Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 99-09-01
MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Thessaloniki, September 1, 1999
SECTIONS
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
NEWS HEADLINES
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] BALKAN STABILITY PACT COORDINATOR IN THESSALONIKI TODAY
[02] GOVERNMENT TO FINALIZE POLICY RE EU FUNDING FOR TURKEY
[03] MAIN OPPOSITION PARTY LEADER GIVES PRESS CONFERENCE
TODAY
[04] GREEK OLYMPIC CHAMPIONS SEND HUMANITARIAN AID TO TURKEY
[05] MICHAEL DUKAKIS TO VISIT THESSALONIKI THIS MONTH
[06] PRESIDENT OF GREECE RECEIVES CHILDREN OF SERB
JOURNALISTS
[07] TWO TREMORS OCCUR NEAR ZAKYNTHOS, NO DAMAGES REPORTED
[08] ASE MARKS NEW RECORD, GENERAL INDEX CONTINUES UPWARD
[09] PAPANDREOU: THERE IS BROAD CONSENSUS ON TURKEY'S
ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE
[10] PAPANDREOU: THE STABILITY PACT IS A HISTORIC CHANCE FOR
THE BALKANS
[11] 9.5 TRILLION DRACHMAS FOR THE SECTOR OF AGRICULTURE
[12] GALATASARAY IS IN THESSALONIKI FOR THE FOOTBALL MATCH
AGAINST PAOK
[13] TRAIN CARRYING NATO SOLDIERS DERAILED AT THE BORDERS
WITH FYROM
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[14] THREE MASS GRAVES FOUND IN PRISHTINA, OVER TEN BODIES
IN EACH
[15] TURKISH JOURNALIST EMBARKS ON RALLY OF "THANKS" TO
GREEKS
[16] IMF DELEGATION WILL VISIT TURKEY TO ASSESS FINANCIAL
NEED
[17] ONE KILLED, SCORES INJURED IN SERIES OF AFTERSHOCKS IN
TURKEY
[18] GREECE TO SUPPORT EU'S PLANS FOR HUMANITARIAN AID TO
TURKEY
[19] QUESTION ON THE AKKUYU NUCLEAR PLANT BY A GREEK EURO-
DEPUTY
[20] A GREEK CYPRIOT WAS MURDERED IN THE TURKISH OCCUPIED
NORTHERN CYPRUS
[21] THE ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH VISITED THE EARTHQUAKE
STRICKEN CITY OF IZMIT
NEWS IN DETAIL
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] BALKAN STABILITY PACT COORDINATOR IN THESSALONIKI TODAY
The Balkan Stability Pact coordinator Bodo Hombach is
to arrive in Thessaloniki today, in order to look at the
building which will house the organization's offices.
Mr. Hombach met with Prime Minister Costas Simitis in
Athens yesterday, with whom he discussed the developments
in the region following the end of war in Yugoslavia.
During his visit to Thessaloniki, where he will visit
the European Center for the Development of Vocational
Training (CEDEFOP), the German official is to be accompanied
by Greece's Foreign Minister George Papandreou and
undersecretary of National Economy Rodoula Zisi, and will
also meet with the Minister of Macedonia-Thrace Yiannis
Magriotis.
[02] GOVERNMENT TO FINALIZE POLICY RE EU FUNDING FOR TURKEY
An inner cabinet meeting will be held on Friday where
the government is to draw its final decisions in regards to
the European Union's funding protocol for Turkey, as well as
in light of the EU's Foreign Ministers informal meeting,
which will be held in Finland on September 4 and 5.
The ruling PASOK party's Executive Bureau is to convene
this evening, while Foreign Minister George Papandreou is to
meet with his predecessor Theodoros Pangalos.
Tomorrow, Mr. Papandreou will meet with the leader of
the main opposition party, New Democracy's Kostas
Karamanlis, the secretary-general of the Communist Party of
Greece Aleka Paparega and the leader of the Coalition of
Left and Progress Nikos Konstantopoulos.
Greece's Alternate Foreign Minister Yiannos
Kranidiotis, who met with British Foreign Secretary Robin
Cook during his visit to London yesterday, has stated that
as long as EU funds to Turkey are allocated solely for the
relief of the earthquake-stricken people, then Greece is
ready to withdraw its objections.
[03] MAIN OPPOSITION PARTY LEADER GIVES PRESS CONFERENCE
TODAY
The leader of leader of the main opposition party, New
Democracy's Kostas Karamanlis, is to give a press conference
in Athens today, where he will unveil his party's proposals
pertaining to economy.
Changes in the tax system, privatization of state
entities and allocation of European Union funds for the
course of the following four years represent the main axes
of New Democracy's economic policy.
Mr. Karamanlis met with the chairman of the Greek
Industries Association, within the framework of his
preparation for the upcoming 64th International Trade Fair
of Thessaloniki.
[04] GREEK OLYMPIC CHAMPIONS SEND HUMANITARIAN AID TO TURKEY
Greece's Olympic champions are sending nine tons of
bottled water and approximately two tons of bread, as
humanitarian aid to Turkey's earthquake survivors.
Members of the Greek Olympic Medalists Association are
to depart tomorrow aboard a C-130, among them the world
champion of javelin Mirela Magnani-Tzelili.
[05] MICHAEL DUKAKIS TO VISIT THESSALONIKI THIS MONTH
The presidential candidate for the Democratic
Party in the U.S. presidential elections of 1988 Michael S.
Dukakis will be the guest of honor at Thessaloniki's
Anatolia College (ACT) on September 13 where he will accept
the school's Michael S. Dukakis Chair in Public Policy and
Service.
Mr. Dukakis will give a speech at the
inauguration ceremony, along with Greek Development Minister
Evangelos Venizelos, US Ambassador to Greece
Nicholas Burns and the chairman of the Anatolia College
board of trustees, George Bissell.
Mr. Dukakis has had a distinguished career as
the governor of Massachusetts serving two non-consecutive
terms - and was voted "Best Governor in the Nation" by the
National Governors' Association in 1986. After the
presidential elections, he completed his third term as
governor and then entered the academic world. He has since
held several appointments at US universities, most recently
as a visiting professor at the department of policy studies
at UCLA.
[06] PRESIDENT OF GREECE RECEIVES CHILDREN OF SERB
JOURNALISTS
A group of children whose parents are journalists in
Serbia, were received yesterday by the President of the
Hellenic Republic Kostis Stephanopoulos as part of their
holiday in Greece.
The 32 youths were hosted by the Newspaper Editors
Association of Athens (ESHEA) at the camping grounds of St.
Andreas.
President Stephanopoulos emphasized upon his young
listeners that he Greek people have friendly sentiments
towards the Serb people, and wished upon them every success
in the new school year.
The Yugoslav Ambassador to Athens Dragomir Vuciceviv
and members of ESHEA were also present during the meeting.
[07] TWO TREMORS OCCUR NEAR ZAKYNTHOS, NO DAMAGES REPORTED
Two earthquakes, measuring 4.5 and 4 on the Richter
scale respectively, occurred during the morning hours at the
Ionian Sea island of Zakynthos.
The epicenter of the tremors was noted in the sea
region, south of the island. No damages have been reported.
[08] ASE MARKS NEW RECORD, GENERAL INDEX CONTINUES UPWARD
Another record was marked in the Athens Stock Exchange
today, as the general price index maintained a steadily
upward course and registered profits amounting to 3.19%,
closing at 5,371.57 points.
Trading also followed a similar trend, rising to GRD321
billion.
In the banks sector, the National Bank of Greece ended
at GRD24,0800, Ionic at GRD17,400, Commercial at GRD32,000,
Labor at GRD28,590 and Credit at GRD24,500.
[09] PAPANDREOU: THERE IS BROAD CONSENSUS ON TURKEY'S
ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE
Foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou stated that the
government will make its final decisions on the issue of the
Greek veto on Turkey's EU funding as soon as his contacts
with the political party leaders and the former foreign
ministers are completed.
He said that there is a broad consensus over a Greek
initiative for the assistance of the earthquake stricken
population in Turkey both as a humanitarian and as a
political act toward the country.
[10] PAPANDREOU: THE STABILITY PACT IS A HISTORIC CHANCE FOR
THE BALKANS
The European institutions will decide in September on
the building that will house the Balkan Reconstruction
Organization. At the same time, the Stability Pact
secretariat will start operating based both in Thessaloniki
and in Brussels.
The statements were made in Thessaloniki by Balkan
Stability Pact coordinator Bodo Hombach who, together with
foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou, minister of Macedonia-
Thrace Yiannis Magriotis and national economy undersecretary
Rodoula Zisi, visited the Vocational Training Center
(CEDEFOP), Thessaloniki's International Trade Fair and the
buildings that are considered to house the seat of the
Organization for the Reconstruction of the Balkans.
Mr. Hombach characterized as friendly gesture the
assistance offered by Greece to Turkey to help it overcome
the devastating earthquake of August 17, adding that this
gesture will help both sides and Europe very much.
Greek foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou gave the
assurance to Mr. Hombach that the Greek government will
respond positively to the facilitation requested in order
for the Reconstruction Committee to be based in
Thessaloniki.
Mr. Hombach stated that the sensitivity of the Greek
politicians and their experience in the Balkans will be a
decisive factor for the success of the effort for the
reconstruction of the Balkans and for this reason, they will
be backed by the European Union. He also clarified that
Thessaloniki will be the seat of the Reconstruction
Committee
Mr. Papandreou stressed that the Stability Pact is a
historic chance for the Balkans, while the minister of
Macedonia-Thrace stated that time flies in a positive way
for Thessaloniki.
[11] 9.5 TRILLION DRACHMAS FOR THE SECTOR OF AGRICULTURE
Prime minister Kostas Simitis announced at noon today
that 9.5 trillion drachmas will be given to the agriculture
sector in the period of 2000-2006. The statement was made
after the governmental meeting in which participated
national economy and agriculture ministers Yiannos
Papantoniou and Giorgos Anomeritis as well as, Agriculture
Bank governor Petros Lambrou.
The interest rates on the loans taken by new farmers
will be cut from 8.5 to 7.5%, while the farmers' pensions
will be increased by 25% in case of early retirement. Also,
starting on January 1, 2000, 50% of the compensations
decided to be given to farmers will be paid in advance.
Further announcements on social security issues
concerning the farmers will be made by the prime minister in
the formal opening of Thessaloniki's International Trade
Fair.
[12] GALATASARAY IS IN THESSALONIKI FOR THE FOOTBALL MATCH
AGAINST PAOK
The Turkish football team of Galatasaray arrived in
Thessaloniki at noon today and tomorrow will play a historic
match against the local football team of PAOK. The match
will start at 9:15pm and the money collected will be sent to
the earthquake stricken population in Turkey showing that
sports unite the people.
The Galatasaray players praised the initiative
undertaken by the Greek team and thanked the people of
Greece for the assistance they offer to the suffering
population in Turkey.
[13] TRAIN CARRYING NATO SOLDIERS DERAILED AT THE BORDERS
WITH FYROM
A train carrying NATO soldiers and military vehicles to
Kosovo via FYROM derailed 5 kilometers from the Greek-FYROM
borders at the valley of Axios river. Specifically, 9 of the
train's 16 cars derailed and according to a statement issued
by the Greek Railways Organization, there were no injuries
reported among the 120 Belgian soldiers on board the train.
An investigation is underway to determine the causes of
the accident.
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[14] THREE MASS GRAVES FOUND IN PRISHTINA, OVER TEN BODIES
IN EACH
Three mass graves, each containing at least ten bodies,
were discovered last night in the posh suburb of Prishtina,
"Suncani Breg".
According to Belgrade's daily "Blic", KFOR peacekeeping
troops have cordoned off the area, not allowing access to
journalists.
The paper also reported that it is not known as of yet
if the bodies belong to Albanians or Serbs.
[15] TURKISH JOURNALIST EMBARKS ON RALLY OF "THANKS" TO
GREEKS
A Turkish journalist is embarking on a 30-mile journey
from Turkey to Greece in order to express his heartfelt
"thanks" to the Greek people for their outpour of support
to his country's earthquake victims.
Osman Akkus, who is the president of Turkey's
Association of Ecologists-Journalists and the editor in
chief of the "Cepcevre" daily, set off yesterday afternoon
from Kesan and, holding a sign that says "Thanks Friend" in
Greek, began walking towards the Greek-Turkish border at
Ipsala.
Before embarking on his journey, Mr. Akkus said that
he is carrying 17 pine saplings (the specific number being a
reminder of August 17, the day the earthquake devastated
Turkey) half of which he will plant in Turkey and the other
half he will hand over to Greek soldiers at the border so
they can plant them on Greek soil.
He expects to arrive at the border later today, which
marks the World Peace Day.
"It is significant that we will arrive at the Greek
border on such a significant day," he said.
His next target is to conduct a friendship march from
Istanbul to Athens.
[16] IMF DELEGATION WILL VISIT TURKEY TO ASSESS FINANCIAL
NEED
A delegation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
will travel to Turkey on September 8 in order to discuss
the country's financial situation in the aftermath of the
violent earthquake that shattered its industrial heartland,
the Turkish Department of Treasury announced today.
The delegation will meet Turkish fiscal authorities on
providing an emergency loan to deal with the economic
devastation the quake has caused.
As the French news agency AFP reported, IMF emergency
assistance is normally granted after natural disasters or
major conflicts in order to help a country deal with balance
of payments difficulties.
Unlike other financial institutions, the IMF does not
grant emergency aid, but in urgent cases, countries have
drawing rights of up to 25 percent of their shares in IMF
capital.
Turkey has a quota of 1.317 billion dollars in the
organization's capital,
and 25 percent would be roughly equivalent to 330 million
dollars.
[17] ONE KILLED, SCORES INJURED IN SERIES OF AFTERSHOCKS IN
TURKEY
A series of fresh aftershocks jolted northwestern
Turkey today, one day after two powerful tremors killed one
person and injured 166, the Kandilli seismic institute in
Istanbul said.
The strongest aftershock measured 3.8 on the Richter
scale and hit Yalova, on the Marmara Sea coast, followed by
a tremor of 3.2 epicentered in Adapazar.
Both towns were hit by nine mild aftershocks overnight,
the institute said.
[18] GREECE TO SUPPORT EU'S PLANS FOR HUMANITARIAN AID TO
TURKEY
Greece intends to support the European Union's proposal
for funding to Turkey, on the provision that the said monies
will be allocated for aid in the earthquake-stricken
regions, according to deputy foreign Minister Yiannos
Kranidiotis.
The deputy FM reiterated that Greece is eager to assist
in the granting of financial aid to Turkey, but only in
relation to the earthquake disaster.
Regarding the Cyprus issue, Mr. Kranidiotis referred to
the talks he had with British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook
and stated that they have agreed on the need to embark on a
bi-communal dialogue, within the framework of the United
Nations, sans terms and preconditions.
When asked by the BBC if a confederation plan is
being promoted for resolving the Cyprus issue, Mr.
Kranidiotis said that such a solution is ruled out since one
entity with two sovereign states cannot accede the European
Union.
[19] QUESTION ON THE AKKUYU NUCLEAR PLANT BY A GREEK EURO-
DEPUTY
The risks involved in the planned construction of an
electricity production nuclear plant in the region of Akkuyu
in Turkey, were underlined by Greek Euro-deputy for the
party of New Democracy Yiannis Marinos in a question he
directed to the European Commission requesting to be
informed on its position concerning the issue.
On the occasion of the devastating earthquake that hit
Turkey, Mr. Marinos reminded that the region of Akkuyu had
also been hit a year ago by a strong earthquake with many
victims. The Euro-deputy also pointed out that a number of
catastrophic earthquakes have hit the wider region in recent
years, stressing that it is placed among the most earthquake
stricken regions in the world. He also said that the
construction of the nuclear plant constitutes a direct
threat to the region's safety and furthermore, to the safety
of south-eastern Mediterranean in general.
[20] A GREEK CYPRIOT WAS MURDERED IN THE TURKISH OCCUPIED
NORTHERN CYPRUS
A Greek Cypriot, 68yearold Stelios Harpas, who lived in
the Turkish occupied northern Cyprus, was found murdered in
Rizokarpaso, according to a report published today by the
Turkish Cypriot newspaper "Kipris".
His wife had reported to the Turkish Cypriot police
that her husband was missing on Monday evening and according
to the newspaper, she had also told the police that her
husband had left their house when he received a telephone
call from a man who maintained that he was a police officer.
It should be noted that 27 Greek Cypriots have been
killed in the Turkish occupied territories under unclear
circumstances since 1974, when the Turkish forces invaded
and occupied the northern part of Cyprus.
Cypriot Republic president Glafkos Clerides stated
today that he will make all necessary moves and Cypriot
foreign minister Yiannakis Kasoulides called on the soldiers
of the UN peace-keeping mission on the island to launch a
detailed investigation.
[21] THE ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH VISITED THE EARTHQUAKE
STRICKEN CITY OF IZMIT
Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos visited the
earthquake stricken region of the city of Izmit in north-
western Turkey, accompanied by monks and Greek youth
representatives.
The Ecumenical Patriarch visited the city hospital
where a monk-doctor remained to offer his services. He also
visited the city university and delivered a 100.000 dollar
cheque to the prefect of Izmit for the restoration of the
damages caused to the university buildings by the monster
earthquake that hit the region on August 17.
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