Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-02

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

CONTENTS

[01] Negotiations between gov't and institutions to focus on pension reforms and bad loans

[02] Labour unions escalate mobilisations against pension reforms; nationwide strike on Thursday

[03] Greece and Germany are allies and partners in the management of the refugee crisis, says Alt.FM Xydakis

[01] Negotiations between gov't and institutions to focus on pension reforms and bad loans

The negotiations will focus on the social security reforms and particularly on the pension system.

Another meeting between Economy Minister George Stathakis and the heads of the institutions has been scheduled for 7:00 pm to discuss the issue of non-performing loans. The government and the institutions seem to have achieved consensus to extend the current regime prohibiting the sale of these loans until a final agreement is eventually reached.

The issues to be discussed in this week's negotiations were determined in a meeting between Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos and the institutions on Monday.

"There was good mood in the talks on the side of our lenders," according to sources.

The heads of the institutions will leave Athens at the end of the week after they have concluded the first phase of the program review. There will be a 7-10 days break until they return for another two weeks. The aim is for the program review to have been completed by the end of February, a government source said.

[02] Labour unions escalate mobilisations against pension reforms; nationwide strike on Thursday

Public transport is also disrupted on Tuesday, February 2, as there are no services on the Athens metro, tram, electric railway (ISAP) between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. On Thursday, there will be no trolleys, trains, suburban train and taxis. Busses will run from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm while the metro, the electric railway and the tram will operate from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm.

The media sector will go on strike from 6:00 am Wednesday to Thursday 6:00 am, so that they can provide coverage of the general strike.

The Hellenic Confederation of Professionals, Craftsmen & Merchants (GSEVEE) and the National Confederation of Commerce and Entrepreneurship (ESEE) also participate in Thursday's strike.

The Greek Seamen's Federation (PNO) will hold a 48-hour strike starting from 06:00 on Thursday until 06:00 on Saturday.

Lawyers, notaries, truck drivers, doctors and pharmacists have also decided to participate in the general strike as well as fuel station owners.

[03] Greece and Germany are allies and partners in the management of the refugee crisis, says Alt.FM Xydakis

"Germany has saved and received people regardless of what some extreme circles inside the country say and Germany is Greece's ally and partner, they have a relation," said Xydakis.

Referring to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, he said that with lots of courage she successfully overturned the stereotypes. "There is a significant part of the public opinion in Germany that supports her but extreme voices exist in her party too."

Commenting on the continuous aggressive statements of European officials against the Greek government's dealing with the refugees issue, he said that based on the national law of the European countries, nothing different from what is applied can be done and reminded that if Italy, Germany, Sweden and Austria are excluded, there are a number of countries that accepted a few number of refugees or none.

"What is lurking behind every aggressive statement is the easily explainable need of every member state to avoid whatever repercussion of that historic pressure that plagues the Mediterranean and the Middle-East. Not to take a single refugee," he noted.

Besides, responding to those who link Greece's management of the refugees with the economic crisis, Xydakis said that any country after six years of recession succeeds in this field with work and infrastructure is a feat.

Concluding, the minister said that high tension prevails inside EU, huge differentiations from country to country and an effort, that is still fruitless, for a common policy. "I believe that the non-achievement and non-implementation of a common strategy and a common practice is the source of all the problems and the centrifugal tendencies that we are experiencing at the moment," he said.

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