and 22C. Same in Thessaloniki with temperatures from 14C to 22C.

[06] Weather Forecast: Cloudy, some rain on Sunday

Light cloud is forecast in all parts of the country, turning to rain and storms on the mainland from the west and the Ionian Sea. Winds westerly to southwesterly, moderate to strong. On the northern mainland, temperatures will range from 9C to 22C; on the rest of the mainland from 11C to 26C; and in the islands from 13C to 24C. The day will start sunny in Athens, turning to rain from late afternoon, and possibly storms. Temperatures between 12C and 25C. Changeable weather in Thessaloniki, with sunny spells interspersed with rain and storms and temperatures from 10C to 22C.

[07] Foreign Exchange Rates - Monday

Indicative tourist buying rates per euro until Monday

U.S. dollar 0.919

Pound sterling 0.628

Danish kroner 7.495

Swedish kroner 9.379

Japanese yen 117.5

Swiss franc 1.466

Norwegian kroner 7.625

Cyprus pound 0.583

Canadian dollar 1.434

Australian dollar 1.690

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