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Thursday, 18 April 2024
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The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English, 99-04-02The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Hellenic Radio (ERA) <ert.ntua.gr/>CONTENTS[01] Captured American soldiers to stand trialThe three American soldiers captured by the Serbs on the border between Kosovo and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia yesterday morning are to appear before a military court in Yugoslavia today. The Serbian authorities claim they had entered Yugoslav territory illegally. President Clinton has said he holds the Yugoslav president, Slobodan Milosevic, personally responsible for their fate.Although the sirens sounded again in Belgrade during the night, there were no more NATO air raids and the night passed peacefully. However, the American defence secretary, William Cohen, stated yesterday that the bombing of Serbian targets would continue. The Yugoslav authorities announced yesterday that they had shot down a NATO plane and two helicopters with 50 marines on board. NATO has denied the report. [02] Meeting between president Milosevic and Ibrahim RugovaPresident Milosevic had a meeting yesterday with the moderate leader of Kosovo's ethnic Albanians, Ibrahim Rugova. Afterwards they issued a joint communique in which they promised to˙work towards finding a political solution to the crisis in Kosovo.Reactions to the statement have been mixed. Moscow said their meeting was a step in the right direction, while in Bonn the German defence minister, Rudolf Scharping, said he had reservations about the authenticity of the joint communique. The Albanian prime minister, Pandeli Maiko, said that if the Kosovar leader took part in the meeting of his own free will, then he was acting irresponsibly, and Kosovar separatists in Albania accused Mr Rugova of treason. An interview with Mr Rugova published in the German magazine Der Spiegel has caused quite a stir. In it he calls for the deployment of NATO ground troops in Serbia, a position that is completely the opposite to that expressed at his meeting with President Milosevic. Serbian television reported that rebels belonging to the Kosovo Liberation Army were abandoning their positions in many villages in Kosovo as an assault by Serbian forces is expected. [03] Moscow's opposition to NATO raids increasingOpposition from Moscow to the NATO operations is increasing. Three of the seven warships Russia is sending to the Adriatic set sail from the port of Sebastopol today. Ankara said it had received two notifications from Moscow that more than eight Russian ships would be passing through the Bosphorus. The Turkish prime minister, Bulent Ecevit, said the despatch of Russian warships to the Adriatic would serve to boost Serbian morale and increase the conflict. The Turkish defence minister, Hikmet Saki Turk, underlined that Turkey would monitor the passage of the Russian ships closely.In Moscow, meanwhile, the Russian foreign minister, Igor Ivanov, said Russia had warned that the conflict would not be contained within the Yugoslav borders. The American secretary of state, Madeleine Albright, told Mr Ivanov in a telephone conversation that the despatch of the Russian warships to the Adriatic would not defuse the crisis. The Russian president, Boris Yeltsin, has called for an urgent meeting to be convened of the world's seven most industrialised countries plus Russia, the so-called Big Eight. Washington has given the proposal a cool reception. A meeting to discuss the crisis in the Balkans will take place in Bonn on Monday, with the participation of the foreign ministers of Albania, Bosnia- Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the current European Union troika - Germany, Austria and Finland. [04] Greek efforts to contain crisis and help refugeesIn Athens, the government spokesman, Dimitris Reppas, reiterated yesterday that Greece would not participate in the military operations in Yugoslavia. The statement came as Greek ministers are paying visits to Balkan countries in the framework of the humanitarian aid Greece is providing for refugees from Kosovo.The national defence minister, Akis Tsohatzopoulos, had a meeting in Bucharest yesterday with his Romanian counterpart, Viktor Babiuk. Their discussion focused on the crisis in Kosovo and the two ministers agreed it could be resolved only through diplomatic means. Mr Tsohatzopoulos said the protection of human rights and the granting of autonomy to Kosovo were linked to the safe-guarding of the Yugoslav borders. The Greek defence minister is visiting Bulgaria and Skopje today in a bid to promote a political solution to the Kosovo crisis and a common initiative to address the refugee problem. The foreign minister, Giorgos Papandreou, took part in a meeting in Bonn last night to coordinate the supply of aid to Yugoslav refugees. The meeting was attended by the foreign ministers of the EU troika and the countries bordering Yugoslavia. The foreign undersecretary, Iannos Kranidiotis, travelled to Skopje yesterday to hand over a consignment of humanitarian aid from Greece. Metropolitans Panteleimon of Xanthi, Panteleimon of Veria and Iakovos of Mytilene went to Belgrade yesterday and delivered a check amounting to 30 million drachmas to Patriarch Paul of Serbia as humanitarian aid for the sorely tried Yugoslav people. Finally, the General Confederation of Greek Workers, the Civil Servants' Union and other trade unions are staging work stoppages in Athens today in protest at the NATO bombings in Yugoslavia. [05] Greek soccer team AEK to go to BelgradeThe Greek soccer team AEK is going to Belgrade on Tuesday for a friendly match on Wednesday with the local Partizan team. The Greek team's decision to go was hailed by the Serbs who are expected to give them a warm welcome. The receipts are to go towards helping the sorely tried Serbian people. The match will be broadcast live on television in Greece and other European countries.[06] Athens stock exchange plunges 7.55% because of Kosovo crisisThe continuing crisis in Yugoslavia has had a negative effect on the Athens stock exchange, with events in Kosovo causing panic among investors. The general share price index dropped by 7.55% yesterday, closing at 3,121.39 points.In the parities, the US dollar was fixed at 303.59 drachmas, the Deutschmark at 167.141 drachmas and the euro at 326.9 drachmas. [07] Cypriot parties honour anniversary of EOKA struggleIn Cyprus, political parties issued declarations yesterday to honour the anniversary of April 1st, marking the beginning of the liberation struggle by the EOKA organization.Speaker of the house Spyros Kyprianou stressed in a speech the need for real unity on the island's interior front in view of the hard times ahead. Referring to developments in the Serbian province of Kosovo, Mr Kyprianou described the prevailing war situation as unacceptable. He said the UN, as well as the EU and the US should urgently restore their credibility. Greece's Democratic Social Movement leader Dimitris Tsovolas arrived in Cyprus yesterday in order to attend celebrations for the anniversary. In statements at Nicosia airport Mr Tsovolas called on both Greece and Cyprus' leadership to live up to the circumstances. [08] US president's reply to Greek-American Relations CommitteeAmerican president Bill Clinton has sent a reply letter to the National Committee for Greek-American relations. He stressed that opportunities had been created for an improvement in Greek-Turkish relations. He also said the US considered both Greece and Turkey important allies.President Clinton said he believed the deterioration of Greek-Turkish relations in the wake of the Ocalan affair was reversible and concluded by assuring the Greek American community that a just Cyprus solution would be found. [09] Greek delegation goes to Sydney for 2000 OlympicsGreece is ready to help Sydney in organising next year's Olympic Games. An official of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games organising committee said that Athens would send 50 Greeks to help Sydney, adding these persons would at the same time gain valuable experience. The Greek delegation will stay in the Australian city for 16 months and the total cost to the Greek state will be 2.6 million dollars.[10] Greek justice minister discharged from hospitalThe Greek justice minister, Evangelos Iannopoulos, was discharged from an Athens hospital yesterday after undergoing an operation. Commenting on the NATO raids on Yugoslavia, Mr Iannopoulos said those responsible for the attacks would regret their actions, also noting that they had not respected international treaties.[11] Bank employees and banks discuss collective labour contractThe bank employees' union and the union of Greek banks will have a fresh meeting on 15 April for the signing of a new collective labour contract since yesterday's talks did not bear fruit. At the meeting, state owned and private banks also disagreed on the issue of afternoon banking hours in return for a 35-hour working week for bank employees.The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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