Athens News Agency: News in English, 05-10-27

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

CONTENTS

[01] Athens mayor Bakoyannis, US Under Secretary of State Burns discuss Balkans

[02] Pentagon approves F16s sale to Greece

[03] EU promotion for mastiche, saffron

[04] Seminar on women's employment

[01] Athens mayor Bakoyannis, US Under Secretary of State Burns discuss Balkans

Bakoyannis called the meeting "interesting", noting that it took place in a friendly atmosphere given that the two officials have known each other since Burns served as US Ambassador to Greece from 1997-2001.

The Athens mayor said the focus of discussion was the Balkans and she had the opportunity to listen to Burns' analysis on the region.

She noted that there are no pre-defined solutions regarding Kosovo's future and stressed the significant role that Greece can and plans to play in the matter. According to Bakoyannis, Washington does not object to Greece's intentions.

During their 45-minute meeting Bakoyannis also touched on the FYROM name dispute, but in statements afterwards limited herself to saying that she conveyed to Burns the Greek government's well-known position on the issue.

[02] Pentagon approves F16s sale to Greece

An announcement by the US Pentagon's Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said that Greece had requested the purchase of 40 F-16 Block 52 jetfighters with F100-PW-229 engines and APG-68(V)9 radars; night vision goggles, ground stations, reconnaissance pods and various weapons, including 4 AGM-154C Joint Standoff Weapons.

A DSCA official told ANA that the notification to Congress of the Pentagon's approval of the sale was the first step in the procedure.

The next step would be examination of the proposed sale by Congress, which would have 15 days to block the sale -- an action that is very rare -- to Greece, given it is a NATO member country (a 30-day deadline is applied for such sales to non-NATO countries), following which the sale procedure would enter the next stage, which was negotiations between the Greek government and the contractors (Lockheed Martin Corp) on the specific associated equipment desired by Greece and relevant offset agreements.

According to the DSCA announcement, Greece had requested to acquire all the associated equipment and systems and, if it chose to do so, this would increase the effectiveness of the country's defence capabilities and its function in the framework of NATO, as well as enhance Greece's ability to patrol the nation's extensive coastline and borders and contribute to confronting international terrorism, and thus, by extention, contribute to the foreign policy and security objectives of the US.

The announcement further said that the sale of the weaponry to Greece would not upset the military balance in the region, nor negatively affect the ongoing efforts for finding a solution to the Cyprus problem.

[03] EU promotion for mastiche, saffron

The European Commission, in an announcement on Wednesday, said it has approved measures to provide information on, and to promote, agricultural products in third countries. Member states have submitted 25 promotion and information programmes to the Commission to be examined. For the first time new member states also participated. The 15 programmes that have been accepted are targeted for the United States, Canada, Japan, Russia, Ukraine, China, and Switzerland. The products covered are wine, dairy products, meat, flowers and juices. The estimated expenditure for the EU is � 13 million (50% of the budget of the programmes).

"Improving the competitiveness of EU quality products on markets outside the EU is a major challenge. By investing in promotion and information campaigns for our agricultural products outside the EU, the European Union is showing its determination to take up this challenge", Commissioner Fischer Boel, responsible for Agriculture and Rural Development, said.

The EU can fund, in whole or in part, measures in third countries that provide information on, or promote, agricultural products and food products. These measures can be public relations, promotional or publicity measures, in particular highlighting the advantages of EU products, especially in terms of quality, hygiene, food safety, nutrition, labelling, animal welfare or environment-friendliness. These measures can amongst others also cover participation at events and fairs, information campaigns on the Community system of protected designations of origin (PDOs), protected geographical indications (PGIs) and traditional speciality guaranteed (TSGs) and of organic farming. Also possible are information campaigns on the EU system of quality wines produced in specified regions (QWPSR) and studies of new markets.

The Organic Red Saffron, produced by the renowned Kozani Saffron Cooperative, in Northern Greece, is a certified organic product that is distinguished for its excellent quality which places it in the Coupe Class, the top quality of Saffron in the world. Saffron, made from the dried stigmas of the crocus flower, is the worlds most expensive spice.

Saffron cultivation is believed to date back to Prehistoric Greek times.

The excavations in Knossos, Crete, brought to light some frescoes where saffron is depicted. The most famous of these frescoes is the "saffron gatherer", where it was depicted that there was a monkey amongst the yellow saffron flowers.

Etymologically, the word crocus has its origin from the Greek word "croci" which means the weft, thread used for weaving on a loom.

Mythologically, according to Ovid, the plant took its name from the youth Crocus, who after witnessing in despair the death of fair Smilax was transformed into this flower.

Known since antiquity, saffron it was one of the most desired and expensive spices of ancient Greeks, Egyptians and Romans for its aroma, color and aphrodisiac properties.

It was quite popular among the Phoenician traders, who carried it wherever they traveled. The ancient Assyrians used saffron for medical purposes.

Hippocrates and other Greek doctors of his time, like Dioskourides and Galinos mention crocus as a drug or a therapeutical herb.

From the writings of Homer, who calls dawn "crocus veil", Aeschylus, Pindar, and others, it is known that the crocus was considered a rare pharmaceutical plant of ancient Greece with unique properties. It is referred to throughout ancient history and in the course of many medical writings of the classical Greek and Roman times all the way to the Middle Ages.

Another saffron use in ancient Greece was that of perfumery.

The history of red saffron in modern Greece starts in the 17th century when traders from Kozani, Macedonia, brought the red saffron from Austria.

For 300 years, Greek red saffron is systematically cultivated under the warmth of the Greek sun, in the rich soil of a unique area in Kozani, in western Macedonia.

[04] Seminar on women's employment

The seminar highlighted action plans and programmes now in progress to boost employment levels among women.

Addressing the seminar, Equality General Secretary Evgenia Tsoumani stressed that unemployment among women was a matter of national priority, since Greece had one of the lowest percentages of women in work in the European Union (44 percent compared with an EU average of 55 per cent).

It also had one of the worst rates of unemployment for women, with 15 per cent out of work compared with 10 per cent in the EU on average.

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