Athens News Agency: News in English, 05-07-03
CONTENTS
[01] PM's press office denies any statement vis-a-vis election in
neighbouring Albania
[01] PM's press office denies any statement vis-a-vis election in
neighbouring Albania
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis' press office on Sunday flatly
dismissed earlier same-day reports claiming that the Greek premier
expressed his satisfaction over the outcome of election results in
neighbouring Albania.
The press office also stressed that the Greek prime minister, who
earlier on Sunday was in the Evros border prefecture to inaugurate a
project to build a natural gas pipeline linking Greece and Turkey, made
no comments whatsoever regarding parliamentary elections in the west
Balkan country.
According to an ANA dispatch from Tirana early Sunday afternoon, the
main opposition Democratic Party reportedly claimed that the Greek PM
made such a statement in its favor, an assertion quickly disputed by
the rival Socialist Party.
In a related development, voting in predominately ethnic Greek areas of
southern Albania proceeded more-or-less smoothly, according to reports,
during Sunday's general parliamentary elections here.
The total number of ethnic Greeks that returned to the country from
neighbouring Greece in order to exercise their voting rights was
estimated at roughly 7,000.
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