Athens News Agency: News in English, 03-02-17

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

CONTENTS

[01] PM Simitis, UN chief discuss Cyprus on sidelines of EU informal meeting

[02] D'Estaing to address Int'l European Movement event here

[03] Chysohoidis meets EU member-states ambassadors

[04] Franco-German documentary traces Patriarch Vartholomeos' life

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

[06] Weather Forecast: Rain, sleet on Tuesday

[07] Greek stocks end slightly up on Monday

[01] PM Simitis, UN chief discuss Cyprus on sidelines of EU informal meeting on Iraq

BRUSSELS (ANA/Ch. Poulidou) - UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan confirmed to Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis here on Monday that he would visit Ankara, Athens and arrive in Nicosia on February 26 where he will meet with Cyprus president-elect Tassos Papadopoulos.

Annan and Simitis met on the sidelines of a crucial emergency EU summit meeting called by the Greek EU presidency to focus on the Iraq crisis.

According to government sources in Athens, following the meeting he will have with Papadopoulos, the UN chief will announce his proposals for the continuation of the procedure of the Cyprus talks.

Simitis is said to have assured Annan that Papadopoulos is in a ''positive climate'', at the same time noting that in the meeting he had earlier in the day with his Turkish counterpartAbdullah Gul, it was agreed that the negotiations on the guarantor treaty regarding Cyprus be concluded next week.

[02] D'Estaing to address Int'l European Movement event here

French statesman Valery Giscard dEstaing, the current chairman of the Convention on the Future of Europe, will present the first conclusions from the Convention to delegates representing 25 European countries during an conference in Athens on Thursday by the International European Movement.

Greeces political leadership is expected to attend the event at the Athens Commercial and Industrial Chamber of Commerce in downtown Athens.

The international conference will focus on the theme of ?Building a European Conscience Which Europe Do We Want??

DEstaing will arrive in Athens on Wednesday and is expected to depart on Friday.

[03] Chysohoidis meets EU member-states ambassadors

Issues of concern to the Public Order Ministry in the context of the Greek EU Presidency have been the focus of talks during a working luncheon hosted by Public Order Minister Michalis Chrysohoidis to European Union member-states ambassadors to Athens on Monday.

Chrysohoidis referred specifically to the setting up of a new agency for the surveillance of internal EU borders, the allocation of responsibilities and efforts to implement Seville EU Council directives. He said these issues should also be seen in light of a cohesive, diverse and common EU policy on immigration.

Participating ambassadors also discussed illegal immigration issues under the phenomenons two-fold dimension, i.e. internal measures in the EU and measures towards third countries, placing emphasis at this instance on Turkey.

Chrysohoidis reaffirmed the political will for Europes contribution to combating organised crime in the Western Balkans. An outline of Greek recommendations will be presented at the EU Justice and Home Affairs Ministers Council in Brussels, February 27 and 28.

[04] Franco-German documentary traces Patriarch Vartholomeos' life

ISTANBUL (ANA - A. Kourkoulas) - A documentary aptly entitled ''Patriarch Vartholomeos I'', produced by the Franco-German ARTE television station, will be screened in Istanbul on Tuesday during a special event.

The documentary traces the life of the Patriarch and took two years to complete. The production was undertaken for ARTE by the French ADR, the Austrian ORF and the Turkish B.I.G. production companies.

Following the screening there will be a reception at the German embassy.

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

Reference buying rates per euro released by the European Central Bank

U.S. dollar 1.080

Pound sterling 0.675

Danish kroner 7.491

Swedish kroner 9.177

Japanese yen 129.8

Swiss franc 1.484

Norwegian kroner 7.575

Cyprus pound 0.585

Canadian dollar 1.644

Australian dollar 1.832

[06] Weather Forecast: Rain, sleet on Tuesday

Cloud and rain are forecast in all parts of the country, with storms in the Cyclades, Dodecanese and Crete, and snow in the centre and north. Winds variable, strong to gale force. In the north, temperatures will range from -4 to 3C; on the rest of the mainland from -2C to 8C; and in the islands from 3C to 10C. Temperatures in Athens between 3C and 8C; and in Thessaloniki from 0C to 3C. Rain or sleet will fall in the capital, with snow on surrounding mountains.

[07] Greek stocks end slightly up on Monday

Greek stocks ended the first trading session of the week slightly higher in very thin turnover in the Athens Stock Exchange.

Investors remained largely on the sidelines awaiting developments in the Iraqi crisis, with buying interest focusing on small and medium capitalisation stocks.

The general index rose 0.38 percent to end at 1,685.76 points, with turnover a near-record low of 35.5 million euros.

The Metals, Textile and Food-Beverage sectors scored the biggest percentage gains of the day (2.11 percent, 2.0 percent and 1.31 percent, respectively), while the Retail (1.20 percent), IT Solutions (0.34 percent) and Cement (0.22 percent) sectors suffered losses.

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks rose 0.27 percent, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index ended 0.95 percent higher and the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index also rose 0.95 percent. The wider FTSE/ASE 140 index ended 0.45 percent up.

Broadly, advancers led decliners by 216 to 82 with another 61 issues unchanged.

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