Athens News Agency: News in English, 01-12-10

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

CONTENTS

[01] Greek-Turkish committee for 2008 European Soccer Championship meets in

[02] ND leader to tour W. Balkans, visit Brussels as EPP vice-president

[03] Greek defence minister in Albania this week

[04] SAE congress focuses on 2004, expatriates' participation

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

[06] Gov't carries out plan to extend summer tourism season

[07] Athens Bourse Close: Stocks slump in thin trade

[08] Weather Forecast: Cloudy and cold on Tuesday

[01] Greek-Turkish committee for 2008 European Soccer Championship meets in Athens

A joined committee founded by the Greek Soccer Federation (EPO) and its Turkish counterpart in light of the Greek-Turkish candidacy to jointly host the final stage of the 2008 European Soccer Championships, met in Athens on Monday for its second meeting, since its inception.

The committee, in this second meeting, approved the logo proposed for the games, which will be presented to UEFA and then will be presented to the public. The committee also decided to closer cooperate with the Greek-Turkish, Turkish-Greek Association of Business Cooperation.

The committee, among other subjects, also discussed and approved the budget of the joined candidacy, which stood at $ 2 million.

[02] ND leader to tour W. Balkans, visit Brussels as EPP vice-president

Main opposition New Democracy (ND) leader Costas Karamanlis will begin a three-day tour of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) and Yugoslavia and then visit Brussels in his capacity as European Peoples' Party (EPP) vice-president for the democratization of the western Balkans.

On Monday afternoon he chaired a meeting of his party's political analysis team where, according to sources, the Cyprus issue and the Euro-army issue were discussed.

[03] Greek defence minister in Albania this week

Greek Defence Minister Yiannos Papantoniou leaves for Tirana, Albania on Tuesday to begin an official two-day visit to the neighbouring country at the invitation of his Albanian counterpart Pandeli Majko.

A joint press conference is scheduled after the two ministers meeting.

Albanian President Rexhep Meidani and Prime Minister Ilir Meta will also receive Papantoniou, while Greeces ambassador to Tirana will host a reception in his honour as well.

Other contacts include separate meetings on Tuesday with Albanian Foreign Minister Arta Dade and Archbishop of Tirana and All Albania Anastasios.

On Wednesday, the Greek minister who was shifted from the national economy to the defence ministry following a government reshuffle in October will tour the ?ELDAL-3? contingents camp and a military hospital in Gjirokaster, southern Albania.

[04] SAE congress focuses on 2004, expatriates' participation

Successfully hosting 2004 Athens Games and best utilising expatriate Greeks was the subject of morning sessions on Monday at the World Council of Hellenes Abroad (SAE) fourth international congress, which is continuing for a second day in the northern city of Thessaloniki.

On his part, Culture Minister Evangelos Venizelos reiterated his conviction that the Athens Games will among the finest ever held. Conversely, he did recognise that certain high-profile delays have hampered preparations to day, adding that others may also spring up heading into 2004, although the important point was that ?we have the knowledge and methods to solve problems?.

Finally, Venizelos said the first-ever ?Cultural Olympics? accompanying and complimenting the 2004 Games will emphasise the theme of ?civilisation of civilisations? as opposed to the oft-repeated notion of late citing a ?clash of civilisations?.

?The civilised world is not just the West ... we must also deal with the civilisation of survival, namely, alleviating poverty in the Third World and others,? he said.

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

Indicative tourist buying rates

U.S. dollar 381.963

German mark 172.829

French franc 051.531

Pound sterling 545.374

Irish punt 429.202

Belgian franc 008.379

Luxembourg franc 008.379

Dutch guilder 153.389

Italian lira (100) 017.457

Austrian schilling 024.565

Danish kroner 045.409

Swedish kroner 036.174

Finnish mark 056.852

Spanish peseta 002.032

Portuguese escudo 001.686

Japanese yen (100) 302.297

Swiss franc 228.308

Norwegian kroner 042.308

Cyprus pound 587.783

Canadian dollar 242.027

Australian dollar 196.420

[06] Gov't carries out plan to extend summer tourism season

The state's Greek National Tourism Organisation (GNTO) reported on Monday that it had secured commitments from 110,000 travel operators to take part in its plan to extend the summer tourism season for tourists from abroad.

Under the three-year programme that began in autumn 2001, a subsidy of 40 euros is awarded per tourist arrival from October 15 to April 30, the GNTO said in a statement.

Extra arrivals recorded so far were 55,000 in the autumn and 20,000 in the 2001-2002 winter period, with 35,000 booked for spring 2002, the statement said.

[07] Athens Bourse Close: Stocks slump in thin trade

The Athens bourse finished lower in thin trade on Monday with players following a wave of selling in markets abroad.

The general share index shed 1.56 percent to end at 2,661.96 points. Turnover was 125.1 million euros.

The FTSE/ASE-20 index for blue chip and heavily traded stocks ended 1.73 percent down; the FTSE/ASE-40 for medium capitalisation paper 1.18 percent lower; and the FTSE/ASE-80 for small cap equities 1.65 percent down.

Of stocks traded, declines led advances at 279 to 58 with 21 issues remaining unchanged.

[08] Weather Forecast: Cloudy and cold on Tuesday

Cloud is forecast in all parts of the country on Tuesday, with showers or sleet in the eastern central mainland, Evia, the Peloponnese, southern Ionian, Cyclades, Crete and Dodecanese; and storms in south. Snow will fall on high ground and some fairly low-lying areas on the mainland. Winds north-northeasterly, strong to very strong, turning gale force in southern seas. In the north, temperatures will range from -7C to 6C; in the west from -1C to 12C; and in the rest of the country from 1C to 11C. Cloud and possibly showers in Athens with snow on high ground. Temperatures between 3C and 8C. Cloudy in Thessaloniki with temperatures from -2C to 5C.

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