[ALBSA-Info] Athens promises to stand by Skopje-Kathimerini

[Gazhebo at aol.com]

Athens promises to stand by Skopje

Kathimerini

Greece is dedicated to providing every assistance to the Former Yugoslav 
Republic of Macedonia, and staunchly opposes the notion of border changes in 
the Balkans, Foreign Minister George Papandreou assured local officials 
during a visit to Skopje yesterday.

"Greece is open to any form of aid it can offer on a bilateral basis, or 
within the framework of NATO or the European Union," Papandreou told 
journalists in the FYROM capital, where he met President Boris Trajkovski, 
Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski and former president Kiro Gligorov.

He spoke against any change in local borders, and denounced the notion of 
"ethnically clean" states as "fascist.".

"All the countries in this region are multicultural," he said. "The point is 
not to create new countries with ethnically clear identities, nor have 
changes in borders... which will create new problems. We must accept the 
existing borders, cooperate and communicate with each other."
While in Skopje, Papandreou also attended a meeting of Balkan International Ol
ympic Committee officials chaired by IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch