Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 98-06-22

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

NEWS IN ENGLISH

Athens, Greece, 22/06/1998 (ANA)

MAIN HEADLINES

• Holbrooke, Simitis meet in Athens
• Flight changes at Olympic Airways
• Australian tourist missing
• No change to economic policy
• Vartholomeos to visit Athos
• Policeman arrested over arson attack
• Tenders to be posted on Internet
• Alavanos to Trans-Caucasia
• Ferry runs aground on Andros
• Weather
• Foreign Exchange

NEWS IN DETAIL

US trouble-shooter Richard Holbrooke, the newly-appointed US ambassador to the United Nations, arrived in Athens today for talks with the Greek government amid rising tension in the region. Holbrooke, the US presidential emissary for Cyprus, is accompanied by State Department coordinator for Cyprus Thomas Miller. Prime Minister Costas Simitis had talks with Holbrooke lasting 40 minutes, attended also by Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos and US Ambassador in Athens Nicholas Burns. According to government sources, the meeting was requested by Holbrooke, who leaves Athens tomorrow morning on a regional tour taking in Belgrade, Kosovo and Skopje.

Flight changes at Olympic Airways

Greece's national carrier Olympic Airways today announced a number of changes to its regular flight schedule, designed to work around the refusal of OA pilots to work overtime. OA's board had decided to reduce international flights by 6.6 hours and domestic flights by 9.8 hours to accommodate passengers and pilots, a spokesman said. "We are not cancelling OA flights - just reducing them on the basis of existing personnel," the spokesman said. According to the spokesman, flights 135 for Geneva and 131 for Zurich have been merged into one while flight 197 for Munich will leave in the evening. Flight 201 for Paris will be delayed by four hours for maintenance work.

Australian tourist missing

Port authorities said today they had not yet found any sign of an Australian tourist reported missing yesterday while diving off the Aegean island of Folegandros. Timothy Simpson, 28, was spear-fishing with his girlfriend Sharon McLachlan, 24, when he disappeared from sight. She reported his disappearance to Ios harbour authorities who immediately began searching for the man.

No change to economic policy

National Economy and Finance Minister Yannos Papantoniou today rejected as "inaccurate" several newspaper reports on Sunday and Monday alleging that the government had decided to make "corrections" in its privatisations policy to make it more readily acceptable to employees. "There will be no concessions on or postponements in the privatisations programme," Papantoniou said, citing the Ionian Bank case as an example. Employees at Ionian Bank returned to work today after a six-week rolling strike failed to induce the government to call off the sale of a 51 percent stake in the state-controlled bank. The government's decision was endorsed late Friday by a shareholders' meeting of Ionian's parent company, Commercial Bank.

Vartholomeos to visit Athos

Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos, spiritual leader of the world's 300 million Orthodox Christians, will pay a two-day visit to the Mt. Athos monastic community in northern Greece in October, it was announced today in Thessaloniki. The Patriarch will arrive by yacht at the all-male monastic community on October 24 for celebrations marking the 1,000th anniversary of the founding of the Xenophon Monastery, returning to the Holy See on October 26, a Mt. Athos spokesman told ANA. During his visit, the Patriarch will meet at Karyes with President of the Republic Costis Stephanopoulos and Prime Minister Costas Simitis, who will also be attending the celebrations, the spokesman said.

Policeman arrested over arson attack

A police officer was arrested on Crete this morning and charged with blowing up the home and burning the car of an elderly couple with whom he is believed to be locked in a land dispute. Police lieutenant Nikolaos Vernadakis, 36, was arrested after a makeshift explosive device was used to blow up the home of 76-year-old Eleftherios Doundoulakis. Doundoulakis and his wife, Aikaterini, 72, were in the house at the time of the explosion which demolished half the building and woke up the entire village. The couple, who were slightly injured in the blast, ran out of the house only to see their pick-up truck on fire. A man wearing a hood attacked and slightly injured them with a stick.

Tenders to be posted on Internet

The way in which public works tenders are announced is soon to be changed, as invitations will soon be posted on the Internet rather than in the daily press. The innovation was announced today at a meeting on "Public Contracts and Community Law" organised by the Centre for International and European Law in Thessaloniki. The meeting was organised on behalf of the British Embassy in Athens. Speaking at the meeting, National Economy Undersecretary Christos Pachtas said the target was for 50 per cent of public works to be announced on the Internet by the year 2004.

Alavanos to Trans-Caucasia

Coalition of the Left and Progress Euro-MP Alekos Alavanos will tour Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia between June 22-30 as chairman of the European Parliament's committee for Cooperation with the parliaments of Trans-Caucasia. During his tour Alavanos will hold talks with presidents Eduard Shevardnadze of Georgia, Haydar Aliyev of Azerbaijan and Robert Kocharyan of Armenia, as well as the foreign ministers and parliamentary representatives of the three countries.

Ferry runs aground on Andros

A ferryboat carrying 372 passengers, 50 cars and five trucks ran aground on a shoal outside the harbour of Gavrio on Andros today for as yet unknown reasons. The vessel was sailing from Mykonos and Tinos with destination Rafina on the east coast of Attica. The accident occurred when the captain of the "Super Ferry", Costas Tzortzis, considered one of the most experienced officers on the line, took the vessel too near the "Vouvi" shoal while approaching the entrance to Gavrio harbour. Owing to the fact that the vessel had not reduced speed, even though it was approaching the harbour, the impact caused a depression in the hull measuring 15 metres by three inches.

WEATHER

FOREIGN EXCHANGE

(M.P.)

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