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Athens News Agency: News in English, 06-04-12Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>CONTENTS
[01] PM to visit Bulgaria, return for Kilkis tour at weekendPrime Minister Costas Karamanlis is due to visit Bulgaria on Thursday for talks with Bulgaria's leadership and will return via the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki, from where he will embark on a weekend tour of the prefecture of Kilkis, alternate government spokesman Evangelos Antonaros announced on Wednesday.Accompanying the premier on his trip to Bulgaria, during which the two sides will sign a series of bilateral agreements, will be Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis and a Greek delegation. The prime minister will begin his day on Thursday by addressing an off-the-agenda debate on the Greek economy in Parliament in the morning, followed by a meeting with S. Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon in the afternoon before he departs for Bulgaria. Upon his arrival in the Bulgarian capital Sofia, Karamanlis is to lay a wreath at the monument for the Unknown Soldier and then accompany Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev to the Patriarchal Cathedral of St. Alexander Nievski. On Thursday night, the Greek premier will be a guest at a dinner held in his honour by Stanishev. On Friday morning, Karamanlis will lead a Greek delegation in talks with the Bulgarian side, during which bilateral agreements will be signed, followed by a press conference at 10:30. At 11:00 on Friday, he will be received by Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov, Bulgarian parliament speaker Georgi Pirinsky and the Patriarch of Bulgaria Maxim. The premier will then depart for Thessaloniki and from there to Kilkis, arriving on Friday evening and holding successive meetings with local government officials on Saturday. On Sunday, Karamanlis is due to return to Thessaloniki for a meeting with South East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) culture ministers, who will have just completed a meeting in Patras. The spokesman denied that original plans for a more extensive tour by the premier in northern Greece had been pared down, noting that the premier looked at various proposals before deciding on the finally deciding on his itinerary and stressing that the programme of visits by Karamanlis will continue. He also denied suggestions that the premier was avoiding "problem" areas, noting that Karamanlis discussed the problems that concerned Greek society with a number of social bodies and ordinary citizens. Photo: ANA/MPA ANA-MPA Copyright © 2004-2005 All rights reserved. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |