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Thursday, July 4, 2013

On Iran, Greece, Germany, majoritarianism


On Iran, Greece, Germany, majoritarianism
The Economist
SIR – We noted the letter (June 29th) from Sir Richard Dalton in response to your leader on Iran. We were concerned by this passage: “You did not mention that Iran has a policy of converting its 20% enriched uranium into oxide, ready for research ...


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Greece Says Troika Deal In Sight

Greek Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras With Greece’s international lenders setting a deadline for the end of July 5 for the government to show progress on key reforms or face a delay or cut-off of an 8.1 billion euros ($10.6 billion) installment, negotiations reportedly were moving ahead well with predictions that an agreement would be reached in time for a July 8 meeting of Eurozone ...

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Panels Asks Charges For Papaconstantinou

Former Greek Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou A Greek Parliamentary committee investigating the handling of a list of 2,062 Greeks with $1.95 billion in secret Swiss bank accounts that has never been checked for possible tax cheats has recommended former finance minister George Papaconstantinou be charged with forging documents and breach of duty for his role. He had denied any ...

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Greeks Pioneer Nanotechnology Advances

Two model and innovative -in international level- units of organic photovoltaic devices and of materials development with vacuum technologies are about to operate in 2014 in Thessaloniki, the physicist specializing in Organic Electronics, LTFN Laboratory of Nanotechnology, Argiris Laskarakis, said. That came during a news conference ahead of the July 6 opening of the academic multi event ...

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Remember When Greece Won UEFA

It seems like yesterday to zealous fans, but it’s been nine years since the Greek national soccer team won the European championship for the first time ever with a dramatic series of performances, a month before the Olympic Games in Athens. Those were the days. On July 4, 2004, the UEFA European Football Championship, the 12th edition of the quadrennial football tournament for men’s ...

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Greece near deal for EU-IMF payment

GREECE'S reform minister says the indebted country is close to a deal with its EU-IMF creditors on cutting state jobs, which would clear the way for the next bailout ...

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Greece Eyes Next Bailout Aid

Greece's finance minister expressed optimism that talks with a troika of international auditors will be wrapped up in time for next week's meeting of euro-zone finance ministers that will decide whether to unlock further aid to the country.

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Greek federation condemns slur of NBA draft pick

ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Greece's basketball federation has condemned remarks by the leader of an extreme right Greek political party who likened a recent NBA draft pick to a ''chimpanzee.''

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The Greek revolution


The Greek revolution
The Economist
THE Greek uprising against the Ottoman empire, which broke out in 1821, brought together one of the oddest coalitions in history: from the sophisticates of the Hellenic diaspora to warlords from the wild Peloponnesian mountains and an array of well ...


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Greek federation: Remarks 'racist'


Artesia Daily Press

Greek federation: Remarks 'racist'
ESPN
Antetokounmpo, an 18-year-old Greek shooting guard, the son of Nigerian immigrants, was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks and received this week in Athens by conservative Prime Minister Antonis Samaras. Leader of the far-right Golden Dawn party, ...
Greek federation condemns slur of NBA draft pickAlbany Times Union

all 4 news articles »

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Greece Races to Wrap Up Aid Talks


Kathimerini

Greece Races to Wrap Up Aid Talks
Wall Street Journal- India
ATHENS—Greece's finance minister expressed optimism Thursday that talks with a troika of international auditors will be wrapped up in time for next week's meeting of euro-zone finance ministers that will decide whether to unlock further aid to the ...
Greece says on track to strike aid payout deal with lendersReuters
Greece seeing 'silver lining' in debt turmoil, says German Foreign MinisterKathimerini
Greece official optimistic on future loan payoutsTheNewsTribune.com
Yahoo!7 News -gulfnews.com -Reuters UK
all 195 news articles »

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Greece near deal for EU-IMF bailout payment: minister


Channel News Asia

Greece near deal for EU-IMF bailout payment: minister
Channel News Asia
ATHENS: Greece's reform minister said on Thursday that the indebted country was close to a deal with its EU-IMF creditors on cutting state jobs which would clear the way for the next bailout instalment. "We will definitely be ready on Monday," Kyriakos ...


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PM Samaras meeting with troika officials in Athens

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras was meeting with representatives of Greece's foreign lenders on Thursday as the two sides tried to reach an agreement over civil service sackings seen as key for the approval of the next bailout tranche of 8.1 billion euros.The meeting was attended by Finance Minister Yannis Stouranaras and the newly-appointed Minister for Administrative Reform Kyriakos ...

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Greece says makes progress in talks with EUIMF lenders

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece has made progress on all fronts in the latest round of negotiations with the country's lenders on Thursday, its finance minister said ahead of Monday's Eurogroup meeting to decide on unlocking further 8.1 billion euros ...

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Oil and Gas Reserves in Greek Seas

According to Ethnos, four areas in Greece show ‘great potential' of having deposits of hydrocarbons (oil and gas). The first region starts at the northwest of Corfu, on the Albanian border and extends down to Paxos and Antipaxos, to the sea area of the Ionian opposite the Ambracian Gulf. The second area is west of Kefalonia and reaches the third sea off Katakolo. Moreover, oil and ...

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Greek officials hail progress in troika talks eye deal by Monday

Greek officials hailed progress in talks with troika officials Thursday as both sides tried to reach an agreement over civil service sackings seen as key for the approval of the next bailout tranche of 8.1 billion ...

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Greece says on track to strike aid payout deal with lenders

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece expects to reach a deal with its lenders to free up the next tranche of bailout cash by Monday, its finance minister said on Thursday. The lenders have threatened to freeze the ...

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Greece Finance Minister Shares Deadline Failure with Troika


Greece Finance Minister Shares Deadline Failure with Troika
OANDA Forex (blog)
As Greece looks set to miss a key reform deadline set by international lenders, which could jeopardize further financial aid, a Greek government minister said it wasn't Greece's fault that it couldn't live up to the demands of a flawed bailout program ...

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Greek deputies call for ex-minister's prosecution

July 04, 2013 8:44 PM ATHENS (AFP) - A Greek parliament committee on Wednesday recommended the prosecution of former finance minister George Papaconstantinou for allegedly tampering with a confidential tax list.        

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German Foreign Minister Rules Out New Greek Debt Relief


German Foreign Minister Rules Out New Greek Debt Relief
Wall Street Journal
Mr. Westerwelle's Greek counterpart, Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Evangelos Venizelos, assured his country's commitment to reform, but also said the recession-hit country can't take any more austerity measures. "We need investment," Mr.


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ECB keep key rates down, hints at new direction



by 











The European Central Bank (ECB) has frozen its key rates, as president Mario Draghi says that the bank will continue to do everything to stimulate the Eurozone economy.


As expected, the ECB has resisted raising its interest rates once again, keeping headline borrowing costs down to a record low of 0.5%. The bank has also kept the deposit rate at 0%, while the interest rate at which banks borrow from the ECB stays at 1%.


More crucially, the ECB indicated a new policy direction in forwards guidance – the prediction of interest rates – and said that the current regime of low interest rates is not over yet, although he refused to be drawn on his definition of “extended period of time,” despite several questions form journalists.


“Based on our regular economic and monetary analyses, we decided to keep the key ECB interest rates unchanged,” he said, adding that “our monetary policy stance will remain accommodative for as long as necessary. The governing council expects the key ECB interest rates to remain at present or lower levels for an extended period of time.”


“This expectation is based on the overall subdued outlook for inflation extending into the medium term, given the broad-based weakness in the real economy and subdued monetary dynamics.”


Draghi refused, however, to be drawn into too much speculation about the future of Portugal – currently undergoing a political crisis – and Greece, except in broad terms. The ECB president refused flatly to answer a journalist question about Portugal.


He said that Portugal, the recipient of a €78 billion bail-out, had so far shown “remarkable results” in its attempted turnaround. He welcomed the appointment of Maria Luis de Albuquerque, who replaced outgoing finance minister Vitor Gaspar. He said that Greece had also shown “significant progress.


 


For the moment, he said, the ECB will show a “downward bias in interest rates.”


He said that there was amercement that low interest rates potential pose a threat to financial stability. However, he said that the ECB not foresee such risks in the near future. 







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Greek credit shrinks 5.4 pct yy in April

ATHENS, July 4 (Reuters) - Total credit in Greece shrank 5.4 percent year-on-year in April, with the pace of decline slowing from the previous month, Bank of Greece data showed on Thursday.
Credit extended to the government fell 16.4 percent in
April after a 17 percent drop in the previous month.
Lending to businesses and households shrank 3.4
percent compared to a 3.5 percent contraction in ...

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Westerwelle sends message of German respect solidarity

In a fresh sign of German solidarity with Greece, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle on Thursday voiced his confidence that the debt-wracked country will be able to weather the ongoing ...

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In Greece, things move fast ? except justice for Kostas Sakkas


In Greece, things move fast – except justice for Kostas Sakkas
The Guardian
Sakkas has been held in custody for what is a national record after a series of convictions of Greece by the European court of human rights in 1996 precisely for this type of violation; Epaminondas Korkoneas, the special guard who was eventually ...

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Minister on Greece's Imperfect Bailout Terms

As Greece looks set to miss a key reform deadline set by international lenders, which could jeopardize further financial aid, a Greek government minister said it wasn't Greece's fault that it couldn't ...

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Greece's Mavrias headed for Sunderland


SuperSport

Greece's Mavrias headed for Sunderland
SuperSport
Greece international midfielder Charis Mavrias is set to join English Premier League side Sunderland from Panathinaikos, the Athens News Agency reported on Wednesday. The Greek Super League club said a verbal agreement has been reached over the ...
Sunderland Close On Deal for Panthinaikos Prospect Charis MavriasInside Futbol

all 13 news articles »

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Bad bonds: Is Portugal the next Greece?


RT (blog)

Bad bonds: Is Portugal the next Greece?
RT (blog)
Coalition leaders will reconvene in Portugal in an emergency meeting to address Lisbon's plan to complete its $102 billion (78 billion euro) bailout by next year, protect the euro, and restore bond yields. Shockwaves raced through European markets ...
Bank of England and ECB meet as Portuguese panic eases - eurozone crisis liveThe Guardian
RUTH SUNDERLAND: Portuguese turmoil stirs eurozone fearsThis is Money

all 262 news articles »

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Bill Paying Lags Greek Deficit Grows

Alternate Finance Minister Christos Staikouras Just as Greece seemed to be heading toward getting back on its feet financially, the country’s primary deficit grew in the wake of an attempt to regain credibility and pay back bills – a target that fell far short of its goal. The State General Accounting Office had approved repayment of 4.6 billion euros ($5.97 billion) in arrearages to ...

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Cyprus Awaits Foreign Minister Venizelos

Greek Deputy PM/Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos Greek Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos, who as finance minister in a previous Greek government imposed losses of 74 percent on investors and holders of Greek bonds – which pushed Cypriot banks to the edge of default and forced the government to seek a 10 billion euros ($13 billion) bailout and accept harsh terms including raiding ...

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Tourist Arrivals in Greece Posted Impressive Increase

June posted an impressive increase in air arrivals from abroad at the country's popular holiday destinations, confirming that 2013 will indeed be a record year as far as arrivals are concerned. Preliminary data for Iraklio, Rhodes, Corfu and Zakynthos, four of the country's most popular airports for tourists, showed that arrivals from abroad exceeded 1 million in June, posting a 14.7 ...

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Regional offices attacked in Kavala

Assailants attacked the building housing the regional authorities in Kavala, in northern Greece, in the early hours of Thursday, according to local media reports.No injuries were reported but at least three vehicles, parked inside the premises, were set on fire by the attackers.Reports said firefighters arrived at the scene to extinguish the fires that were caused by homemade devices.Police said ...

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Westerwelle supports the Greek government

The German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle had expressed his support to the Greek government and said to the Greek citizens that the internal devaluation reforms "can be the birth of a new economic upswing." "My impression is that for the first time we are seeing a faint silver lining on the horizon," Westerwelle said after talks with his counterpart Evangelos Venizelos, ...

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No final agreement in Mitsotakis meeting with troika officials

A third meeting between Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Greece's newly-appointed Administrative Reform Minister, with troika officials did not result in a final agreement sources said on Thursday, adding however that significant progress had been made.An agreement over civil service sackings is key for Greece to see its next bailout tranche of 8.1 billion euros being approved by the Eurogroup of ...

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Got $32m? Jackie O's 'Love Boat' for sale

The stately superyacht Christina O isn't just a gorgeous 99-meter vessel. It's the palatial setting where Greek business magnate Aristotle Onassis married Jackie Kennedy. Now the luxury liner has gone on sale for a whopping $32 million.

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Greece: More time needed to restructure staff


Charlotte Observer

Greece: More time needed to restructure staff
Charlotte Observer
International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission chief Poul Thomsen, arrives at the ministry for a meeting between Greek Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras and the debt inspectors from the European Central Bank, European Commission and International ...


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