Athens News Agency: News in English, 11-03-25

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

CONTENTS

[01] EU summit reaches comprehensive agreement

[02] March 25, 1821 Revolution anniversary celebrated 

[01] EU summit reaches comprehensive agreement

According to statements to the press after Thursday's session of the summit by European Council president Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso, the decisions of the 27-nation bloc comprise Europe's comprehensive response to the crisis.

Rompuy said the leaders decided a comprehensive package of ecnomic measures and adopted the Euro Plus Pact that will provide for a new quality of economic coordination. He said they decided to call it the Euro Plus Pact for two reasons: because it is about what eurozone countries want to do more -- they share one currency and wish to undertake efforts on top of existing EU commitments and arrangements; and because it is also open to others.

The EU chief also revealed that six non-euro EU members have announced that they will join the Euro Plus Pact, namely Denmark, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Romania, which will cooprate more closely with the eurozone, while the Pact will also remain open for others to join later on.

Rompuy further explained that the political commitment of the Euro Plus Pact comes on top of all the other measures in the package agreed to improve member states' economic performance: the stronger Stability and Growth Pact on fiscal surveillance, the new macro-economic surveillance, and the implementation of the EU 2020 strategy on more economic growth.

The leaders also adopted the final decision on the European Stability Mechanism which, after national approvals, will clear the road for the successor to the temporary Facility (EFSF), while they have also undertaken collectively guarantee the financial stability of the eurozone.

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[02] March 25, 1821 Revolution anniversary celebrated

The celebration begin with a Te Deum presided by Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece, followed by the laying of a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider outside parliament by President of the Republic Karolos Papoulias just before the parade began.

The parade was attended by Papoulias, government vice-president Theodoros Pangalos, MP Evangelos Meimarakis representing main opposition New Democracy (ND), Popular Orthodox Rally (LAOS) party leader George Karatzaferis, and former Presidents of the Republic Christos Sartzetakis and Costis Stephanopoulos.

"Today is a day of memory, a glorious day making a glorious landmark in modern Greek history. The Greek people rose up, unarmed, with their passion for freedom and the country's independence as their only weapon, and son that difficult and tough struggle. Today we pay tribute and absolute respect to the dead and the fighters of that struggle," Papoulias said.

"Today, once again, the Greek people are struggle hard to overcome a big crisis. We need the virtues of those who fought back the, their self-denial and selfless patriotism, virtues that the Greek people have always proved they have. And today, with precisely those virtues as our weapon, we will overcome this crisis and enjoy a homeland and a Greece that is free of guardianships, and for our children and grandchildren to live in a better homeland," the President added.

Pangalos said that days such as these must inspire the people to achieve the recovery of the economy and render Greece a beacon of stability and peace in a particularly turbulent region.

Meimarakis said that today is a day of contemplation and historic remembrance. "Today we recall that when leaderships exist that can inspire the Greeks to create models, ideals, visions and values, the Greeks can truly do great things. Especially when leaderships exist that unite them and enable them to realise the creative forces they have inside them and develop them," he said.

Karatzaferis said that today, on the 190th anniversary of the national independence struggle, Greece has the duty to fight again for the same ideals of freedom and national independence.

Representatives of the government and the political parties attended similar celebrations throughout the country.

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