Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 97-06-27
NEWS IN ENGLISH
Athens, Greece, 27/06/1997 (ANA)
MAIN HEADLINES
- Athens categorically rejects Ankara's claims
- Greece, Cyprus coordinate moves on organised crime
- Tourism better, but work still to be done
- Greek parliamentary observers to Albanian elections leave today
- Greek ethnic leaders in Albania kidnapped as violence continues
- Premier confident of successful Athens 2004 bid
- EU socialist finance ministers weekend meeting in Athens
- Police arrest 19 in car smuggling scam
- Mortgage Bank focuses on services for Greek expatriates
- Greenpeace congratulates gov't over solar power plant decision
- Egypt to compensate Greeks who lost fortunes
- Fine levied on Turkish ship
- Weather
- Foreign exchange
NEWS IN DETAIL
Athens categorically rejects Ankara's claims
The government today termed "groundless, unfounded, unsubstantiated, rash,
inane and laughable" accusations by Ankara claiming that the body of a
Greek officer had been found in northern Iraq during operations by the
Turkish army against Kurdish guerillas.
''The accuser has the burden and responsibility to produce the evidence,''
government spokesman Dimitris Reppas said, replying to a question from the
correspondent of a Turkish newspaper.
Reppas stressed that the hurling of such accusations against Greece harmed
Turkey, while the persons behind the accusations ''are showing the
international community that they do not have the maturity, ability,
responsibility or will to tackle their country's problems with political
means''.
Greece, Cyprus coordinate moves on organised crime
The public order ministers of Greece and Cyprus, George Romeos and Nikos
Kosis, today discussed ways of combatting organised crime, terrorism, drug
trafficking and abuse.
Kosis arrived in Greece on an official visit yesterday accompanied by
senior police officers including the head of the island republic's
force.
The two ministries have maintained close cooperation since December 1993
when they signed a police cooperation agreement in Nicosia.
After today's talks, Romeos announced that the Cyprus police will soon be
given access to Greece's computerised fingerprint identification system,
subject to permission, to assist them particularly in cases involving
terrorism and drug trafficking.
Romeos and Kosis have been friends for the past 32 years, ever since the
former went to Cyprus to help Kosis publish a newspaper.
Tourism better, but work still to be done
Although the Greek National Tourist Organisation (GNTO) is anticipating a 5-
10 per cent increase in foreign tourist arrivals compared to last year,
there is no room for complacency due to the structural problems which
remain in Greek tourism, GNTO General Secretary Nikos Skoulas said
today.
Skoulas was speaking to 300 British reporters, writers and businessmen
active in the tourism sector who are participating in a three-day annual
conference of the Institute of Travel and Tourism (ITT) which opened this
morning.
The GNTO chief assured the conference delegates that ''a new spirit of
professionalism'' was now prevailing in Greece, while ''a renewed standard
of tourism development'' had been adopted with emphasis on quality rather
than low prices.
Skoulas advised tour operators against pressing Greek hoteliers to lower
their rates, saying this would only result in a ''vicious circle'' of lower
prices-lower quality which in the end left customers unsatisfied.
He also expressed support for the establishment of one or more private
Greek airline companies to compete directly with the ''over-protected''
national carrier, Olympic Airways, and urged the speedy liberalisation of
airport services, including ground handling.
Greek parliamentary observers to Albanian elections leave today
A seven-member interparty parliamentary delegation leaves for Tirana today
to act as observers in general elections in the neighbouring country on
Sunday.
For the same reason, four Greek Eurodeputies will travel to Albania. Ruling
PASOK party deputy Eleftherios Veryvakis will be going to Albania as an
observer with the Council of Europe.
Meanwhile, seven coaches carrying Albanian nationals intending to vote in
Sunday's poll left for Albania yesterday from the northern port city of
Thessaloniki.
The coaches were carrying almost 300 people but authorities say the number
of those returning to vote has been small, probably due to the fear of
attack from the armed gangs roaming the Albanian countryside.
Greek ethnic leaders in Albania kidnapped as violence continues
Reports from the Albanian city of Gjirocaster yesterday said that Theodoros
Bezianis, the former president of the local branch of the ethnic Greek
"Omonia" party had been kidnapped near his village of Frastani.
The circumstances of the kidnapping were not immediately clear. Mr.
Beziani's daughter, who is standing for election in Sunday's poll as a
candidate for the Human Rights Party, insisted that the kidnapping was
politically motivated.
Mr. Bezianis, an American citizen, is one of five ethnic Greeks imprisoned
in Albania in 1994 on charges of espionage and weapons possession after a
gunman killed two Albanian soldiers in a conscript camp near the border.
Their arrest and conviction in August 1994 rekindled a simmering feud
between Athens and Tirana over the human rights of the ethnic Greek
minority in southern Albania, estimated by Athens at 400,000.
Albanian President Sali Berisha released one of the five on Christmas Eve
1994 and the remaining four - on appeal to Albania's Supreme Court - had
their sentences reduced or suspended.
Mr. Bezianis's daughter said her father had been receiving threatening
phone calls for the last few days to withdraw his candidacy. Her brother
Costas Bezianis is the proprietor of the largest soft drink bottling plant
in southern Albania and has also been the target of threats and attacks.
A later report from Ioannina said another ethnic Greek Albanian, Vassilis
Kremydas, the president of the Examilia community and brother-in-law of the
former president of "Omonia" Sotiris Kyriazatis, had been kidnapped by
armed men in Sarande.
The report said the kidnappers had asked for a ransom of 40 million
drachmas by today or Mr. Kremydas would be killed.
Premier confident of successful Athens 2004 bid
Prime Minister Costas Simitis said yesterday he was convinced that Athens
had a great possibility of succeeding in its bid to host the 2004 Olympic
Games, after being briefed on the Greek capital's candidacy by Athens 2004
committee president Yianna Angelopoulou-Daskalaki.
Mr. Simitis expressed complete satisfaction at the efforts so far of the
"Athens 2004" bid committee and Angelopoulou-Daskalaki, in particular,
following the briefing at the committee's headquarters at Zappeion
Hall.
"We have a very good chance of being selected to stage the Games, because
of the excellent infrastructure, but also because we are proposing a
different spirit for the Olympics. We do not want them to be a strictly
athletic event, but rather a cultural event which highlights peace and
friendship between peoples," Mr. Simitis said.
Noting that Greece had great experience in staging major sports events, Mr.
Simitis said the hosting in Athens of the World Athletics Championship in
August would serve as a general test.
Replying to questions which have been aired concerning the cost of staging
the Games, the premier stressed that it was an issue which could be "dealt
with."
"We spend a great deal of money to promote our country with regard to
tourism," he noted.
Mr. Simitis also expressed the view that the staging of the Olympics could
help Greece in its national issues.
"There are always hotbeds of crisis, particularly in the Balkans. We can
project the spirit of Olympism as a means of promoting peace and cooperation
among peoples. Greece confronts all problems with a peaceful approach," Mr.
Simitis said, expressing th e hope that Athens would eventually be
chosen.
EU socialist finance ministers weekend meeting in Athens
Socialist finance ministers from European Union member-states meet in
Athens this weekend to discuss strengthening the social state, accelerating
growth and boosting employment in the EU.
The meeting, organised by National Economy and Finance Minister Yiannos
Papantoniou will be attended by Prime Minister Costas Simitis.
The meeting will be held with the participation of British Chancellor of
the Exchequer Gordon Brown, French Finance Minister Dominique Strauss-Kahn,
Portuguese Finance Minister Antonio de Sousa-Franco, Italian Finance
Minister Vincenzo Visco and Finnish
Finance Minister Arja Alho as well as former Swedish finance minister Kjell-
Olof Feldt and former Irish finance minister and leader of the Irish Labour
Party, Ruari Quinn.
Former European Commission president Jacques Delors will also participate
at the meeting.
The focus of the meeting will be to find a clear socialist economic and
social policy which will fall in line with the EMU and the single European
currency while boosting growth and restricting unemployment. European
Socialists have been calling for bet ter coordination of EU economic
policies through a political body which would be enhanced with the
jurisdiction to consult with the European Central Bank, in an effort to put
growth under political control and not in the hands of bankers and
technocrats.
The meeting will also be attended by European officials, including the
president of the European Committee of the German Parliament, the president
of the Socialists in the Parliament of Luxembourg, an Austrian Socialist
Party representative responsible for economic issues, the vice-president of
the European Parliament and economic experts.
Police arrest 19 in car smuggling scam
Police have broken up a gang of 15 Hungarians and four Bulgarians alleged
to have stolen more than 70 luxury cars in Thessaloniki during the past two
years, subsequently selling them with forged papers in Bulgaria, Romania
and Russia.
Hungarian Andras Homola, 27, who is believed by police to be the ringleader,
has been arrested and is being held in Hungary, while three compatriots,
Laslo Toth, Zlot Kapitani and Laslone Ksekei are being held in the Diavata
prison in Thessaloniki.
The arrested will stand trial in the northern port city on October
20.
Due its seriousness and particularity, the case was presented at the 4th
European Regional Meeting of police force representatives in Lyons, France
on June 10-11.
Mortgage Bank focuses on services for Greek expatriates
The National Mortgage Bank of Greece will pay more attention to Greek
customers and investors living outside Greece, with a number of specially
designed programmes and banking products.
Mortgage Bank Governor Vassilis Rapanos announced the focus on expatriates
while on a visit to Toronto yesterday for contacts with the area's ethnic
Greeks.
The visit also coincides with the bank's 70th anniversary.
A bank delegation visited Montreal and Quebec last Monday and briefed Greek
community representatives on the bank's new products. Mortgage Bank
officials stressed that as part of its re-organisation, the bank has been
considering the creation of a speci al department to cater for the specific
needs of its overseas customers.
Greenpeace congratulates gov't over solar power plant decision
Prime Minister Costas Simitis yesterday received a letter of congratulations
from Greenpeace International chief Thilo Bode.
In his letter to the Greek premier, Mr. Bode referred to the positive
measures taken by the government on the improvemnt of renewable energy
sources and especially the building of the world's largest solar photovoltic
electric power plant on Crete. The Greenpeace official described the power
plant as a unique, historical achievement.
He said that in view of the Kyoto meeting, next December, it was vitally
important for governments to be able to implement a series of alternative
practices in the efforts to reduce emissions agravating the greenhouse
effect.
Finally, Mr Bode called on Greece to continue playing a leading role in
solar systems, taking advantage of the economic benefits involved in
investments and new job positions.
Egypt to compensate Greeks who lost fortunes
Bilateral relations were reviewed during a Greek-Egyptian relations
symposium organised by the Commerce and Industry Chamber of Athens (EBEA)
and the Greek-Egyptian friendship association in Athens.
The seminar focused on trade between the two countries, Egyptian investments
in Greece, the creation of joint ventures between Greek and Egyptian
businesses, and cooperation in the banking sector.
Egypt's ambassador in Athens Samir Self El Yazal said Cairo was willing to
compensate Greek-Egyptians who lost their fortunes when they fled from
Egypt several decades ago.
He also noted problems standing in the way of closer relations, in
particular obtaining visas for Egyptians. Greek and Egyptian businessmen
held several meetings during the seminar.
Fine levied on Turkish ship
Merchant Marine Minister Stavros Soumakis today imposed a 10 million
drachma fine on the Turkish captain of a Turkish-flagged cargo vessel for
pollution caused by the freighter off the Peloponnese coast on March
26.
The Turkish owning company, Demir Finansal Kiralama S.A., was also liable
to payment of the fine.
WEATHER
Fine weather is forecast in most parts the country today. Local clouds are
expected in mainland Greece only in the afternoon. Winds variable, light to
moderate. Athens will be sunny with tempreratures between 21-32C. Same in
Thessaloniki with temperatures from 19-30C.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Thursday's closing rates - buying US dlr. 270.598
Pound sterling 451.360 Cyprus pd 530.224
French franc 46.483 Swiss franc 187.959
German mark 156.845 Italian lira (100) 16.059
Yen (100) 237.842 Canadian dlr. 193.718
Australian dlr. 203.340 Irish Punt 409.498
Belgian franc 7.601 Finnish mark 52.566
Dutch guilder 139.356 Danish kr. 41.154
Swedish kr. 35.186 Norwegian kr. 37.361
Austrian sch. 22.295 Spanish peseta 1.855
Port. Escudo 1.553
(M.P.)
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