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Athens News Agency: News in English, 08-03-27
CONTENTS
[01] Papandreou on FYROM name issue
[02] Tourism minister in Shanghai
[01] Papandreou on FYROM name issue
Main opposition PASOK leader George Papandreou on Thursday underlined
his party's utter rejection of the latest proposal put forward by UN
mediator Matthew Nimetz for resolving the name dispute between Greece
and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). In statements
after the briefing he received from Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis on
the latest developments surrounding the name issue, he also accused the
government of sending out mixed messages that had led to its failure in
the negotiations.
"The government is unfortunately emitting contradictory messages and
slipping, with the result that the various mediators are coming back to
us with proposals that get steadily worse. We reject them. The latest
proposal from Mr. Nimetz is rejected also," Papandreou stressed.
"Greece's message must be crystal clear, in the way that we expressed
it in PASOK: one name with a geographic qualifier for all uses without
exception. A resounding no to any form of double name. This has been
PASOK's clear-cut position from the start," he said.
According to Papandreou, the result of the negotiations was a failure
for the government and he underlined that a decisive stance by Greece
at the NATO summit in Bucharest was the least that the Greek people
expected and what PASOK had demanded all along.
The meeting between Papandreou and Bakoyannis was also attended by two
foreign ministry officials and the party's Parliamentary spokesman for
foreign policy Theodoros Pangalos, PASOK Political Council member Panos
Beglitis and Papandreou's diplomatic advisor Dimitris Droutsas
[02] Tourism minister in Shanghai
The significance of the Greek studies chair at the Shanghai
International Studies University (SISU) for Greece's presence in the
major Chinese metropolis, one of the largest financial centres and
ports in the world, was highlighted by Tourism Development Minister
Aris Spiliotopoulos on Thursday, who is on a visit to the People's
Republic of China. Addressing a student audience on the subject of
"Greek Culture and Tourism", Spiliotopoulos underlined that the Greek
and Chinese civilisations gave birth to today's global culture. He
underlined the deeply anthropocentric nature of Greek and Chinese
literature, with both focusing on the simple citizen that finds the
strength to resist mainstream practices, oppose regimes and the cruel
ethics of authority, even being at odds with the aesthetics of society
itself. He pointed out that art, tourism and sports are the starting
point of a dialogue that creates preconditions for cooperation between
peoples, adding that it was not accidental that the Olympic Games in
Beijing will take place after the Olympic Games in Athens, stressing
that "this succession had to take place". Spiliotopoulos said that his
vision is a philosophy and culture-oriented tourism, underlining that
Greece has to be promoted as a country with academic powers and
cultural depth that can constitute an alternative tourist proposal for
the 21st century. He pointed out that the SISU Greek studies chair,
founded in 1972, and the 27 students currently taking Greek studies
courses, will have his support and stressed that efforts are underway
to establish a postgraduate scholarship in Greece. He also extended an
invitation to the university dean and professors to visit Greece in the
summer. During his visit to the university, the tourism minister also
inaugurated the student activity centre and a photo exhibition focusing
on the Greek landscape hosted by the Greek National Tourism
Organization (GNTO), the Greek embassy to Beijing and SISU.
Caption: Greek Tourism Development Minister Aris Spiliotopoulos is
shown during a visit on Thursday, March 27, 2008, at the Shanghai
International Studies University. ANA-MPA / STR
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