The members of "Action" have set up a 600 square meter banner reading "Not to the imperialist war".

According to statements of "Action" member Giorgos Chavatzas, this action proves that some people will not stay home and do nothing, while it is indicative of what is to follow over the next few days.

An air defense umbrella has been formed at the Souda base in Crete, with arrays of "Patriot", "S-300" and "Crotale" missiles, while Navy divers are guarding the sea region. Measures have also been taken at the Aktion and Tirnavos bases.

Attica has also set up air defenses, with arrays of "Patriot" missiles on Mt. Parnitha, while as soon as the war commences, a group of soldiers will be guarding the Pentagon roof with portable "Stinger" rockets.

Also, as soon as the war commences, the plan for industrial mobilization will be put into effect, which foresees the guarding of public welfare facilities.

Cases are increasing in number, and after Canada and Germany, three more travelers were located in France and Britain with the serious respiratory syndrome that has claimed the lives of 9 people so far.

After a meeting yesterday at the Ministry of Health, a decision was made to implement the measures proposed by the World Health Organization in order to prevent the virus' transmission to Greece.

Specifically, epidemic surveillance of the phenomenon has been increased and doctors have been asked to immediately report every suspicious case, contagious disease departments in all hospitals have been put on alert to deal with any possible incidents, and all passengers arriving from or traveling to Southeast Asia are being informed and examined.

We are ready, as far as that word can be used, stated T. Panagiotopoulos, head of the contagious disease surveillance team of the Ministry of Health yesterday.

Specialists advise that trips to countries where the illness has been recorded, i.e. China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, be postponed.

Symptoms of this dangerous pneumonia, that makes itself apparent rapidly, are fever, coughing, difficulty in breathing, headaches, diarrhea and muscle pains.

At the "Eleftherios Venizelos" airport in Athens, aircrafts from the regions above are disinfected, while passengers traveling to Southeast Asia are informed on what they must do if they develop the symptoms. They are also given a special information man ual.

Concern is evident as the end of the ultimatum coincides with the day the informal Spring Summit Meeting is to be held by the European Union in Brussels, and will unavoidably affect the agenda of the discussions. The Greek Presidency has always aimed at achieving a common EU front towards the Iraq crisis and an orientation towards a diplomatic solution, but now, with Baghdad being bombed and Britain and Spain on the side of the US, this seems impossible, since dissent within the EU is more than obvious.

At 11am, Prime Minister of Greece and President of the EU, Costas Simitis, will brief the President of the Republic Costis Stefanopoulos, and will depart for Brussels at 5pm for Thursday's Summit Meeting. There he will meet with the leaders of EU member- states and will form the atmosphere in which the Summit's works will be held, under the heavy shadow of the war in Iraq.

Specifically, Greek Police Special Forces squads have been deployed outside the buildings housing the US, British, and Spanish Consulates, while the roads around the buildings are being patrolled around the clock by plain-clothes officers with convention al license plates. Police sources mentioned that as soon as the first bombings commence, the guarding of the three consulates, as well as companies based in those three countries with branches in Thessaloniki will intensify even more, in order to avert po ssible terrorist actions.

Also, in the framework of the emergency police measures, higher police officials have been set as supervisors carrying out checks in all high risk targets (diplomat residences, consulates, consortium offices, etc.). Further police special forces have bee n put on alert.

Meanwhile, the emergency measures to be implemented at "Macedonia" airport of Thessaloniki in view of the war are expected to be announced today.

The information above was announced during a meeting of the Defense Ministry and OKANA (Organization Against Drugs), on "prevention of substance addiction in the Armed Forces".

Also, according to the information announced at the meeting, 15% of young people are acquainted with drugs in the place of employment and the army, while 42% of enlisted men have tried more than 1 kind of controlled substance.

As far as the family conditions of these young drug users, 44% of them stated that it did not live in a problematic family, 30% stated that its family had problems, 14% lived only with its mother and 10% only with its father.

At the same time he recommended self-control and said that the EU must continue its course and it is now the time to make an effort in forming a common foreign policy.

"Every hour must be used, every day, for the peaceful resolving of the crisis", stressed Foreign Minister and President of the European Council Giorgos Papandreou, in response to journalist questions at the Azores meeting, in joint statements after the m eeting he had with Turkish former Foreign Minister Ismail Cem.

Mr. Papandreou noted that the Greek Presidency wishes "for the peaceful resolving of the Iraq issue, even at the last moment" with the exhausting of every possibility in the framework of the UN, and with respect to its decisions, he said, in reference to

the decision of the Brussels Emergency European Council meeting in February.

He underlined that Greece, as the presiding country of the EU, will undertake initiatives until the very last moment, noting that on Sunday night he had telephone communications with his counterparts in the UK, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, and Luxemb ourg, and the head of the inspectors in Iraq, Hans Blix.

On his side, Mr. Cem aligned himself with the view of the EU and especially the position of French President Jacques Chirac, stressing that a possible war in Iraq would confirm all those making mention of a conflict of cultures and will bring on a new wa ve of terrorism. Emergency ministerial meeting

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Costas Simitis has called an emergency ministerial meeting this afternoon, to discuss the new conditions being formed on the verge of war in Iraq and the position of the Greek government. At 13:30, the Prime Minister will make s tatements from the Maximos Mansion, before his departure at 17:00 for Brussels.

Three Greek officers in the peacekeeping force in Iraq at the Iraq-Kuwait boarder, have already been withdrawn to the city from where they will leave the country, quite possibly along with 7 others who are on the Iraq-Turkey boarders, after a UN directio n.

Lastly, the "Kountouriotis" cruiser, which is on patrol off the Ourmouz straights in the Arab Sea, will leave the war zone as soon as operations begin, while the "Ydra" cruiser is at Suez, en route to the Mediterranean.

Eye-witness Pavlos Nicolaidis recognized Dimitris Koufontinas during his testimony in court today, as one of the culprits in the murder of Christos Matis. He stressed that Koufontinas participated in the bloody robbery, disguised as a police officer hold ing a box full of sweets.

The witness stated, however, that because there was a struggle to immobilize Christos Matis, he was unable to see who fired the shot that killed him.

According to the case brief, other defendants implicated in the Matis case are Nikos Papanastasiou, Patroklos Tselentis, Christodoulos Xeros, Dimitris Koufontinas and Giannis Skandalis, who is deceased.

Meanwhile, all objections concerning the removal of preliminary investigation testimonies from the case briefs, due to them being elicited through torture or because they were recanted, were overruled this morning.

Regarding the role of the UN he stated that the expected war against Iraq "does not mean the end of the UN", while regarding the Greek Presidency of the European Union, he said that "it has a responsible and constructive role".

"Iraq should have given answers earlier and the inspectors shouldn't have had to become detectives", he had stated in an earlier intervention during the Symposium. He also said that the threats come from "unstable countries". Mr. Miller characterized NAT O as the most renewed and flexible alliance. "This is not a battle between Europeans and Americans", he said, adding that "we understand our European friends that support us". In closing he pointed out that "the US are also interested in what will happen the next day".

The war in Iraq is a major international crisis, he stressed, and pointed out the following:

Greece still supports that the UN is a guarantor of international legality in a global society of justice. Violence is the ultimate means and needs the clear legalization of the UN.

The crisis in Iraq will not affect the course of the EU, which must, at last, apply a common foreign and defense policy.

The Iraq issue will be discussed at the European Summit Meeting on Thursday, in Brussels, as will the other issues that have been scheduled (financial growth, employment, social cohesion).

Greece is not participating and will not participate in the war, it will just observe the obligations it has due to the international Treaties and Agreements it has signed.

The state mechanism in Greece is vigilant, it is ready to deal with any eventuality, and spasmodic actions by citizens will not help.

According to MPA information, the illegal immigrants that will be arrested, mainly those coming from Iraq and other Islamic countries in the region, will be interrogated to prevent infiltration of terrorist group members planning to engage in sabotage an d other actions mainly against US targets.

Meanwhile, the likelihood of war operations in Iraq in the next hours has put the Greek security forces in a state of alert.

According to the Athens newspaper "Eleftherotipia", conventional measures used to guard targets, either buildings or individuals, are in effect, while all state agencies dealing with the gathering, assessment and cross-checking of information are being a ctivated. Also, the State Information Agency, and the inter-state information flow systems work in a feverish pace.

The Greek Ministry of Culture initiative will tour 27 countries and 38 cities in Europe, as well as two cities in the United States and China.

It is the most massive "exportation" of cultural goods ever attempted by the Greek Culture Ministry in a period of just six months. In this effort, the Greek Culture Ministry and its services join forces with 30 more institutions.

Responsible for the seminar are the Culture Ministry's directorates on Greece-EU Relations, the Classical and Prehistoric Antiquities and the Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Monuments.

In total participate 34 archaeologists and academics, 22 from Greece and 12 from other countries.

The seminar will focus on policies of conservation and management of cultural heritage, based on international Conventions.

Mr. Karamanlis called for effective monitoring of the fuel market to avoid unjustified price increases and speculation, immediate support of tourism and aggressive ad campaign showing to the world that Greece is a safe country. He also called for prevent ive measures at a European level for a common stance in the likelihood of a refugee wave.

The decisive role in the positive climate recorded in the ASE today was played by the upward trend in all major European stock markets.

Of the stocks trading today, the overwhelming majority of 336 recorded gains and only 14 had losses, while the value of 33 stocks remained unchanged.

The Greek Defense Minister said that it is an extremely unpleasant fact but we will have to deal with it, adding that unfortunately the European Union has exhausted all efforts in its struggle to secure a peaceful settlement of the crisis.

The war has not been declared yet, said Mr. Papantoniou, the UN Security Council will meet again but the war appears inevitable.

Mr. Papantoniou pointed out that the European Defense Unification should move ahead quickly, while he stressed that Greece will not offer any assistance in the war operations.

Greek government spokesman Christos Protopapas stated that market inspections will intensify to avert speculation and measures will continue to be in effect to secure adequate fuel supplies.

Also, measures will be taken to stop a likely increase in the movement of illegal immigrants trying to take advantage of the situation in Iraq. Markets will be closely monitored to avert problems and protect consumers.

The Civil Protection mechanism will be activated in border regions and security measures in airports will intensify, as well as in foreign embassy buildings and other likely "special targets". Also, all possible measures should be taken to avert a wave o f illegal immigration.

The Greek government spokesman stated that the Foreign Ministry has ordered the evacuation of the Greek embassy in Baghdad which will operate with local personnel.

Finally, Mr. Protopapas made an appeal to the Greek nationals in Iraq to leave the country for their own safety.

Mr. Protopapas stated that no one is immune to the consequences of a war in Iraq, consequences that will have an effect on global economy. He said that for this reason the Greek government is in a state of alert and all necessary measures have been taken

for the protection of the Greek economy, the Greek citizens and the Greek consumers.

The government spokesman called on New Democracy to display a sense of responsibility and avoid creating problems and an atmosphere of unease during such crucial moments.

the EU-Ukraine Association Council.

He expressed regret for the difference of opinions and the division observed in the UN regarding the Iraqi crisis, underlining that it is very important for the UN to be at the central stage in all further developments in the Iraqi crisis.

"The paramount concerns we have, and we will discuss them of course in the next few days, the plight of the Iraqi people, the territorial integrity of Iraq and the stability of the region obviously in the largest picture of the Middle East process and ou r candidate country Turkey, are important to be seen in this light", said Mr. Papandreou.

Mr. Papandreou pointed out that through the Iraqi crisis the EU is faced with a real challenge concerning the development of a Common Foreign and Security Policy, while he referred specifically to the EU-US relations saying that it is necessary to give a n emphasis to bilateral dialogue on such issues like global governance.

The Greek Foreign Minister also referred to the EU relations with the Arab and Muslim world, pointing out that regarding the immediate political issues linked with the Iraqi crisis "whatever the outcome of the Middle East peace process will be, we will b e in close contact with our Arab friends and of course with the Muslim world".

There are crises, problems, and issues dividing us, but there are also a lot uniting us. As a Presidency we will be moving the Union forward, and that is the mandate that all 15 agree with, said Mr. Papandreou.

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