Athens News Agency: News in English, 02-06-12

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

CONTENTS

[01] Greece blasts increase in Turkish occupation troops on Cyprus

[02] 'Euro Army' issue, int'l terrorism dominate Powell-Karamanlis talks

[03] FM and State Department coordinator discuss Cyprus

[04] Foreign Exchange Rates - Thursday

[05] Weather Forecast: Sunshine on Thursday

[06] Greek stocks end down in record-low turnover

[01] Greece blasts increase in Turkish occupation troops on Cyprus

The Greek government on Wednesday criticised the increase in the number of Turkish occupation troops on Cyprus, accusing Turkey of trying to turn its differences with the European Union into Greek-Turkish differences.

Cyprus Defence Minister Socratis Hasikos revealed on Tuesday that Turkey had sent to Cyprus 5,500 soldiers over the past two weeks, bringing the number of its forces in the Turkish-occupied part of Cyprus to over 40,000, and appealed to those states involved in the peace effort to exert pressure on Turkey to withdraw its occupation troops from the areas it occupies since 1974. ''The government believes that this move is a deliberate attempt on the part of Ankara to create tension in Cyprus. Turkey no longer restricts itself in words, it has actually moved on to deeds,'' he said.

In Athens on Wednesday, Greek foreign minister George Papandreou described the increase in the number of Turkish troops in the occupied sector of Cyprus as a ''negative event''.

''Occupation has no place on the modern international chessboard among the countries that wish to cooperate,'' Papandreou told reporters after a meeting with the visiting Cypriot DHKO party leader Tasos Papadopoulos, who also heads the Cyprus House of Representatives' European Affairs committee.

[02] 'Euro Army' issue, int'l terrorism dominate Powell-Karamanlis talks

WASHINGTON (ANA - T. Ellis) Visiting main opposition New Democracy (ND) leader Costas Karamanlis met with US Secretary of State Colin Powell here Tuesday afternoon (local time) for talks on a variety of subjects, including the campaign against international terrorism, the ?Euro Army? issue and, of course, the Cyprus problem.

In statements to reporters afterwards, Karamanlis noted that he again outlined his partys objections to the so-called ?Ankara Text? vis-a-vis the Euro Armys future scope and operational capability, adding that while New Democracy supports NATO-EU cooperation, necessary alterations must be made for Athens to accept the compromise dangled before non-EU member Turkey.

Conversely, a US official earlier told the ANA that Washington considers the ?Ankara Text? -- worked out jointly by US and British diplomacy to overcome Turkeys objections -- as part of a ?very good? agreement.

[03] FM and State Department coordinator discuss Cyprus

The U.S. State Department's special coordinator for the Cyprus issue Thomas Weston, in a statement on Wednesday, indirectly condemned the transfer of an additional force of 5,000 troops from Turkey to the Turkish-occupied part of Cyprus.

Speaking after meeting Foreign Minister George Papandreou, Weston said the need to reduce military forces in Cyprus and the avoidance, by all sides, of actions and acts disturbing the existing situation, such as the strengthening of military forces and armaments, was and is a steadfast conception of the United States.

Referring to the same issue, Papandreou said Greece's target always remains a just solution to the problem of Cyprus, adding that ''no action will disorientate us from achieving this target. Coolness is necessary so as not to be distracted from our target'' and that such actions lead to a dead-end.

Papandreou said that he and Weston, who arrived in Athens from Ankara, exchanged views on efforts to resolve the political problem and on the prospect of Cyprus's accession to the European Union, thanking him for excellent cooperation existing between Greece and the United States on the issue of Cyprus.

[04] Foreign Exchange Rates - Thursday

Indicative tourist buying rates per euro

U.S. dollar 0.952

Pound sterling 0.648

Danish kroner 7.495

Swedish kroner 9.241

Japanese yen 119.6

Swiss franc 1.489

Norwegian kroner 7.472

Cyprus pound 0.584

Canadian dollar 1.465

Australian dollar 1.672

[05] Weather Forecast: Sunshine on Thursday

Sunshine is forecast in all parts of the country, with scattered cloud from early evening on the mainland that may bring isolated storms, mainly on high ground. Winds north-northeasterly, light to strong, turning very strong in the central and southern Aegean. On the northern mainland, temperatures will range from 16C to 30C; in the Ionian and on the rest of the mainland from 17C to 32C; and in the Aegean islands from 19C to 28C. Sunny in Athens, with temperatures between 19C and 30C. Same in Thessaloniki, with temperatures from 18C to 29C.

[06] Greek stocks end down in record-low turnover

Greek stocks ended Wednesday's session lower following a decline in other European markets and pushing the general index below the 2,300 technical support level.

The index fell 0.55 percent to end at 2,291.84 points, reflecting losses in blue chip stocks.

Turnover was 58.4 million euros, a record-low for the year.

The Cement, Metals and Investment sectors scored the biggest percentage gains of the day (0.26 percent, 0.14 percent and 0.10 percent, respectively), while the Publication, Insurance and Telecommunications sectors suffered the heaviest percentage losses (1.60 percent, 1.24 percent and 0.98 percent).

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks fell 0.52 percent, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index ended 0.52 percent lower and the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index eased 0.15 percent.

Broadly, decliners led advancers by 212 to 84 with another 57 issues unchanged.

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