<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"><channel>	<title>Latest News</title>	<link>http://www.ekathimerini.com</link>	<description>ekathimerini.com : Latest News</description>	<language>eng</language>	<copyright>KATHIMERINI</copyright>	<LastBuildDate>Thu, 17 May 2012 00:18:04 +0200</LastBuildDate>  <image>    <url>http://wwk.kathimerini.gr/webadmin/EnglishNew/gifs/LogoSm.gif</url>	  <title>ekathimerini.com : Latest News</title>	  <link>http://www.ekathimerini.com</link>  </image>
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	<item>		<title>Panathinaikos and AEK set up playoff final</title>		<link>http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite5_1_16/05/2012_442487</link>		<pubDate>Wen, 16 May 2012 23:43:26 +0200</pubDate>		<category>Sports</category>
		<subcat>SOCCER</subcat>
		<author>By George Georgakopoulos</author>		<description><![CDATA[Panathinaikos beat Atromitos and AEK defeated PAOK on Wednesday for the Super League playoffs to set up what will essentially be a final for a place in next season's Champions League on Sunday.
Panathinaikos will be Greece's second representative in the c... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[Panathinaikos beat Atromitos and AEK defeated PAOK on Wednesday for the Super League playoffs to set up what will essentially be a final for a place in next season's Champions League on Sunday.
Panathinaikos will be Greece's second representative in the continent's top club competition if it avoids defeat at home to AEK, as it has a two-point lead over its cross-town rival.
On Wednesday the Greens needed a second-half strike by Sotiris Ninis to beat Atromitos 1-0. It was spectacular shot in the 65th minute that settled the game and will have boosted the morale of Ninis after a string of injuries that had put his place in the national team in jeopardy.
AEK made it three wins in as many home games in the playoffs as it defeated nine-man PAOK 2-0 at the Olympic Stadium.
Nikos Liberopoulos made the most of a poor clearance by PAOK keeper Costas Chalkias to score in the 33rd minute, with Leonardo doubling AEK's tally five minutes from time.
Pablo Garcia and Giorgos Fotakis were sent off for PAOK.
With just one game left, Panathinaikos has 11 points, AEK is on nine, PAOK has seven and Atromitos is last with five points. On Sunday Panathinaikos hosts AEK and PAOK greets Atromitos.
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		<subcat>ENERGY</subcat>
		<author>By Chryssa Liaggou</author>		<description><![CDATA[The Public Power Corporation (PPC) subsidiary that controls the electricity transmission network confirmed that it has recorded «several cases» of illegal access to power and PPC meters being tampered with, as consumers who have had their supply cut resor... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The Public Power Corporation (PPC) subsidiary that controls the electricity transmission network confirmed that it has recorded «several cases» of illegal access to power and PPC meters being tampered with, as consumers who have had their supply cut resort to illegitimate ways of getting it back.
Currently PPC is carrying out 2,500 to 3,000 power supply cuts daily to consumers with arrears.
This way the country’s main power supplier aims to recover at least some of the debts from unpaid bills whose total exceeded 1 billion euros in the first quarter of the year.
Illegal homes can be blamed for much of the problem, according to PPC.
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		<subcat>ECONOMY</subcat>
		<author>By Leonidas Stergiou</author>		<description><![CDATA[The annual cost of graft in Greece exceeds the measures adopted for 2012 for cuts in pensions and salaries, according to recent official figures and reports published by international organizations that estimate the size of corruption in Greece at some 4 ... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The annual cost of graft in Greece exceeds the measures adopted for 2012 for cuts in pensions and salaries, according to recent official figures and reports published by international organizations that estimate the size of corruption in Greece at some 4 billion euros a year, while the broader illegal economy is worth another 65 billion, or greater than the amount saved by measures in both the first and second memorandum.
Money-laundering rackets uncovered in 2011 alone were processing 223 million euros, while Kathimerini has learned that in the first three months of 2012, authorities located 50 million euros’ worth of revenues that were being hidden in one way or another from the tax man. The amount of illegal money traced by the tax authorities and the special task force for money laundering has more than doubled in the past year, the main reason being that tax evasion has only recently been included in calculations for the illegal economy. Therefore, it is estimated that around 200 million euros may be lost in tax revenues alone, a figure based on inspections of private assets and origin of wealth declarations.
However, the annual cost of corruption is much, much bigger, and it arises from the “light industry” of palm greasing in the public sector to the “heavy industry” of kickbacks for large public purchases, smuggling and drug dealing. Transparency International Greece has estimated that the volume of under-the-table payments to public sector employees, doctors etc came to more than 500 million euros in 2011.
Calculations made over the last five years by the World Bank estimate that under-the-table payments made by businesses in Greece to get any number of jobs expedited or actually done come to 500 million euros, while a survey of 550 Greek businesses found that 0.2 percent of their sales volume is destined for palm greasing, while the standard kickback for a deal with the public sector is believed to stand at an average of 0.8 percent of its total value.
The latest report on the issue by the World Bank found that 21.6 percent of Greek businesses pay to get procedures expedited, 55.9 percent expect to be asked for a certain something from tax inspectors, and 14.5 percent see giving a kickback for a state contract as an absolute prerequisite. What do these percentages translate into in cash? To put the figures into some perspective, in 2010 the annual turnover of Greek businesses came to 190 billion euros. From this amount, 0.2 percent of sales volume in palm greasing means 380 million euros. In the same year, the volume of public contracts, public works and public procurements came to around 5-7 billion euros, meaning that 0.8 percent of this comes to 56 million euros.
At the same time, figures collected by the Financial Crimes Squad (SDOE) indicate that another 3 billion euros a year are pumped into the illegal economy from drug and gun dealing, fuel, cigarette and alcohol smuggling, and extortion, bringing the corruption to 4 billion euros a year.
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		<subcat>FINANCE</subcat>
		<author>By Vangelis Mandravelis</author>		<description><![CDATA[The decision by the state privatization fund (TAIPED) to freeze the sell-off program due to the political uncertainty ahead of another round of elections next month has provoked the displeasure of the representatives of the country’s international credito... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The decision by the state privatization fund (TAIPED) to freeze the sell-off program due to the political uncertainty ahead of another round of elections next month has provoked the displeasure of the representatives of the country’s international creditors in Athens.
TAIPED’s board decided on Tuesday to suspend the program until a new government is elected, but the mission from the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund -- known collectively as the troika -- suggested that this is compromising yet one more structural reform effort in this country.
TAIPED said in a statement that “the observers appointed by the European Central Bank and the eurozone expressed their concern about the board’s decision.” Fund officials added that at least three months have been lost in the timetable for the application of the privatization program, which is crucial in the effort to boost state revenues, as they also include March and April in the election period. They add that the 3 billion euros target for sell-off revenues is no longer feasible.
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		<subcat>MARKETS</subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[As the political turmoil in Greece continued on Wednesday and Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) announced it had taken two blue chips (National Bank and OTE telecom) off its Standard Index, the general benchmark index of the local bourse continu... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[As the political turmoil in Greece continued on Wednesday and Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) announced it had taken two blue chips (National Bank and OTE telecom) off its Standard Index, the general benchmark index of the local bourse continued to sink.
The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index ended the day at 555.42 points, declining by 1.33 percent from Tuesday’s closing figure of 562.88 points. The blue chip FTSE/ATHEX 20 index gave up 2.92 percent to close at 206.16 points.
OTE lost 15.26 percent and National slid 13.48 percent, while Coca-Cola HBC gained 6.08 percent.
In total, 43 stocks recorded gains, 69 posted losses and 23 remained unchanged.
Turnover amounted to 49 million euros, up from Tuesday’s 43.4 million.
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		<subcat>ECONOMY</subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[The European Central Bank announced on Wednesday that it would temporarily stop lending to certain Greek banks until they have completed their recapitalization, a process that has been delayed -- generating worries in the local credit system -- but should... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The European Central Bank announced on Wednesday that it would temporarily stop lending to certain Greek banks until they have completed their recapitalization, a process that has been delayed -- generating worries in the local credit system -- but should be concluded next week, according to the country’s credit stability fund.
The ECB suggested that the local banks that have not yet boosted their capital sufficiently, as is the case with the majority, will have to temporarily resort to the Bank of Greece and its emergency liquidity assistance (ELA) to ensure an adequate cash flow.
“Once the recapitalization process is finalized, and we expect this to be finalized soon, the banks will regain access to standard Eurosystem refinancing operations,” the European Central Bank stated.
Panayiotis Thomopoulos, the head of the Hellenic Financial Stability Facility (HFSF), stated on Wednesday that the 18 billion euros destined to bolster the capital base of the four main commercial lenders will be transferred via the deposit of bonds to National, Alpha, Eurobank EFG and Piraeus by Tuesday or Wednesday next week.
The credit market in Greece is fuming at the delay in the recapitalization process. Although the relevant government decision was approved before Easter (April 15), and the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) has forwarded 23 billion euros to the HFSF to this end, these funds have not yet reached the local banks.
Had the process been already completed, banks would not only have been able to tap into the liquidity of the Eurosystem, but the 18 billion euros in bonds would have stabilized the local credit market and reduced anxiety. Bank officials suggest the delay is simply unjustifiable.
Worse, deposits are continuing to shrink as Greek citizens’ fears about the course of the economy grow, with rumors circulating in foreign media that local banks have set a 50-euro ceiling on cash withdrawals, which is completely unfounded.
Bank sources said the situation remains under control, but add that caution should be exercised to avoid any statements that would generate panic.
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[Greece unofficially began its new election period, ahead of polls on June 17, as party leaders clashed over who would be appointed caretaker prime minister before they finally agreed to follow the constitution and opt for Council of State president Panayi... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[Greece unofficially began its new election period, ahead of polls on June 17, as party leaders clashed over who would be appointed caretaker prime minister before they finally agreed to follow the constitution and opt for Council of State president Panayiotis Pikrammenos to take over the role.
Pikrammenos was sworn in on Wednesday night and is expected to name a cabinet on Thursday that will tide the country over until new elections are held.
The head of Greece’s highest administrative court was chosen after the option of keeping on his predecessor, Lucas Papademos, in the role was ruled out. New Democracy leader Antonis Samaras and PASOK chief Evangelos Venizelos had been in favor of Papademos continuing but met with opposition from the head of the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), Alexis Tsipras.
The leftist leader proposed that PASOK veteran and former Economy Minister Gerasimos Arsenis should be appointed caretaker prime minister. Tsipras’s choice infuriated Venizelos, who said that it was contradictory for SYRIZA to refuse a role in a unity government and to then put forward its own proposal for who should be caretaker prime minister.
Tsipras’s suggestion is seen as having two purposes: to appeal to traditional but disgruntled PASOK voters, as SYRIZA seeks to boost its support ahead of the new elections, and to form an alliance with the small party Social Pact, which was co-founded by Arsenis’s wife and former Labor Minister Louka Katseli.
Minutes from Tuesday’s meetings between the party leaders revealed that Tsipras insisted on his refusal to join the government because he wanted to be part of an administration that would repudiate the terms of the bailout. “We asked for the Greek people to vote so we could form a government that would cancel this program,” he said.
Tsipras added that the proposal to enter a government with PASOK, ND and the Democratic Left suggested SYRIZA would have to accept that some of the austerity measures would still be applied pending a renegotiation with the EU and IMF. Tsipras said he wanted a commitment that all such measures would be “frozen.”
The clash over Arsenis was settled when Tsipras said he would accept Papademos as premier. However, Communist Party (KKE) leader Aleka Papariga and Independent Greeks chief Panos Kammenos objected and it was decided that, as decreed by the Greek Constitution, the eldest of Greece’s senior judges would be given the position.
Following the meeting, the parties immediately began devising their election campaigns. Samaras gave an indication of what voters can expect from ND with a brief statement. “The Greek people have two paths ahead of them: One is to change everything in Greece, within a Europe that is also changing. The other is to live the terror of exiting the euro, the terror of isolation, out of Europe, and the collapse of everything we have made until today,” he said.
The conservatives are preparing to focus their efforts on discrediting SYRIZA and the Independent Greeks over their anti-bailout stances. In the effort to rally center-right forces, it appears that ND is close to an agreement with former member Dora Bakoyannis, who is currently the head of the liberal party Democratic Alliance. The possibility, however, of the head of the Popular Orthodox Rally (LAOS), Giorgos Karatzaferis, returning to ND took a knock as he said he wants to “rebuild” his party.
The election campaign looks set to revolve around the issue of Greece’s membership of the eurozone, with PASOK and New Democracy arguing that SYRIZA’s position of absolute rejection of the EU-IMF memorandum would lead to Greece being forced out of the eurozone.
Venizelos warned voters against “populism, demagoguery, irresponsibility and the trade in false hopes.”
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		<subcat>COMMENTARY</subcat>
		<author>By Nick Malkoutzis</author>		<description><![CDATA[President Karolos Papoulias was correct to stress to party leaders the unusually large amount of savings being withdrawn from Greek banks over the past few days but this also caused some unnecessary arm-flapping, a practice which always obscures people’s ... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[President Karolos Papoulias was correct to stress to party leaders the unusually large amount of savings being withdrawn from Greek banks over the past few days but this also caused some unnecessary arm-flapping, a practice which always obscures people’s view of what is important.
Papoulias told party leaders on Monday that 700 million euros had been withdrawn from Greek banks on Monday. Banking sources told the Financial Times that about 5 billion euros had been withdrawn since the end of April. Savings disappearing from Greek banks is nothing new. Deposits have fallen from about 240 billion euros in 2009 to some 170 billion now. However, the rate at which money is being withdrawn at the moment is a cause for concern.
The crisis has seen about 3 billion euros per month being withdrawn from banks by Greeks -- both those who are drawing on their savings to pay bills and cover other costs as well as those sending money abroad for safety. This peaked in January, when about 5 billion was withdrawn, largely due to Greeks having several tax bills to pay at the time. So, a reported 5 billion euros being taken out in just two weeks certainly should command attention.
It should do so because the Greek banking system is the country’s Achilles heel at the moment and while the focus is on whether Greece will get its next loan installment from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund so it can pay wages and pensions, the real danger could lurk elsewhere.
Greek banks are precariously balanced between collapse and at least temporary stability as they wait for the 48-billion-euro recapitalization program to be carried out. The European Central Bank said on Wednesday that this process would begin “soon” after the settling of a dispute between the ECB and the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) over exactly how it would be carried out.
While the recapitalization underlines just how reliant the Greek banking system is on outside assistance, the truth is that the banks have been hooked up to the life support system for some time. Understanding this process might drive home just what a precarious position Greece finds itself in.
To make up for the loss of deposits over the last two years, the ECB has allowed Greek banks, shut out from intermarket borrowing and lacking collateral that the central bank would accept, to be financed through emergency liquidity assistance (ELA). This means that the banks are able to borrow from the Bank of Greece, rather than the ECB, by putting up collateral that is theoretically more risky than bonds, such as small business loans or mortgages. It is thought that Greek banks have borrowed about 60 billion euros this way. But the supply of money is finite. Parliament has set the limit for the ELA scheme at 90 billion euros and Greek banks do not have limitless collateral.
Furthermore, there is the possibility that the ELA tap could be turned off if central bankers in Frankfurt become concerned about Greek banks becoming insolvent. In order to access ELA, currently the banks’ only source of funding, albeit a dwindling on, the ECB board needs to give its approval. But ELA funding could be halted with a two-thirds majority decision. This would cut off Greek banks from liquidity and Greece would be forced to begin printing its own money. Since it can’t print euros, the only option would be to return to the drachma.
This explains how finely balanced the situation is and why a bank run could trigger Greece’s exit from the eurozone rather than a squabble about austerity measures and loan tranches. It is extremely worrying, therefore, when some politicians in Greece keep insisting that there is no way for the country to be forced from the euro area as such a process is not included in any treaty. A halt to liquidity would end Greece’s euro membership, treaty or no treaty.
However, there is also reason to believe that the weakness of the Greek banking sector may also be a reason to keep Greece in the euro.
Deposits within the eurozone are transferred through a central payment system, known as Target2. When a depositor in Greece moves their funds to a bank in another eurozone country, the payment is processed through Target2. This creates a claim between the Bank of Greece and the rest of the Eurosystem. If there was panic in Greece about the country leaving the euro, depositors might move large amounts of funds to safer countries. These transfers would be funded by the Bank of Greece through ELA. A Greek collapse would, therefore, have a serious effect on banks in other countries.
The Bank of Greece’s liabilities to other eurozone central banks are currently thought to total about 100 billion euros. “This is a pretty big hole to punch in the balance sheet and to divide among countries according to the ECB’s capital key,” wrote the Financial Times’ Joseph Cotterill in the Alphaville blog on Wednesday. “We suppose allowing a steep ELA increase would punch an even bigger hole but this is already a huge price for driving Greece out of the euro.”
However, the bigger issue is that uncertainty about Greece’s future in the euro could spread to Spain and Italy, which have huge liabilities. “What policymakers and market players are worried about right now is if foreign investors see a Greek deposit crisis as a signal to rush for the exits in Italy and Spain,” wrote the BBC’s Paul Mason on Wednesday.
It emphasizes what has been increasingly evident as the Greek crisis has deepened: Despite seeming to move further apart over the last couple of years, Greece and the eurozone are bound to each other in ways that are not immediately visible. Because we don’t see those bonds, doesn’t mean that they can’t be broken. Because we don’t want to notice them, doesn’t mean that the pain will be any less if the ties are cut.
[Kathimerini English Edition]
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[The first stage of an architectural competition for a new urban development project for central Athens, aimed at rejuvenating neglected parts of the capital, is to be launched next week, according to a biministerial decision made public on Wednesday.
The ... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The first stage of an architectural competition for a new urban development project for central Athens, aimed at rejuvenating neglected parts of the capital, is to be launched next week, according to a biministerial decision made public on Wednesday.
The project, dubbed “Re-think Athens,” is centered on Panepistimiou Street, one of the capital’s main thoroughfares, connecting Syntagma Square in front of Parliament to the run-down Omonia Square.
According to the decision by the Environment and Infrastructure ministries, which is soon to be published in the Government Gazette, the first phase will be an open competition, appealing for ideas from architects, while the second will call for detailed proposals from a handful of the most inspiring plans submitted. It is believed that the original applications will be whittled down to between three and eight. The architects behind the best proposals will receive an award from the Onassis Foundation, which is sponsoring the competition.
The committee of critics that will judge the entries will comprise nine members, to be chosen by the Onassis Foundation subject to the approval of the two ministries.
Once the best proposal has been identified, the relevant feasibility studies will be drawn up by authorities and efforts made to secure European Union subsidies for the project.
In March, when the initiative was heralded, outgoing Prime Minister Lucas Papademos hailed the initiative, saying it was crucial to improving the standard of living for the capital’s residents and visitors, saying it would “put Athens where it belongs, among Europe’s historic cities.” “We owe this to the citizens of Athens who have seen their quality of life decline month after month, year after year,” he said.
Using Panepistimiou Street as its main axis, the project aims to gradually gentrify the capital. The aim is to transform Panepistimiou Street into a car-free zone with a tram line and bicycle lanes. A more long-term objective is to link two of Greece’s most important cultural institutions, the new Acropolis Museum on the popular Dionysiou Areopagitou promenade with the National Archaeological Museum in the run-down area off Patission Street.
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[The president of the Council of State, Panayiotis Pikrammenos, was Thursday appointed to lead a caretaker government to take the country to fresh elections.
During his visit to President Karolos Papoulias, who gave him the mandate to form a government, th... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The president of the Council of State, Panayiotis Pikrammenos, was Thursday appointed to lead a caretaker government to take the country to fresh elections.
During his visit to President Karolos Papoulias, who gave him the mandate to form a government, the 67-year-old described his task as “a difficult burden” but thanked the president for entrusting him with it. “Our country is experiencing difficult times. We must safeguard its standing and its smooth transition to a new government,” he said. The eminent judge allowed himself some levity, noting that the media had decided that his name, meaning“embittered,” meant he was well suited for his role. Later Pikrammenos was sworn in at the Presidential Palace before meeting outgoing Premier Lucas Papademos for the handover.
With Pikrammenos’s cabinet to be sworn in at 10 a.m., rumors were flying last night about who it would comprise.
Also Thursday, at 11 a.m., the MPs elected to Parliament in the May 6 polls are to be sworn in. They will not be MPs for long as, after the appointment of a parliament speaker on Friday, the House will be dissolved and elections called. Most MPs are expected to be re-elected despite a change in the voting procedure. In previous elections voters could elect specific MPs from a party but in the June polls the candidates will be on a fixed party list and will be elected based on the share of the vote that their party gets in their constituency.
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[Former Thessaloniki Mayor Vassilis Papageorgopoulos and 17 other people are to stand trial for allegedly embezzling almost 52 million euros from the municipality’s coffers.
“Finally, four-and-a-half years after I uncovered the embezzlement by a corrupt mu... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[Former Thessaloniki Mayor Vassilis Papageorgopoulos and 17 other people are to stand trial for allegedly embezzling almost 52 million euros from the municipality’s coffers.
“Finally, four-and-a-half years after I uncovered the embezzlement by a corrupt municipal employee, this case is coming to trial,” said Papageorgopoulos.
“At last it is time for the slanderers to be exposed.” The ex-mayor and former Deputy Mayor Michalis Zoridis had their bail set at 300,000 euros.
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		<subcat>CULTURE</subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[It has become a regular rendezvous for lovers of culture around the globe. International Museum Day, born of an initiative by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) in 1977, is celebrated annually around May 18. Each year the global event takes on a ... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[It has become a regular rendezvous for lovers of culture around the globe. International Museum Day, born of an initiative by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) in 1977, is celebrated annually around May 18. Each year the global event takes on a different theme and this year’s motto is “Museums in a Changing World: New Challanges, New Inspirations.”
Heralding International Museum Day is the European Night of Museums, which takes place in the form of all-day or all-night events. Originally introduced by the French Ministry of Culture and Communication in 2005, the European Night of Museums is patronized by ICOM and UNESCO and will be celebrated on Saturday, May 17.
Greek cultural institutions have put together a series of special events in view of both celebrations and are inviting the public for free viewings of their permanent and temporary exhibitions as well as special performances and concerts.
ICOM’s Greek branch is paying tribute to a highly active local institution this year, the Goulandris Museum of Natural History -- Gaia Center (100 Othonos, tel 210.801.5870, www.gnhm.gr) in the northern suburb of Kifissia. The key celebratory event will take place on Friday, May 18, starting at 7 p.m. On the same day the museum will be putting together tours of its botanic labs, children’s theater and workshops, among other events, some of which will also take place on Sunday, May 20.
At the Acropolis Museum (15 Dionysiou Areopagitou, tel 210.900.0900, www.theacropolismuseum.gr), celebrations begin on Friday, May 18, with the museum staying open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and the restaurant operating until midnight. Also on the day’s agenda is pianist Marios Strofalis, who will be playing Manos Hadjidakis and Mikis Theodorakis songs as of 11 a.m., while his Strofalis Quartet will perform at 7 p.m. On May 19, the museum will stay open from 8 a.m. to midnight (admission will be free from 8 p.m. to midnight), while the City of Athens Symphony Orchestra will be interpreting works by Mozart and Haydn at 9.30 p.m.
On May 18, the Benaki Museum’s main branch in Kolonaki will offer free admission to visitors to its permanent collections (1 Koumbari & Vas. Sofias, tel 210.367.1000, www.benaki.gr) as will its Museum of Islamic Art in Thiseio (22 Aghion Asomaton & 12 Dipilou, tel 210.325.1311), while a number of special offers will be available at the flagship museum’s shop, as well as its Pireos St annex and the Ghika Gallery. The special offers will continue to Sunday, May 20.
The B&M Thecharakis Foundation (9 Vassilissis Sofias & 1 Merlin, tel 210.361.1206, www.thf.gr) will be open from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m. on May 19. Among other special events, visitors can see a retrospective exhibition of works by Christos Caras (in the presence of the artist who will be signing copies of the show’s catalog and silk prints), 6- to 12-year-olds can watch a play, while adults can attend a live concert by local singer-songwriter Lolek.
At the Herakleidon Museum in Thiseio (16 Irakleidon, tel 210.346.1918, www.herakleidon-art.gr), doors will open from sunset to midnight on May 19, while musical ensemble Encardia will perform Southern Italian tunes from 8.30 to 10 p.m. Admission is free of charge. A day earlier, on May 18, admission will be free from 1 to 9 p.m., when visitors will be able to discover the relationship between mathematics, philosophy and art through the work of M.C. Escher and Victor Vasarely. A special guided tour (in Greek) of the show will take place from 6 to 8 p.m.
The City of Athens’s Technopolis cultural complex makes its International Museum Day debut on May 18 with a series of free-of-charge events at its Gazi premises (100 Pireos, tel 210.347.5518, www.technopolis-athens.com). The complex will be open from 9.30 a.m. to 11 p.m. while events will range from guided tours of its former gasworks and a photography exhibition, to a screening of Dimitris Stavrakas’s “To Gazi” and a concert featuring the City of Athens Symphony Orchestra.
At the Thessaloniki Museum of Photography (Warehouse A, Thessaloniki Port, tel 2310.566.716, www.thmphoto.gr) doors open for free visits from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on May 18. A tour of the museum’s temporary exhibition, “Oriented and Disoriented in the Middle East (Part A),” will take place from 4 to 5 p.m.
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[Roads around the Panathenaic Stadium in central Athens will be closed from 4 p.m. Thursday as the Olympic Flame will be brought to the arena to be handed over to officials from the London 2012 Olympics.
The London delegation will be led by Princess Anne a... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[Roads around the Panathenaic Stadium in central Athens will be closed from 4 p.m. Thursday as the Olympic Flame will be brought to the arena to be handed over to officials from the London 2012 Olympics.
The London delegation will be led by Princess Anne and the chairman of the London organizing committee, Seb Coe. London Mayor Boris Johnson, Hugh Robertson, minister for Sport and the Olympics, and former England soccer captain David Beckham will also be part of the London team at the handover ceremony.
The flame will be flown to Culdrose naval base in Cornwall for the start of the 70-day relay. The flame is due to arrive in London for the start of the Games on July 27.
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		<subcat>ECONOMY</subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[European Central Bank President Mario Draghi acknowledged on Wednesday that Greece could leave the euro area and signaled policymakers will not compromise on their key principles to prevent an exit.
While the bank’s “strong preference” is that Greece stay... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[European Central Bank President Mario Draghi acknowledged on Wednesday that Greece could leave the euro area and signaled policymakers will not compromise on their key principles to prevent an exit.
While the bank’s “strong preference” is that Greece stays in the euro area, “the ECB will continue to comply with the mandate of keeping price stability over the medium term in line with treaty provisions and preserving the integrity of our balance sheet,” Draghi said in a speech in Frankfurt.
Since the euro’s founding treaty does not envisage a member state leaving the monetary union, “this is not a matter for the Governing Council to decide,” Draghi said.
The comments are the closest Draghi has come to conceding that Greece could choose to leave the euro region, having previously said only that such an event was not envisaged and would not help Greece.
“The Governing Council’s strong preference is that Greece will continue to stay in the euro area,” Draghi said.
He said euro-area countries have made more progress on cutting budget deficits and introducing structural reforms than has been acknowledged.
“Everywhere governments have undertaken significant and difficult reforms and continue to do so,” Draghi said, adding that public debt overall in the euro area should stop rising next year and decline thereafter.
[Bloomberg]
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		<subcat>TRANSPORT</subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[Singapore Airlines Ltd, flying to Athens since 1972, will halt the service to the Greek capital starting October because of weak demand.
Asia’s second-largest carrier by market value will also halt service to Abu Dhabi, with the last flights to the two ci... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[Singapore Airlines Ltd, flying to Athens since 1972, will halt the service to the Greek capital starting October because of weak demand.
Asia’s second-largest carrier by market value will also halt service to Abu Dhabi, with the last flights to the two cities from Singapore leaving on October 26, Singapore Air said in an e-mailed statement on Wednesday.
The carrier currently offers two weekly services to Athens and three to Abu Dhabi.
“The suspensions are in line with Singapore Airlines’ policy to match capacity to prevailing market demand,” the carrier said.
The airline has been flying to Abu Dhabi since 2006.
[Bloomberg]
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		<subcat>FINANCE</subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[The yield on Greece’s 2 percent bond maturing in February 2023 on Wednesday climbed above 30 percent for the first time since the nation restructured its debt in March.
The yield rose 84 basis points, or 0.84 percent, to 30.24 percent at 10.14 a.m., accor... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The yield on Greece’s 2 percent bond maturing in February 2023 on Wednesday climbed above 30 percent for the first time since the nation restructured its debt in March.
The yield rose 84 basis points, or 0.84 percent, to 30.24 percent at 10.14 a.m., according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
[Bloomberg]
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[The nationwide association representing pharmacists said Wednesday that it would stop providing medicine on credit to patients insured with the National Organization for Healthcare Provision (EOPYY), the country’s biggest healthcare provider, from next We... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The nationwide association representing pharmacists said Wednesday that it would stop providing medicine on credit to patients insured with the National Organization for Healthcare Provision (EOPYY), the country’s biggest healthcare provider, from next Wednesday when pharmacists are to stage a 24-hour strike.
The action, the latest in a series of similar protests, means patients will be obliged to pay the full price for their usually subsidized medicines before taking their receipts to EOPYY to claim back the difference.
The union, whose members are planning to hold demonstrations in Athens, Thessaloniki and other major cities next Wednesday, decided on the action to protest the organization’s failure to pay some 250 million euros in debts for prescriptions issued in March.
EOPYY and the social security funds that fall under its umbrella owe an additional 250 million euros to pharmacists from 2011.
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		<subcat>LETTERS</subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[Re: Dutchman, 78, hurt in Monemvasia attack
Even if Greece were a centipede, with that many shots in its own foot, it would not be able to run a single inch.
Sebastian Schroeder
Patra
Does anyone in Greece stand for reform?
I think the most disturbing thi... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[Re: Dutchman, 78, hurt in Monemvasia attack
Even if Greece were a centipede, with that many shots in its own foot, it would not be able to run a single inch.
Sebastian Schroeder
Patra
Does anyone in Greece stand for reform?
I think the most disturbing thing about the Greek situation to international eyes is that nobody seems to be advocating reform in the country. If we could gather 100 Greeks in a room and ask them to please stand up and suggest material ways to reform the country (e.g. pay taxes, slash the public sector, cut red tape, roll back union power, end corruption, etc.), would anyone stand up?
When I look at the Greek political parties, I don't see anyone advocating reform (except for the so-called «liberal» parties, but none of them won seats in the last election). Given that Greece is a democracy, this seems to imply that the Greek people themselves are not advocating reform. How can this be? How can an entire nation be so deluded as to think there is no need for positive change?
People of Greece: you are making this too hard for the rest of us. It is not reasonable to ask the rest of the world to feel like villains forcing you to make positive changes. The inevitable thought that comes to mind is that you cannot help a people who do not want to help themselves.
Peter O'Hara
Another nail in the coffin
There is no information in the Greek media concerning this publication http://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article106315000/Griechen-brechen-Hollaender-die-Nase.html
Is this the famous “xenofilia”? To smash the face of a 78-year-old man? Chrysi Avgi shows the way to the future.
It seems that Greece prefers the suicide way. I am shocked.
Thomas Pascoe
Crete
Greece to hold new elections, markets tank
What do the «anti-austerity» parties want and do about it? Do they want a massive flow of cash?
This is the opposite of austerity.
Where this cash will come from? If we have it (that seems to be implied by some), the parties that believe it should have a financial plan on what we must do with it and how.
The Greek economy contracted by 6.2% in the first quarter of 2012 according to GSA.
If we don't have it and we have to borrow it, we still need a financial plan that includes also paying it back.
In the election next month people have to vote for a plan and not to punish somebody else.
We may not like our politicians but they are all we have.
What we need now is a plan, not a lot of small parties.
Dina Hatzipavlu
Netherlands
Tsipras the only choice in June election
The voters who participate in the June election for Parliament must rally to SYRIZA, thereby assuring that Greece's new political wunderkind, Alexis Tsipras, will triumph as Prime Minister. Only Tsipras has shown the statesmanship to lead Greece in her return to the drachma, thereby detonating once and for all the utterly discredited abstractions underpinning present-day global finance.
Rhodes Vessels
Lewes, Delaware
Greeks to head back to polls after talks fail
The Syriza party may have its wish to become the largest party in the next election, and Mr. Tsipras may have his wish to become a prime minister at a tender age. But those Greeks who vote for him, and expect to go back to the pre-bailout life, may find out that the worst will be yet to come with Mr. Tsipras at the helm. It would certainly be history repeating itself again, because those who don't know their history tend to repeat the mistakes of the past.
There is an adage that warns: «Be careful what you wish for; you may get it!» I bet that the Greek's wish to see Mr. Tsipras governing will be fulfilled in the next election. Then they would probably have to face a worse tragedy than the one they are in now. Angela Merkel told George Papandreou during the bailout negotiations that «the austerity measures should be painful to teach Greeks a lesson.» That lesson, however, was not learned by the Greeks, as the May 6 elections proved. Now the Greeks believe in Tsipras's prescription for pain relief, but he has no medicine. The Europeans have it, and they have warned Tsipras that they won't fill his prescriptions for free!
Tsipras's idea that the Europeans are bluffing, and his braggadocio to call their bluff, is dangerous. And those who vote for him will surely be very sorry when the Europeans call his bluff, and let Greece sink! Then Tsipras's dream-lining career will sink as well, along with those who trusted their social welfare to him.
Nikos Retsos (retired professor)
USA
Strategy = History
How many in the political spectrum would remember Zoe Palaiologina? Maybe all if they choose to. In A.D. 1453 it wasn't Europe that offered any hope, it was Russia; when the inside does not help you must look to the outside. Get a market reaction for a new Drachma with Russian backing and support and then decide on Europe. You are culturally 'near-shore' to Russia in Church, architecture, and understanding. God bless you at this time.
Simon Robinson
Euro or drachma, pros and cons
Should Greece stay in the Euro zone at all costs or go back to the Drachma? There are pros and cons to both outcomes; although the severe austerity has done nothing to help the pro-Euro forces in the country. To me, the real question is not whether Greece should stay in the Euro, but whether it is able to. Can Greece's small, basic and unproductive economy function in a currency zone dominated by much larger and more advanced nations? Kathimerini as an advocate of the Euro has superfluous articles on the doomsday scenario should Greece leave the EZ, but I don't recall reading anything exploring how Greece can function within it.
Witness the actions of the Greek political class since the crisis started. They have done everything to preserve the status quo. That is why the focus has been on cutting wages and increasing taxes but very little has been done to liberalise the economy or reduce that anchor around the nation's neck, the public service. We can blame the Germans all we want, but who really believes the Euro can save Greece under such conditions?
The Greek system has been propped up by foreign loans since the adoption of the Euro and the fall of that house of cards has finally arrived. Are the international banksters flying around the Greek carcass like vultures? You bet they are but no one forced Greece to join the Euro or borrow sums it could never hope to repay. You can thank the egos of the venal political class and apathetic public for that.
Whether under the Euro or the Drachma, Greece faces decades of economic pain and suffering. Time the Greeks faced the truth, made some hard decisions and stopped this Sisyphean drama!
John Dimitropoulos
Reasons to be worried
Although the decimation of PASOK and ND in the last elections brought joy to my heart, the fact that no serious party has emerged to fill the vacuum has offset that joy. The reality that a communist, anarchist and professional protestor like Tsipras has emerged as the big winner from this crisis and potentially the PM in the next elections proves that many Greeks are continuing their mass delusion that they can keep the Euro without austerity. Everyone is panicked by Chrysi Avgi's percentage but no one seems worried that various communists got over a quarter of the vote and the same percentage of the electorate didn't bother to show!
John Dimitropoulos
Strangers in Greek lands
Greece was cobbled together from people with different backgrounds and of different races.
Much of the heavy-handed approach to creating a national state would not be seen as the right thing in today's world. The same approach is used unofficially today while shouting for protection of human rights and freedom.
The thing I remind the majority of my Greek friends is that not one of their grandmothers spoke Greek before the 1930s. There are all sorts of myths we tell each other on how we are more Greek than each other.
I live in a city the same size as Athens that has 1,200 migrants coming in every week. Australia being a British-controlled country with much of the country owned by Britain, ensures its future control by making sure 50-60% of the migrants are from the British islands, and most of the others can by two or three generations melt into the country.
Greece, with half the population of Australia, has taken twice as many migrants than Australia in a short time.
There is a resentment by most of Australia's population towards non-European migrants, but anyone saying anything is quickly sat upon. Most of the migrants arriving in Australia are economic migrants with approximately 12,000 refugees. No matter from which war zone they come from, the refugees are a damaged people, just as some Greeks were. They present difficulties to the society they settle in.
Most of Greece's migrants would not be acceptable for resettlement in Australia, which has the ability to run a very controlled society. The invasion of Greece by people who would not be acceptable by any other country is I believe well planned by the enemies of Greece.
The left and the right in Greece have finally found a cause for their heroics to embrace or fight the coloured invaders, and while they play games they are undermining Greek society by their circus antics.
Greece is burning and they are massaging their egos.
No society or culture can survive large invasions. Greeks, more than any other culture, should know all about it if they could only read and write and comprehend.
Charilaos Lithoxopoulos
Choose!
In my opinion Greece should have made this choice before entering the euro zone, but Greece really has to choose now:
- Does Greece want to stay in the euro zone? Which implicates the implementation of a Northern European kind of economy and society in Greece.
- Or does Greece not want this kind of society? Which implicates Greece has to leave the euro zone.
As we see today, the mix of these choices produces unmanageable economic and social perversions for everybody. And by that for the Greek political parties.
Hans van der Schaaf
Public sector
But how can you expect the citizens to understand the risks of a euro exit when none of the politicians nor the media make any serious attempt to explain what is going on?
I came to live in Greece in 2005. It was perfectly clear to me that Greece was bankrupt. It had no cash to pay for anything. It was actively involved in borrowing money to pay off debts that were paying off debts that were paying off debts. At the same time the government was operating a civil service which enjoyed untenable benefits in a debt-ridden country.
And of course Goldman Sachs had already shown the Finance Ministry how to defer debt payment, and to 'cook' the books legally.
It is worth noting that the agents of Goldman Sachs are even now acting as the bureaucrats of the Greek government.
It may be true that there are none so blind as those who refuse to see. If so, we are trapped in a world in which the blind are leading the blind over the cliff.
J Kelvyn Richards
Trikala
Merkel, Hollande and Greece
I have never understood the reluctance of practically everybody, Greek leaders included, to consider suggesting the Greek debt load to be paid back in full over the next 100 years at a fixed, bearable rate, instead of sticking to the idea of doing everything in the foreseeable future -- the next 10 years or so. It would give the country the room to change things internally, stimulate the economy and at the same time satiusfy all its creditors.
Maybe some Greek politicians do not want too much change, but some do -- as I see it. But even they choose rather to default and thereby harm the country further.
Or is my suggestion too easy?
But -- I forgot -- that would mean that things really change. And maybe that is asking too much!
Ulrich Marggraf
Greece doesn't have enough jails for all the Greek criminals
Kathimerini should commission some Greek criminologists to conduct a study of what percentage of the Greek population are tax criminals.
From all of your articles one gets the impression that 75% of the Greek population are tax criminals.
That is why Europe doesn't feel sorry for Greece.
The tragedy is that it is the remaining 25% that are being thrown into the dust heap like unwanted digs.
Shame!
David Alexander
US vulture fund profits from bond payout
Is this how efficient Papademos has been? Paying out the bond in full -- when they needn't?
US vulture fund profits from bond payout
So much for Papademas protecting Greece's interest!
And you were eulogizing him a few days ago!
Alex Leandros
Elections & politicians
So Samaras and Venizelos and a large portion of the public want to remain in the euro, right?
Mr Samaras and Mr Venizelos should put their money where their mouths are and form a unity party just for the purpose of this election and ensuring Syriza do not come first and driving Greece out.
We are waiting, gentlemen, we are waiting.
Simon Morgan
It's an ill wind that does not blow some good to someone
With Greece about to revisit 1942 hunger and violence, those that have cashed in and moved their money to America and Britain can come back and buy real bargains.
In 1942 you could exchange a handful of wheat for a handful of gold. People sold their daughters for ten or twenty kilos of wheat.
The real long-term valuable real estate is going to be good farming land, which is a scarce commodity in Greece. As Greece will not be in the position to import food, all food grown locally will be at a high price. With low wages, the overheads for production will be competitive, and some of the food production can be exported.
The Government will allow the excellent Greek hard wheat to be exported for a good price and Greece to import the cheap «Egyptian» type of wheat from Argentina and Australia.
Greeks will have to give up the white fluffy bread originally made for toothless people and eat the flat bread as Egyptians do.
Greece can export all its olive oil and import «transfats» from the USA for Greeks to eat. The profits can be used to pay for essentials.
Most hospitals will be closed or offer little more than prayers for the sick.
With Greeks walking more and eating less they will be healthier anyway.
Anyone buying land will need armed guards for protection of crops. A friend was telling me that in 1942 his grandfather stood guard over his grapevines and anyone who jumped over the rock wall to steal grapes, got a bullet in the stomach, was pushed into a hole and buried alive; to fertilize the grapes in the next spring. The screams of the wounded sent anyone waiting his turn to steal back where they came from.
To see how to operate a productive farm surrounded by hunger, look at the Philippines or Guatemala.
Even if we have to watch children die from hunger and thirst, we will be free from the Germans and we can be free to fly the red flag and serve our red masters in Athens.
Greeks can get some help from the Albanians if they want to find out how to survive under an isolated left-wing Government.
We are more pragmatic today than we were in 1942. In extreme hunger all the illegal migrants can be eaten, and when we run out of migrants to eat, we can eat the mentally ill patients that have been disharged from the hospitals.
Charilaos Lithoxopoulos
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[Thessaloniki Mayor Yiannis Boutaris will be leading an education road-show across the Balkans this summer in an effort to promote the northern port city’s universities and technical colleges to potential students in the broader region.
The effort comes as... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[Thessaloniki Mayor Yiannis Boutaris will be leading an education road-show across the Balkans this summer in an effort to promote the northern port city’s universities and technical colleges to potential students in the broader region.
The effort comes as part of an overall campaign by municipal authorities to boost the role of education in Thessaloniki and transform it into a pillar for growth and a source of revenue, as well as enhancing the city’s international profile.
“The internationalization of universities is a key element in the strategy to make Thessaloniki more outward-looking,” Boutaris told Kathimerini. “Foreign language programs, providing job positions for educators who work abroad, and all other opportunities that will be generated tie in well with our ambition to see the city prosper and distinguish itself on a regional and international level.”
Boutaris will head a delegation of representatives from all of Thessaloniki’s educational institutions -- three universities, one technical college and 11 other colleges -- during the trip, which will include stops in Belgrade, Bucharest, Istanbul, Skopje, Sofia and Tirana, where they will speak about curricula and other features on offer.
The details of the promotional tour, such as dates and venues, will be announced within the next few weeks.
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[Two men, aged 45 and 48, who violently beat a 78-year-old Dutchman last Sunday near his home close to the resort of Monemvasia in the Peloponnese, were charged on Wednesday with causing grievous bodily harm and verbal abuse.
The local and regional police ... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[Two men, aged 45 and 48, who violently beat a 78-year-old Dutchman last Sunday near his home close to the resort of Monemvasia in the Peloponnese, were charged on Wednesday with causing grievous bodily harm and verbal abuse.
The local and regional police chiefs visited the 78-year-old in the hospital where he is recovering from a broken jaw and nose.
The pensioner, identified as Adriano van der Burg, has lived in the area since the early 1990s, according to local sources.
The two men, who reportedly asked their victim whether he was German before beating him up, told police that they had been under the influence of alcohol.
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[European Union competition authorities announced provisional approval on Wednesday for around 680 million euros of Greek state aid to support the sale of troubled T Bank.
The European Commission gave its blessing for «state support granted by the Hellenic... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[European Union competition authorities announced provisional approval on Wednesday for around 680 million euros of Greek state aid to support the sale of troubled T Bank.
The European Commission gave its blessing for «state support granted by the Hellenic Deposit and Investment Guarantee Fund ("HDIGF") to facilitate the acquisition of the economic activities of the Greek T Bank by Hellenic Postbank in the context of T Bank's resolution,» a statement said.
EU competition commissioner Joaquin Almunia said the aid being allowed «was restricted to the minimum necessary to compensate the buyer for the lower value of the assets transferred as compared to the transferred liabilities."
Almunia said Greece had six months in which to submit «an updated restructuring plan for Hellenic Postbank which takes into account the integration of T Bank's activities."
That action would likely trigger an «automatic» extension of approval pending a final decision, he added.
[AFP]
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		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[The head of the European Commission said Wednesday there was «no way» of changing the terms of a 130-billion-euro bailout agreed with Greece, as Athens prepares to return to the polls.
"There is no way of changing the commitments taken by Greece and also ... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The head of the European Commission said Wednesday there was «no way» of changing the terms of a 130-billion-euro bailout agreed with Greece, as Athens prepares to return to the polls.
"There is no way of changing the commitments taken by Greece and also by the other 16 euro area member states,» said Jose Manuel Barroso as he outlined a new push for growth across the eurozone in the wake of telephone talks with new French President Francois Hollande.
As official news in Athens pegged June 17 as the date for a repeat election, 10 days after voters gave a majority to anti-austerity parties, Barroso said it was «important not only for the credibility of Greece but also for the credibility of the euro area that agreements are stuck to."
He added: «It is possible to work with the Greek authorities on measures to enhance growth.
"But frankly, it will not improve the situation of Greece or the euro area in general if the message is that we do not stick to our commitments."
Barroso underlined: «We will of course fully respect the decision taken by the Greek people.
"But the Greek people should be aware that there are another 16 democracies in the euro area -- and that the democratic decisions taken by the euro area should also be taken into account.
"We want Greece to remain part of the family, of the EU and the eurozone.
"But the ultimate resolve to stay in the euro area must come from Greece itself,» Barroso said.
Barroso joins European Union leaders for an informal summit in Brussels on Wednesday, after a G8 summit in the United States also involving Hollande, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti and non-euro British counterpart David Cameron.
He said Wednesday's talks gave an opportunity to widen the EU's growth agenda ahead of formal decisions at a June 28-29 summit, calling for «targeted investment» alongside «sound public finances and deep structural investment."
He particularly urged leaders to agree on a 10-billion-euro capital injection into the European Investment Bank, aimed at boosting lending to small and medium-sized enterprises and therefore employment.
A day after Austria and Luxembourg blocked plans to target unpaid tax hidden in accounts in Switzerland and elsewhere, Barroso said the Commission also needs a «mandate» to proceed in efforts worth «billions and billions» all of which can be used to «kickstart growth."
He said he had a «long conversation» with Hollande which would see them work together on these aims, beginning before the G8 discussions on Friday and Saturday.
Barroso said the EU needs decisions quickly on these and other ideas including an improved EU budget and re-directing unallocated EU funds -- rather than returning them to contributing states -- in order to boost confidence.
However, he reiterated that even with the new triple-pronged approach he advocated -- investment as well as austerity and reforms -- Greece could not re-negotiate the terms agreed with the EU and the International Monetary Fund in March.
[AFP]
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		<subcat>COMMENTARY</subcat>
		<author>By Alexis Papachelas</author>		<description><![CDATA[I’ve always envied older colleagues for having had firsthand experience of historic events that later generations could only read about. I grew up thinking that we would not get to live through similar events because, as a child of my generation, I had th... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[I’ve always envied older colleagues for having had firsthand experience of historic events that later generations could only read about. I grew up thinking that we would not get to live through similar events because, as a child of my generation, I had the conviction that some fundamental issues had been resolved for good and that tomorrow would always be a better day. It turns out I was wrong.
We are currently witnessing two crises at the same time. Europe and the United States have both been hit by serious debt problems that could well push them into decline and render them second-class powers in the global system.
At the same time, Greece is suffering from a crisis of values and institutions. Sure, it isn’t the only Southern European country to be plagued by high debt and low competitiveness, but the difference is that over the past 30 years, Greece’s productive base has been dismantled, corruption has been allowed to corrode the social fabric, mediocre officials were put in charge of key institutions, populism was deified and traditional values were lost. This systemic crisis made Greece more vulnerable to the global crisis, making it look like a broken, rudderless ship in a storm.
It’s extremely crucial that we keep ourselves inside the core of the EU until the storm passes. Perhaps the euro could break down, but we have no reason to be the ones to set off the process. It’s crucial that we manage to hang in there, while Europe appears to be making a policy shift, considering measures to stimulate growth and ease fiscal measures. It would be suicidal to fall into the water just because we felt dizzy on board the ship. Unfortunately we have the self-defeating habit of being stubborn and turning a blind eye to the global environment.
We need to give Greece more time, to make sure that we don’t usher the country outside the eurozone or turn into a new Argentina. Unfortunately, there is no Eleftherios Venizelos or Constantine Karamanlis. Our protagonists belong to the domain of populism. However, the country also has a well of creative forces and talent. Until these step forward, though, we must all strive to keep the country on its feet, to keep it in the Western camp, and convince those angry youths that the spark they see is in fact the promise of chaos and blind protest.
We have a responsibility to find the captain and above all the compass that will steer the nation to safe waters.
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		<subcat>EDITORIAL</subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[The country is again being put to the test now that a new round of general elections turned out to be unavoidable.
The responsibility for this outcome lies mainly with the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), of course, which rejected every single prop... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[The country is again being put to the test now that a new round of general elections turned out to be unavoidable.
The responsibility for this outcome lies mainly with the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), of course, which rejected every single proposal put forward for the formation of a government, but also with political figures who insisted on calling early elections.
It is crucial that the country avoids a national mishap which will lead to disaster. To this end, the bulk of responsibility now lies with the party which led Greece into the European Community in the first place.
Center-right New Democracy has to regroup immediately, expand through experienced and capable members of its liberal wing, and acquire a sense of the collective when it comes to the decision-making process.
This is the only way that New Democracy can emerge as the top party in the upcoming elections and create a powerful pole which will render a pro-Europe coalition government feasible.
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		<subcat></subcat>
		<author></author>		<description><![CDATA[Former Defense Minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos, currently in custody pending trial for money laundering, has been indicted to trial for submitting false information on his «pothen esches» (declaration of source of assets) form following a decision issued by... ...]]></description>		<content><![CDATA[Former Defense Minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos, currently in custody pending trial for money laundering, has been indicted to trial for submitting false information on his «pothen esches» (declaration of source of assets) form following a decision issued by an Athens appeals court on Wednesday.
The indictment relates to an inaccurate pothen esches declaration submitted by the former minister in 2010 when he is alleged not to have mentioned the acquisition of a property on the capital's exclusive Dionysiou Areopagitou Street under the Acropolis by his wife Viki Stamati, who is also in custody pending trial for money laundering.
Meanwhile sources indicate the discovery of new evidence implicating the former defense minister and his associates in a widening corruption probe following a search by authorities on the ex minister's home in Patissia, near central Athens. The search, which was ordered by a prosecutor following the ex minister's arrest last month, turned up several documents the content of which remained unclear on Wednesday.
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