This afternoon the Head of the Opposition will also meet with the Israeli Ambassador, David Sasson. Mr. Karamanlis will discuss developments in the Middle East with both.

He also stressed that the Consulate is in daily contact with all of them, and has prepared and evacuation plan, to be put into effect if necessary.

"I must point out, however, that we are dealing with a terrifying reaction from the Israeli authorities, who consider all European citizens who have a Palestinian passports Palestinians, and forbid them movement through the city", he added.

Furthermore, he expressed his displeasure with the treatment of High Commissioner for Common Foreign Policy and Political Defense of the EU, Xavier Solana, and Spanish Foreign Minister, Josep Pique, by the Israelis.

The unidentified culprits called the "Nea" and "Eleftherotypia" newspapers, taking responsibility for the explosion and stating that it was a move of support for the Palestinian people.

Another solidarity rally will take place today at 7pm by the statue of Eleftherios Venizelos, in Aristotelous Square, Thessaloniki. The rally was organized by the Workers' Center of Thessaloniki, the Committee for Peace and Detente, associations of Greek

and Palestinian university students and the Palestinian Community.

To the people who have walked or are walking the warpath, Mikis Theodorakis dedicates his lyrical comedy, "Lyssistrata". The play, based on Aristophanes' comedy, has it world premiere on April 14 a the Athens "Megaron" Music Hall, in cooperation with the

Greek National Opera, in the framework of the Cultural Olympics, with the participation of great performers.

With this play, the composer wants to send a message of peace to the whole world, especially to the likes of the Palestinian and Afghan people, who are suffering the terrors of war.

Mr. Papandreou stressed that mediations must be made in order to assist with a way out of the dead end in the Middle East, while he pointed out that the consequences of the developments may be tragic for the region. Mr. Papandreou characterized bilateral

relations between Greece and Russia as excellent.

On his side, Mr. Ivanof underlined that "Greek-Russian relations are gradually developing, with transparency, to the benefit of our societies".

The Russian Minister, referring to the Cyprus issue, stated that a paradoxical situation is being formed, and he did not rule out the possibility of a Greek-Turkish confrontation. There is a danger of confrontation between a member state of NATO and a me mber state of the EU" he said. The Greek Minister stated that Cyprus will be incorporated to the EU, regardless of whether or not the Cyprus issue is resolved, and he called Ankara to comply with principles of International Law, Democracy, and human right s.

The two men discussed the reinforcement of military cooperation, and they signed a relating protocol for 2002, for the joint training of their special forces, exchange of officers, and cooperation of their defense industries. Mr. Ivanof repeated the requ est of Russian President Vladimir Putin, for equal treatment of the Russian weapon industry in international weapons systems tenders.

Mr. Papantoniou answered that "in weapons systems tenders, the best man always wins", and he added that decisions are made based on technical and financial criteria.

The Russian Minister invited Mr. Papantoniou to visit Moscow, an invitation the Greek Minister accepted.

"What is happening at the temple of the Genesis in Bethlehem, places a major monument, not only of Christianity but of world heritage, in danger.

The Orthodox Patriarchy of Jerusalem, as well as the Latin and Armenian Patriarchies, have jurisdiction of the Temple of the Genesis. This factor explains the special interest of Greece in the monuments of the Holy Lands", pointed out Mr. Venizelos in hi s telegram.

"I am sure that you have moved to all necessary actions, but I plead with you again to move all mechanisms that may avert harm to these monuments. Their protection, will contribute to the cease fire and the prevalence of peace", he ended.

The Ionian Sea is a region with high seismic activity and the last strong earthquake was recorded in October 1988 measuring 6 on the Richter scale.

Mr. Karamanlis discussed with them the crisis in the Middle East and called for an immediate ceasefire and the activation of the international community for the implementation of the UN decisions.

The meeting attended representatives of regions from Greece, Romania, Turkey, FYROM, Albania, Bulgaria, and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

The participants discussed organizing issues such as, the organizing structure of the Balkan Committee and the establishment of working groups to deal with specific issues such as, the environment, administration reform and culture.

The opening session of the conference will be launched with the speech of the new Black Sea Bank governor Mustafa Gurtin and proceedings will open formally by Greek Undersecretary of Finance Giorgos Floridis.

Of the stocks trading today, 275 recorded gains and 57 had losses, while the value of 44 stocks remained unchanged.

Responding to a relevant question, the government spokesman stated that there is no change in the Greek positions regarding the Palestinians. He stated characteristically that the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister have stressed the need for the cre ation of an independent Palestinian state, while at the same time they support the right of the Israeli people to live in safety.

The protocol was signed by ERT3 General Director Dimitris Katsantonis and RTR vice-president Valeri Niznamov and provides for cooperation in the sectors of program co-productions, exchange of television programs, news exchanges and co-organizing of cultu ral and artistic events.

The signing of the protocol of cooperation is placed within the framework of the cooperation initiatives launched between ERT3 and public television stations in the Balkans and the Black Sea region.

In statements he made, Mr. Paschalidis underlined that relations between the two countries have improved, and that during the meeting they discussed the Greek program for the restructuring of the Balkans, from which more than $83,000,000 will be dispense d for FYROM.

In June, the Thessaloniki-Skopje oil pipeline will begin functioning, and Mr. Georgiefski proposed it be extended to Kossovo. He also asked for the opening of three new border crossings between Greece and Skopje, in Aridea (Pella), Doiranis (Kilkis), and

St. Germanos (Florina).

The Prime Minister of FYROM asked Mr. Paschalidis to transfer a request, to take up initiative in calling the conference for the Stability Pact into session, to Prime Minister Simitis. He proposed that putting the Thessaloniki-Monastiri track back into o peration and the funding of a Thessaloniki-Skopje road, are incorporated in the actions of the program.

Mr. Paschalidis and Mr. Georgiefski agreed on a common policy concerning the protection of the environment and dealing with pollution problems. Specifically on the Axios river, Mr. Paschalidis raised the issue of multiple incidents of pollution by FYROM industrial units, and they agreed on a joint program of informing one another.

Mr. Paschalidis stated that they did not discuss the name issue. He stressed that it is an issue for the Foreign Ministry and noted: "We are searching for a commonly acceptable solution in the UN framework, a solution with dignity for both countries".

In his meetings with FYROM Prime Minister Ljupco Georgievski and government ministers, Mr. Paschalidis discussed the materialization of the Greek program for the reconstruction of the Balkans which corresponds to US$ 83 million for FYROM.

In the meetings Mr. Paschalidis had with the FYROM government leadership, pointed out that the Greek government backs the accession of FYROM into the Euro-Atlantic structures.

Mr. Paschalidis, who is on a visit to FYROM, reiterated to Mr. Trajkovski Greece's firm support to his country's efforts to become part of the Euro-Atlantic structures and stressed that Greece works for peace, stability and cooperation in the Balkans.

In the meeting with Environment Minister Vladimir Jabirski, they discussed the implementation of joint environment protection programs for Axios River, Lake Doiran and the Park of Prespes.

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