Athens News Agency: News in English, 07-10-19

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

CONTENTS

[01] Greek PM applauds successful outcome of Reform Treaty talks

[02] Papandreou, Venizelos on campaign swings

[03] Athens again airs views on FYROM 'name issue'

[01] Greek PM applauds successful outcome of Reform Treaty talks

"The difficult negotiating effort on the text is successfully concluded and, after the official signature of the Treaty next December, there begins the equally demanding process of its ratification within 2008," the Greek premier noted.

He added that Greece would be among the first countries to ratify the Reform Treaty.

Reporting on the results of the summit, Karamanlis said it had looked at the action that the EU must take to deal with international challenges in the framework of the Lisbon Strategy.

"The need was stressed to boost the outgoing dimension of the Lisbon Strategy for the benefit of European products. In this framework there was discussion on issues like accessibility of exports and business to new emerging markets, protection of European consumers in terms of exports and strengthening the regulatory framework governing financial movements," he said.

Another issue discussed were the commitments that states must make on an international level in the post-Kyoto era, the Greek premier reported.

Karamanlis also referred to his meetings on the sidelines of the EU leaders' summit, saying he had met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Slovenian Premier Janez Jansa, whose country takes over the rotating EU presidency on Jan. 1, 2008.

Bakoyannis predicts EU-wide ratification for Reform Treaty

On her part, Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis echoed the premier's satisfaction over the agreement for the Reform Treaty, while noting, that in her view, it will be ratified by all member-states.

"Greece will be among the first countries to ratify it," she added.

According to Bakoyannis, other issues discussed by the Union's foreign ministers included Serbia's European prospects, developments surrounding the thorny Kosovo issue, the Middle East situation and the spectre of a Turkish invasion into northern Iraq.

Regarding Serbia, she reiterated Greece's support for neighbouring Serbia's European prospects. Earlier, the Union had agreed to begin the circuitous and often lengthy accession process in the hope that this bring results in terms of Belgrade's cooperation with the International Criminal Court for the former Yugoslavia.

Commenting on the possibility of Turkish military action in northern Iraq, she reiterated that the Union is squarely against such a prospect and considers cooperation between Ankara and Baghdad as the best solution. Along those lines, she also reminded that the EU condemns any form of terrorism emanating from the PKK.

Caption: Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis during a press conference on the second day of the informal EU Summit in Lisbon on Friday, 19 October 2007. ANA-MPA / EPA/TIAGO PETINGA

[02] Papandreou, Venizelos on campaign swings

On his part, leadership contender Evangelos Venizelos, a top Thessaloniki-area deputy, was touring the central Peloponnese prefecture of Arcadia on Friday afternoon, where he made several stopovers in various towns, including the capital of Tripolis, and meetings with local PASOK supporters, before visiting Lakonia prefecture.

In Sparta, Venizelos addressed a meeting of supporters, saying that "what is at stake in the party elections of Nov. 11 is whether we will finally have a change in the party's leadership, and in such a case, the government soon call general elections under a new electoral law in order to secure a strong majority in Parliament."

"On Nov. 11, citizens will have to choose between a small PASOK or a great PASOK of the future," Venizelos said. He will be in Kalamata on Friday evening.

Caption: ANA-MPA file photo shows Papandreou (L) and Venizelos, dated March 3, 2007.

[03] Athens again airs views on FYROM 'name issue'

Foreign ministry spokesman George Koumoutsakos noted that FYROM remains amongst the SE European countries included in Greece's "Balkan Reconstruction Plan", being included in the programme from its inception in 2002.

Koumoutsakos said 50 million euros out of the 75 million euros earmarked for FYROM will be disbursed for the proposed Corridor X highway, while he reminded that Greek investors have pumped approximately one billion euros - 60 percent of the foreign investment total in FYROM - into the land-locked country, resulting in the creation of 20,000 jobs.

Conversely, the spokesman said Athens considers that Skopje has still not shown volition to find a mutually acceptable solution over the pending "name issue" - the only remaining obstacle to full and robust relations between the two neighbours.

Along those lines, he declined to discuss specifics in terms of what Athens would consider a resolution at present, merely reiterating Greece's standing position over a "mutually acceptable solution".

"?we would like to clearly stress, and in a manner that does not allow for any misunderstanding, that a potential perpetuation of this outstanding issue due to the intransigence exhibited by the current FYROM government, in combination with nationalistic actions and policies and an irredentist mentality, cannot serve as the basis of building an alliance or relations of solidarity and partnership within NATO and the European Union," Koumoutsakos stressed, adding:

"Two things are certain, namely, that an extension of the current impasse is counter-productive, and secondly, Greece will not relinquish any of the capabilities it has a member of NATO and the EU?"

Caption: File photo of spokesman George Koumoutsakos. ANA-MPA.

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