Athens News Agency: News in English, 11-01-09

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

CONTENTS

[01] PM address at Erzurum diplomatic con'f

[02] Frontex: Massive influx of illegal migrants

[01] PM address at Erzurum diplomatic con'f

In opening his address in the northeastern Anatolia city of Erzurum, Papandreou referred to an opportunity to "speak frankly and openly about our future. Will this be a future of peace or confrontation?"

The one-time Greek foreign minister, credited with initiating the so-called "earthquake rapprochement" of 1999 with the late Turkish FM Ismail Cem, referred directly to the challenges and day-to-day problems affecting bilateral relations, while he noted that his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has chosen to contribute to a new relationship of peace and cooperation. (ANA-MPA)

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[02] Frontex: Massive influx of illegal migrants

According to a front-page article appearing in the Sunday edition of "Kathimerini", which quotes the Frontex report, roughly 31,000 illegal immigrants, mostly Afghans and Algerians, were detected between January and September 2010 attempting to enter Greece from Turkey.

The number of illegal migrants, practically all from Third World countries in North Africa, the Middle East and South Asia, could be much larger, the Frontex report is quoted as stating.

The report cites one of the greatest influxes of illegal immigrants in the Union's history, in part basing this assessment on the sea patrols Frontex began in the eastern Aegean, which supposedly forced migrant smugglers to use the land route.

Just as importantly, Turkey's role as a transit country for illegal migrants is underlined, while noting that the massive scope of the problem makes it impossible for Greek authorities to deal with it alone.

On the news front, another body was discovered on Sunday in a field some four kilometres southeast of a guard tower on the Evros River, in the Peplos district of Evros prefecture. (ANA-MPA)

According to initial reports, the body is of an African man aged 20 to 25. The cause of death was listed as exposure.

Finally, on Saturday a mixed Greek and Frontex patrol intercepted a group of four illegal immigrants that had just rowed across the Evros River from Turkish territory aboard an inflatable dinghy.

One of two alleged migrant smugglers was also arrested. The other fled back into Turkish territory. (ANA-MPA)

Caption: ANA-MPA file photo

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