Browse through our Interesting Nodes on the United States of America Read the Convention Relating to the Regime of the Straits (24 July 1923) Read the Convention Relating to the Regime of the Straits (24 July 1923)
HR-Net - Hellenic Resources Network Compact version
Today's Suggestion
Read The "Macedonian Question" (by Maria Nystazopoulou-Pelekidou)
HomeAbout HR-NetNewsWeb SitesDocumentsOnline HelpUsage InformationContact us
Friday, 29 March 2024
 
News
  Latest News (All)
     From Greece
     From Cyprus
     From Europe
     From Balkans
     From Turkey
     From USA
  Announcements
  World Press
  News Archives
Web Sites
  Hosted
  Mirrored
  Interesting Nodes
Documents
  Special Topics
  Treaties, Conventions
  Constitutions
  U.S. Agencies
  Cyprus Problem
  Other
Services
  Personal NewsPaper
  Greek Fonts
  Tools
  F.A.Q.
 

Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-08

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

CONTENTS

  • [01] First review of economic programme must be concluded by end-Feb., Greek FinMin says‏
  • [02] Plummetting bourse 'confirms our worst fears,' ND's spokesman says
  • [03] EU anti-fraud body seizes 55 mln smuggled cigarettes in Greece, Cyprus in Jan.

  • [01] First review of economic programme must be concluded by end-Feb., Greek FinMin says‏

    Greek officials and the representatives of Greece's institutional creditors need to complete negotiations on all pending issues and conclude a first review of the programme by the end of February, Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said Monday.

    Speaking in Parliament, Tsakalotos also expressed concern in the case negotiations are prolonged until May or June.

    The finance minister said he was more optimistic now than he had been before the start of negotiations on pension reform and tax issues. While acknowledging that there are still hurdles to be overcome, he noted that there was agreement "on the basic architecture of these two major reforms". Tsakalotos said the representatives of the institutions will return to Greece next week while technical delegations of the institutions are continuing negotiations with Greek officials.

    "We expect them to return in a reasonable space of time. Not this week, maybe next week. From that point, we will have two weeks to wrap up all pending issues. This will allow the start of talks on debt, which will help create conditions to turn a page and for investments to return," the Greek FinMin said. "There are thorns in negotiations. It is very significant to conclude the first review," he added.

    "Both the pension and the income tax reforms have a structural nature. They are significant changes that need to be made since they both contribute to the basic goal, which is to agree that in 2018 we will have a primary surplus of 3.5 pct of GDP."

    [02] Plummetting bourse 'confirms our worst fears,' ND's spokesman says

    Main opposition New Democracy spokesman George Koumoutsakos on Monday expressed his party's concerns over the sharp drop in stock prices at the Athens Stock Exchange the same day, saying it "confirms our worst fears."

    "We are most deeply worried about the dramatic downward course of the Greek bourse," he said, noting that this was "linked to a sense of increasing political uncertainty that is triggered by the governing majority itself."

    He also called on the government to immediately change course and policy, since it would otherwise bear heavy responsibility toward the country and the Greek people.

    [03] EU anti-fraud body seizes 55 mln smuggled cigarettes in Greece, Cyprus in Jan.

    The European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) announced that the agency had seized more than 55 million smuggled cigarettes in operations in Greece and Cyprus last month, with the help of local authorities.

    "Thanks to the close cooperation with the Greek general secretariat against corruption (AFCOS Greece), Greek and Cypriot customs, 33 million cigarettes, were seized at the end of January," OLAF said in a press release. "An additional seizure of almost 21 million cigarettes had already taken place at the Port of Piraeus, bringing the total number of seized cigarettes in Greece in the course of these 2 recent investigations to over 55 million."

    The body said that European cigarettes which legally set sail to Asia end up finding their way back into Europe illegally. This was the largest of five operations in which a total of more than 75 million cigarettes were seized in Greece, Russia, Germany and Spain between December 2015 and January 2016, a press release added.


    Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
    Back to Top
    Copyright © 1995-2023 HR-Net (Hellenic Resources Network). An HRI Project.
    All Rights Reserved.

    HTML by the HR-Net Group / Hellenic Resources Institute, Inc.
    ana2html v2.01 run on Monday, 8 February 2016 - 19:38:06 UTC