On December 18, 1974, the Parliament elected him temporary President of the Republic with 206 votes. He served until June 19, 1975, when the Parliament elected Constantinos Tsatsos in his place.

Based on information so far, Mr. Tsochatzopoulos stated that the number of tourists to visit Greece this year, will reach the same levels as last year, that of 13 million visitors. This expected tourist result is significant, if one takes into account th e international crisis in the tourism market.

Meanwhile, the belief that the 2008 EXPO, contended for by Thessaloniki, will contribute to the increase of the region's tourism as well as employment, was expressed by Minister of Macedonia-Thrace Giorgos Paschalidis, in his greeting speech at the 18th PHILOXENIA.

Mr. Paschalidis also pointed out that PHILOXENIA has been being organized successfully for the last 18 years, and that this factor underlines the importance of promoting tourism.

Finally he stressed that Northern Greece offers development potential in alternative forms of tourism, such as agricultural tourism, winter and therapeutic tourism, while he added that Thessaloniki is still the largest pole of convention and exhibition t ourism in Greece.

The crowd was cheering the officials until they reached the Panathinaikos fans' stands, where some fans threw seats and bottles at the officials. There had also been other incidents earlier, when Turkish fans had raised two provocative banners with Moham ed II, reading "Istanbul since 1453" and "Killed for you". The banners were removed after UEFA officials intervened.

Speaking in a one-day conference in Athens on bilateral relations, Mr. Simitis pointed out that the Greek investments in Bulgaria will be promoted by common plans and projects like the construction of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline. He also conf irmed that Greece works hard for Bulgaria's accession into the EU and NATO.

The Bulgarian Prime Minister stressed that a new dimension, independent from the past, should be given to bilateral relations.

Minister of Development Akis Tsochatzopoulos also addressed the conference and underlined the need to sign bilateral agreements aimed at promoting the construction of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline and the projects for the transfer of natural ga s and electricity.

Earlier, in statements he made within the framework of the 18th PHILOXENIA Exhibition in Thessaloniki, the Turkish official had referred to the favorable prospects for cooperation between Greece and Turkey created on the occasion of the Athens 2004 Olymp ic Games and the Euro 2008 Football Cup.

For the record, Foreign Ministers of Greece and Turkey, Giorgos Papandreou and Sukru Sina Gurel, watched the PAO-Fenerbahce game last night and were attacked by football fans throwing objects and plastic bottles at them while they were entering the stadi um.

Before the incidents, the climate in the stadium was very bad because of the two banners held by Turkish football fans with provocative slogans on the conquest of Istanbul by Mohammed B'. The banners were removed after an intervention by UEFA officials.

In the meeting, they discussed issues of mutual interest like the promotion of the construction of border crossings and the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline, while they agreed that the cooperation between the Greek and Bulgarian parliamentarians is ex cellent in the regional and international fora.

The Bulgarian Prime Minister thanked Greece for its support to the efforts for the accession of Bulgaria into the Euro-Atlantic structures.

The intention of the four countries to assist the Greek effort was confirmed again today by their responsible ministers and undersecretaries in the one-day conference on Tourism and Sports organized within the framework of the 18th PHILOXENIA Exhibition in Thessaloniki.

The assurance that Russia, which will take over the presidency of the International Tourist Organization on January 1, 2003, will use this position to help in the effort for successful Olympic Games in Athens was given by Russian deputy Minister of Econo mic Development and Trade, Mr. Vladimir Strezialkowski. He proposed to Greece to hold a special conference on the Olympic Games in 2003 giving the opportunity to itself and the neighboring countries to discuss and table proposals on all the issues that co ncern the organizing of the international sports event.

Turkish Undersecretary of Tourism Savas Kiuce expressed the belief that the Athens Olympic Games will be very important not only for Greece but for all the neighboring countries which must work together for their success.

Bulgaria's intention to contribute as much as it can to the success of the Athens Olympic Games, was expressed by Bulgarian Undersecretary of Finance Dimitar Hadjinikolov. He stated that the games will stabilize more the already close relations shared by

the tourist organizations, the governments and the Cyprus also supports Greece, according to Trade, Industry and Tourism Minister Mr. Nikos Rolandis. He reminded that tourism corresponds to 20% of Cyprus' GDP. It is estimated that the country receives a total of 2.700.000 tourists annually and the foreign

exchange is estimated at US$2 billion.

Of the stocks trading today, 153 recorded gains and 136 had losses, while the value of 86 stocks remained unchanged.

Mr. Christodoulakis pointed out that Greece takes over the EU Presidency at a time characterized by low growth rates and stressed that the main goal under such conditions should be the creation of more job positions, especially for the young.

Mr. Simitis reminded that there is an agreement within the framework of the Greek Plan for the Reconstruction of the Balkans according to which, Bulgaria will receive the sum of 54 million Euro.

Referring to the issue of the border crossings between Greece and Bulgaria, he said that there is a slow progress but an agreement was reached for the Dramas-Exohi-Gotse Deltsev border crossing to be ready by July 2004.

He reiterated Greece's support to the efforts made by Bulgaria for its accession into the EU and NATO and added that Greece and Bulgaria expressed the willingness to deal jointly with the problems in the Balkan region through cooperation and dialogue.

Also, the Prime Minister of Bulgaria expressed the political will of the Bulgarian side to proceed with the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline project, while he clarified that the issue of the Kozlodui nuclear plant was not discussed in the meeting wit h Mr. Simitis.

He stated that groups of football fans of both teams are responsible for improprieties adding, however, that the incidents recorded were isolated and the majority of the fans were not involved.

Mr. Protopapas characterized as very significant the joint presence of the Greek and Turkish dignitaries in the football game and stated that it was a symbolic joint presence underlining the will of the two peoples to follow a course of solidarity.

Responding to questions by reporters, he said that Culture Minister Mr. Evangelos Venizelos expressed optimism concerning Turkey's European course and underlined that Cyprus' EU accession course will benefit Turkey as well. Called to comment on the state ments made by the Turkish Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Culture, he reiterated that Athens backs the European course of the neighboring country but disagrees with the views expressed by the two government ministers.

Finally, he stated that the Football Federations of Greece and Turkey have decided to organize jointly the Euro 2008 Football Cup and the two state governments see this prospect positively.

Greek Tourist Organization President Mr. Ioannis Patellis announced in a one-day conference in Thessaloniki today that he was authorized by Minister of Development Mr. Akis Tsochatzopoulos to announce that Greece is willing to host the children during th e next tourist season.

Russian Economic Development and Trade Minister Mr. Vladimir Strezialkowski attended the conference that was held within the framework of the 18th PHILOXENIA Exhibition and a moment of silence was observed in memory of the tens of victims of the terroris t attack in Moscow.