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Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 99-06-18

Macedonian Press Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Macedonian Press Agency at http://www.mpa.gr and http://www.hri.org/MPA.


MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Thessaloniki, June 18, 1999

SECTIONS

  • [A] NATIONAL NEWS
  • [B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS

  • NEWS HEADLINES

    [A] NATIONAL NEWS

  • [01] GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN: KLA SHOULD BE DISARMED AT ONCE
  • [02] THERE ARE NO DIOXIN-INFECTED FOODS IN GREECE, SAYS MINISTER
  • [03] GREEK-BULGARIAN MILITARY COOPERATION ACCORD RATIFIED
  • [04] NETHERLANDS EMBASSY: "COW AIDS" REPORTS ARE INCORRECT
  • [05] NEW RECORD OF "VISITS" FOR THE MPA WEB SITE ON THE INTERNET
  • [06] ANOTHER GROUP OF KOSSOVO REFUGEES WILL LEAVE FOR AUSTRALIA VIA THESSALONIKI
  • [07] FREE GREEK LANGUAGE LESSONS ON THE INTERNET OFFERED BY THE GREEK LANGUAGE ACADEMY OF VUPERTHAL
  • [08] BRITISH SOLDIERS ARRIVED IN THESSALONIKI ON THEIR WAY TO KOSOVO
  • [09] REPPAS: GREECE WILL NOT ACCEPT INSINUATIONS AND DOUBTS ON THE ISSUE OF TERRORISM
  • [10] THERE IS NO PROBLEM WITH THE FOODS IN THE GREEK MARKET
  • [11] ISTANBUL'S KOC UNIVERSITY OFFERS SCHOLARSHIP TO GREEKS
  • [12] GREEK MAIN OPPOSITION LEADER TRAVELS TO CYPRUS, FRANCE
  • [B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS

  • [13] KOSOVO WILL BE AT EPICENTER OF G8 TALKS TODAY
  • [14] EU TO SHIPOWNERS: DUMP WASTE MATERIAL AT PORTS, NOT AT SEA
  • [15] UN IS ADAMANT: KLA MUST LAY DOWN ITS ARMS IMMEDIATELY
  • [16] SERB REFUGEES FROM KOSOVO INUNDATE CENTRAL TOWNS
  • [17] US DIPLOMAT MEETS WITH OPPOSITION PARTY LEADERS IN F.R.Y.
  • [18] GREEK FM GIVES JOINT INTERVIEW WITH BRITISH COUNTERPART
  • [19] BELGRADE AIRPORT BEGINS OPERATING TODAY
  • [20] GREECE WAS SERBIA'S BEST FRIEND DURING THE NATO BOMBING
  • [21] THE US AND RUSSIA ARE CLOSER TO AN AGREEMENT ON KOSOVO
  • [22] ARMED CLASHES BETWEEN RUSSIAN SOLDIERS AND KLA REBELS AT THE AIRPORT OF PRISTINA
  • [23] THE ALBANIANS FORCED THE UROSEVAC SERBS TO LEAVE THEIR HOMES, ACCORDING TO BELGRADE
  • [24] ABOUT 30.000 KOSSOVO REFUGEES HAVE RETURNED TO THEIR HOMES FROM ALBANIA
  • [25] A GREEK WOMAN WAS BRUTALLY MURDERED IN BERLIN

  • NEWS IN DETAIL

    [A] NATIONAL NEWS

    [01] GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN: KLA SHOULD BE DISARMED AT ONCE

    Government spokesperson Dimitris Reppas stated last night that the Kosovo Liberation Army should be disarmed immediately.

    Mr. Reppas stated that the Greek contingent assigned to the peacekeeping force in Kosovo is taking all the necessary measures to protect itself from any KLA actions.

    [02] THERE ARE NO DIOXIN-INFECTED FOODS IN GREECE, SAYS MINISTER

    Greece's Agriculture Minister George Anomerites stressed yesterday that the state authorities have began destroying the confiscated fresh products imported from Belgium and reiterated that there is no dioxin-related problem in the Greek market, stressing that the ban on Belgian -product imports continues to be enforced.

    Meanwhile, the Consumers General Secretary of the Ministry of Development has admitted that no sample of suspect Belgian food has been forwarded yet to other countries for inspection. The Ministry's official explained that the remaining samples will soon be forwarded to labs for analysis and attributed the delays to the fact that the authorities want to collect samples from all stages of production.

    At the same time, the chairman of Greece's Consumers Institute stressed that Greeks cannot consume anything without fear.

    [03] GREEK-BULGARIAN MILITARY COOPERATION ACCORD RATIFIED

    Bulgaria's cabinet has ratified a military and technical cooperation accord with Greece, which was recently signed in Sofia between the Greek undersecretary of defense Dimitris Apostolakis and his Bulgarian counterpart Velizar Salamanov.

    The said accord calls for the joint production and updating of armaments and facilities, as well as the exchange of technology.

    [04] NETHERLANDS EMBASSY: "COW AIDS" REPORTS ARE INCORRECT

    The Netherlands embassy in Athens stated yesterday that the country's food exports are completely safe for consumers and that press reports alleging "cow AIDS" among Dutch cattle were incorrect and unjustified.

    Dutch ambassador Paul Brouwer stated that the Netherlands' animal health service on Wednesday had said that no instances of Bovine Infectious Virus (BIV) – referred to in some media reports as "cow AIDS" -- had been reported but that it had been confused with an outbreak of Bovine Virus Diarrhoea (BVD) - which is not communicable to humans - in 12 Dutch farms, caused by a contaminated batch of vaccine.

    "There has never been a case of BIV in the Netherlands, never now or in the past," the Dutch envoy said.

    [05] NEW RECORD OF "VISITS" FOR THE MPA WEB SITE ON THE INTERNET

    The Macedonian Press Agency web site received a record number of calls in a 10-day period before and after the Euro-parliament elections.

    Specifically, from Sunday, June 6 until Thursday, June 17 there were 682.192 visits made to the MPA server, while the biggest increase was recorded on the day after the elections namely, on Monday, June 14 when the number of calls increased by 52.96% compared to the previous Monday, June 7 reaching 86.425 calls.

    The number of calls on Sunday, June 13 also showed an increase by 51.63% and the visits recorded were 47.619.

    It is believed that based on the existing facts the overall number of calls to the MPA web site on the Internet will exceed the 1.100.000 mark in the month of June.

    [06] ANOTHER GROUP OF KOSSOVO REFUGEES WILL LEAVE FOR AUSTRALIA VIA THESSALONIKI

    A group of about 400 Kossovo refugees will leave for Australia tomorrow from Thessaloniki's Macedonia Airport. The head of the International Organization of Immigration in Greece pointed out that the refugees will come from the camps of Braza and Stankovic.

    Responding to the question why the refugees are being sent to Australia now that the war has ended, the representative of the international organization stated that those individuals are psychologically prepared to go to Australia and that themselves have requested this because they have relatives there, while at the same time he stressed that they are free to return to their country whenever they wish to or stay in the country where they will be sent.

    [07] FREE GREEK LANGUAGE LESSONS ON THE INTERNET OFFERED BY THE GREEK LANGUAGE ACADEMY OF VUPERTHAL

    The Greek Language and Culture Academy of Vuperthal in Germany will offer free Greek language lessons on the Internet starting in September. The lessons will be renewed every week and will be directed to people from all over the world who have access to the Internet and are interested in learning the Greek language .

    The above were stated by Greek Language and Culture Academy chairman head priest Charalambos Stephanopoulos, who also underlined that 17.500 words in the German language are based on the Greek language.

    Mr. Stephanopoulos stated that the academy develops many different kinds of activities in the sectors of Greek language teaching and materializes a total of 50 programs. He said characteristically that it plans to promote Greek language programs for tourist hotels in Greece where tourists will have the opportunity to learn the language while on vacation in the country.

    [08] BRITISH SOLDIERS ARRIVED IN THESSALONIKI ON THEIR WAY TO KOSOVO

    Intense mobility is being observed at the airport and port of Thessaloniki where the transportation of military units and supplies from NATO member states for the needs of the peacekeeping force in Kosovo continues.

    A military aircraft that landed at Thessaloniki's Macedonia Airport carried 156 British soldiers, while 350 French and Dutch marines are expected to arrive at the airport by this evening.

    Also, a French ship brought 60 military vehicles of different types and 10 containers with supplies to the port of Thessaloniki. A British ship is expected to sail into port this afternoon while 3 French ships are expected tomorrow.

    [09] REPPAS: GREECE WILL NOT ACCEPT INSINUATIONS AND DOUBTS ON THE ISSUE OF TERRORISM

    Greek government spokesman Dimitris Reppas reacted strongly to the statements made by US State Department spokesman James Foley, who alleged that US agencies have information on the training of Kurdish terrorists in Greece.

    Mr. Reppas said that Greece has a firm position toward terrorism and makes efforts to counter the phenomenon in cooperation with other countries, adding that it rejects any insinuations and doubts over the effectiveness of its efforts. He also said that periodically false accusations have been made intentionally targeting Greece.

    Foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou will raise the issue that has been created because of the statements made by Mr. Foley in the meeting he will have in Brussels with US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. Mr. Reppas reiterated the proposal made by the Greek foreign minister for the creation of a coordinating body to counter terrorism in the Balkans.

    [10] THERE IS NO PROBLEM WITH THE FOODS IN THE GREEK MARKET

    A broad-based meeting is being held in the ministry of development on the issue of the dioxin contaminated food products, while the inspections in the market continue. The authorities underline that there is no problem with the foods in the Greek market and scientists suggest that the people should prefer the Mediterranean diet.

    Increased demand for Greek foods is being observed in the European markets. Minister of agriculture Giorgos Anomeritis reiterated that there is no problem with dioxin contaminated foods in the Greek market and stressed that the ban in the import and distribution of Belgian products is still in effect.

    [11] ISTANBUL'S KOC UNIVERSITY OFFERS SCHOLARSHIP TO GREEKS

    Istanbul's Koc University is offering a full-expense paid scholarship to a Greek graduate student for its two-year MBA program

    The student evaluation process has been assigned to the Athens Laboratory of Business Administration (ALBA).

    Koc University is an English language, private, non-profit institution with a highly-selective admission process. It has a number of graduates from Italy, United Kingdom, France and the United States.

    The scholarship is reciprocal to ALBA's initiative to offer the annual Pavlos Yiannas scholarship, to a candidate preferably from turkey.

    Prospective candidates for the Koc U. Scholarship should address ALBA, at (01) 8964531-8, Ms. Danae Salepoula, Communications & Corporate Relations Director.

    [12] GREEK MAIN OPPOSITION LEADER TRAVELS TO CYPRUS, FRANCE

    The President of Greece's main opposition party, New Democracy's Costas Karamanlis is to travel to Cyprus today for the Pan-Cypriot Congress of the Democratic Rally.

    Mr. Karamanlis will be received by the President of the Republic of Cyprus Glafcos Clerides in Nicosia tomorrow.

    Following his stay in Cyprus, Mr. Karamanlis will travel to France where he will remain until June 23 for the European Democratic Union summit conference.

    On the sidelines of the conference, Mr. Karamanlis will meet with leaders of Christian-Democrat and Liberal parties, while he might also meet with French President Jacques Chirac.

    [B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS

    [13] KOSOVO WILL BE AT EPICENTER OF G8 TALKS TODAY

    The developments in Kosovo are expected to be the main subject to the discussed during today's summit of the world's seven most industrialized nations plus Russia (G8), to be held in Cologne, Germany.

    The summit is being held under the shadows that emerged from the US-Russia disagreement regarding the latter's role in the Kosovo peacekeeping force.

    Diplomatic efforts are presently under way to resolve the matter, with separate meetings being held between Russian Defense Minister Igor Seregeyev and his US counterpart William Cohen, and Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

    [14] EU TO SHIPOWNERS: DUMP WASTE MATERIAL AT PORTS, NOT AT SEA

    The European Union has approved an accord aimed at encouraging shipowners to dump waste material in EU ports rather than at sea.

    The text, approved by the EU's 15 transport ministers, calls for each EU port to be outfitted with the necessary equipment for recuperating ships' waste. The equipment will be financed by a tax paid by the shipowners.

    Greece's Minster of Merchant Marine Stavros Soumakis has welcomed the accord, expressing his satisfaction that it includes Greece's suggestions.

    The new regulation will apply to all types of vessel -- cargo ships, passenger liners, fishing boats and leisure craft -- which will have to declare the quantity and type of waste they are carrying when they dock.

    [15] UN IS ADAMANT: KLA MUST LAY DOWN ITS ARMS IMMEDIATELY

    The Kosovo Liberation Army (UCK) must lay down arms as soon as possible under the resolution of the United Nations Security Council, U.N. Undersecretary General Louise Frechette stated yesterday, stressing that the U.N. mission in Kosovo is determined to achieve the fulfillment of all clauses of the resolution, including the one on the KLA disarmament.

    The U.N. Secretariat held a briefing at the Security Council yesterday on the request of the Council members in order to comment on the situation in Kosovo.

    [16] SERB REFUGEES FROM KOSOVO INUNDATE CENTRAL TOWNS

    Serb refugees from Kosovo have inundated the central Serbian towns of Kragujevac and Kraljevo, with many spending the night outdoors, press reports quoted local authorities as saying.

    As the French news agency AFP has reported Radoslac Jovic, the mayor of Kraljevo -a town of 35,000 inhabitants, 95 miles south of Belgrade - said that "if the influx continues over the next few days Kraljevo will no longer be able to accept them". Mr. Jovic said some 10,000 refugees from Kosovo were currently in his town.

    Meanwhile another 400 arrived in Kragujevac, 120 kilometers south of Belgrade, joining 3,000 already there, the municipal commission for refugees told the Beta news agency.

    A town hall official, Vesna Pajevic, said Kragujevac had only two days' supplies of food left, and a humanitarian disaster threatened.

    [17] US DIPLOMAT MEETS WITH OPPOSITION PARTY LEADERS IN F.R.Y.

    US special Balkans envoy Robert Gelbard has met with leaders of the opposition to Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, a US official stated yesterday.

    "Gelbard did meet with opposition leaders" over the weekend in a bid to advance efforts at peaceful regime change in Yugoslavia, said the official, who requested anonymity.

    As the French news agency AFP reported, the official said that "we have been supporting an effort for quite some time to advance democracy in Yugoslavia," pointing to funding for independent media and other institutions aimed at increasing pluralism in Yugoslavia.

    The Serb daily "Vecernie Novosti" referred to Mr. Gelbard's meetings, commenting that they constitute the US diplomat's mission aimed at overthrowing the Yugoslav president.

    According to the paper, Mr. Gelbard's allies in this new missions will be the President of Montenegro Milo Jukanovic and smaller opposition parties in Serbia.

    US President Bill Clinton in a televised speech last week warned the Yugoslav people that "as long as your nation is ruled by an indicted war criminal," meaning Milosevic, "we will provide no support for the reconstruction of Serbia."

    [18] GREEK FM GIVES JOINT INTERVIEW WITH BRITISH COUNTERPART

    Greece's role and input in the reconstruction of the Balkans after the war, Greek-Turkish relations and the Cyprus issue were the key topics of discussion among Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou and his British counterpart Robin Cook in London yesterday.

    In a joint press interview given after their talks, Mr. Papandreou referred to the Greek firms' contribution to the reconstruction of Yugoslavia by stating that it "constitutes part of the role our country seeks to play throughout the region and aims at promoting reconciliation.

    "We will remain in the region after the troops withdraw and we would like, until then, the Albanians and the Serbs to coexist peacefully," he stated.

    Mr. Papandreou stressed that the international community should grant assistance to Yugoslavia, while he stressed that Greek private firms and state organizations alike will cooperate with foreign firms, British included, in the efforts to reconstruct the region.

    In turn, Mr. Cook referred to Greece's special role as the only Balkan country which, as a member of the EU and NATO, has been particularly valuable in reaching the peace agreement on Kosovo.

    "I would like to officially express my admiration for the positive contribution of Greece and (foreign minister) Mr. (George) Papandreou in the diplomatic efforts during the crisis in Kosovo," Mr. Cook said.

    "I recognize Greece's special position as a member of NATO and the European Union, and as the only EU member state in the Balkans, which provided it with special knowledge about the area and, of course, gave it the potential to have a significant contribution to the diplomatic efforts," he added.

    Referring to the Cyprus issue, the British Foreign Secretary stated that the issue will be discussed during the course of the G8's three-day summit in Cologne.

    "We expect Britain and the other countries at the G8 summit to aim at giving new impetus to the US efforts to resolve the problem" Mr. Cook said, adding that Britain wants the dialogue to restart and invites both sides to embark on negotiations without terms and preconditions.

    [19] BELGRADE AIRPORT BEGINS OPERATING TODAY

    The Belgrade airport which has been idle for 85 days because of the NATO aggression will resume functioning on Friday with a flight of the Yugoslav Avia Transport company's aircraft to Tivat, Montenegro.

    The Golubovac airport in Podgorica, Montenegro, is still ruined, and passengers will have to reach the town by bus from Tivat. It is planned to daily make seven flights to Tivat and two to Podgorica in summer.

    International flights will start next week. The Russian Aeroflot and the Swiss Air companies plan to resume flights to the Yugoslav capital. They are expected to cater to passengers on their way to Russia, Switzerland and other countries. Sanctions of the European Union are still in effect against Yugoslavia, and they will hardly be canceled in the near future. Under the sanctions, the air space of EU member-countries and their partners is closed for Yugoslav aircraft and European air Aeroflot and the Swiss Air companies plan to resume flights to the Yugoslav capital. They are expected to cater to passengers on their way to Russia, Switzerland and other countries. Sanctions of the European Union are still in effect against Yugoslavia, and they will hardly be canceled in the near future. Under the sanctions, the air space of EU member-countries and their partners is closed for Yugoslav aircraft and European air companies are unable to fly to Belgrade.

    The Belgrade international airport was spared by NATO. Only two bombs fell on the airport's premises over 78 days, and it might have been some mistake. Window glass of the airport building is broken. Planes of Russian envoy for the Yugoslav settlement Viktor Chernomyrdin, Russian Minister for Civil Defense and Emergencies Sergei Shoigu and Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari landed at the airport even at the days of the NATO aggression.

    [20] GREECE WAS SERBIA'S BEST FRIEND DURING THE NATO BOMBING

    A public opinion poll conducted by Belgrade political magazine "NIN" showed that 52% of the Serbs believe that Greece was Yugoslavia's best friend during the NATO air strikes.

    According to the public opinion poll, 46% of those questioned maintained that Yugoslavia managed to defeat the north Atlantic alliance, while 63% stated that they fully back the peace agreement. However, 50% of those who participated in the opinion poll expressed fears that the peace agreement includes "secret" conditions which have not been made public.

    Regarding the issue of the infrastructure and economy reconstruction of Yugoslavia, 38.5% pointed out that no foreign country will rush to help Serbia, 29.5% believe that they will receive economic support from Russia and 27% stated that they hope that they will receive assistance from the NATO member states which bear the responsibility for the destruction of their country.

    In the public opinion poll participated 200 randomly selected residents of Serbia.

    [21] THE US AND RUSSIA ARE CLOSER TO AN AGREEMENT ON KOSOVO

    US president Bill Clinton stated at noon today that the United States and Russia are very close to reaching an agreement on the role of the Russian troops in Kosovo. The two countries continue their negotiations for a third day in Helsinki, Finland.

    Moscow insists to have a sector in Kosovo under its control.

    [22] ARMED CLASHES BETWEEN RUSSIAN SOLDIERS AND KLA REBELS AT THE AIRPORT OF PRISTINA

    Armed clashes were recorded near the Slatina Airport in Pristina between Russian soldiers and Kossovo Liberation Army, KLA, rebels stated a NATO official to the Russian news agency Itar- Tass.

    The alliance official stated that the situation is tense and that the incident occurred during a patrol of the Russian forces in the airport region.

    [23] THE ALBANIANS FORCED THE UROSEVAC SERBS TO LEAVE THEIR HOMES, ACCORDING TO BELGRADE

    Urosevac, in southern Kossovo, has been turned into an exclusively ethnic Albanian city as about 14.000 Serbs, who were living there, have abandoned their homes.

    According to the Serb ministry of information, the city was abandoned yesterday by the 5.000 remaining Serbs as they were strongly pressured by the ethnic Albanian residents to leave.

    The KLA rebels are in control of the region and they have forced all the Serbs to flee, stated city mayor Tomislav Simic.

    There is chaos at the center of Urosevac where most stores have been destroyed and many buildings have suffered damages, while the Kossovo refugees, who are returning from the camps in FYROM and Albania, occupy the abandoned houses of the Serbs.

    [24] ABOUT 30.000 KOSSOVO REFUGEES HAVE RETURNED TO THEIR HOMES FROM ALBANIA

    About 30.000 ethnic Albanian refugees from camps in Albania it is estimated that have already returned to their homes in Kossovo since the signing of the peace agreement.

    The refugees abandon the camps and move toward the borders ignoring the repeated calls by the Albanian government not to speed-up their return and the warnings of risking to be killed by the land mines that have not been removed yet by the NATO forces.

    According to Tirana radio station, already 40.000 refugees, who had been placed in different camps across the country, are moving toward the city of Kukes to cross the borders and return to their homes.

    [25] A GREEK WOMAN WAS BRUTALLY MURDERED IN BERLIN

    The Greeks in Germany are shaken by yesterday's brutal murder of a Greek woman at her house in a Berlin suburb.

    According to the Berlin press, the unidentified killer hit the 51yearold woman and then doused her body with gasoline and set her alight. The woman was later discovered in a comatose state by a neighbor and the doctor who was called to treat her simply confirmed her death.

    The initial police investigation showed that the woman had been abused by her assailant.


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