German Press: 50% cheaper the houses in the Greek islands

Posted on 30 July 2010 by Kiki Danaktsis

According to the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, “the villas in Greek islands cost about half price”.
As the newspaper comments, in the past only Hollywood stars and millionaires were looking for villas and now it’s difficult to find a buyer despite the better prices.

The newspaper gives two examples:

1)a villa in Corfu with 3 rooms costs 750.000 euro, when a little time before, the price was 1,400,000 euro.

2) The price of an unfinished house in the cosmopolitan Mykonos was 2,500,000 euro. Now the potential buyer will pay 500,000 euro less.

We should underline that for both houses there is no buyer yet.

The real estates in Greece say that “as the economic situation remains uncertain in Greece, the house market will not recover”. In other European countries the house market crisis is not of the size of the Greek crisis: In Spain, the prices are decreased 8-10% from 2008, while in Portugal and Italy the prices remain the same.

Italy arrests Albanian for marijuana haul

28/07/2010

TIRANA, Albania -- Italian authorities seized a boat loaded with 572 kilos of marijuana on Tuesday (July 27th). The vessel was operated by a 30-year-old Albanian who allegedly was trying to unload the drugs on the coast at Lecce. Police arrested him and say they found 19 bags of high-quality marijuana, worth an estimated 500,000 euros.

In other news, two Albanians escaped a prison in Pisa, Italy, using bed sheets they'd tied together. Italian media reported on Tuesday that the two prisoners were awaiting sentences for murder and robbery when they escaped the Don Bosco prison. Authorities say they then flagged down a passing car and drove off.

Albania sends troops to Afghanistan

TIRANA: Albania despatched yestersday a company of soldiers to join US-led forces in Afghanistan, its first troops likely to fight abroad since World War Two.

The Eagle 1 unit of 44 troops will serve for six months under US command in the Kandahar area, and more might follow from Albania, which joined Nato a year ago. “You ... will take part in operational actions shoulder to shoulder with soldiers of the most excellent army in the world, the American army,” Prime Minister Sali Berisha told the troops at a departure ceremony.

More troops could follow this mission, Berisha added, reflecting Albania’s strong support of the United States, which helped it to join Nato and intervened in neighbouring Kosovo in 1999 when Serb forces were cracking down on ethnic Albanians.

“My government is determined to work and back the Armed Forces and, step by step in the future, we might field not just one company, but a battalion alongside our allies if need be,” Berisha said. Albania has sent troops to a number of peacekeeping missions abroad since ditching communism in 1990. afp

Casting Call for the Albanian Braveheart: a Senate Hopeful’s Hollywood Dream

By Christian Lorentzen

July 27, 2010 | 10:48 p.m

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Joe DioGuardi holding a burning Serbian flag outside the Serbian Embassy in New

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When the Transom first encountered former congressman Joe DioGuardi, the Republican who is making a primary bid to challenge Kristen Gillibrand for her Senate seat, he was talking about a severed head. The head belonged to the top lieutenant of General Gjergj Kastriadi, a.k.a. Skenderbeg, and had been delivered to the general in a valise from the Ottoman Sultan Mehmet II, after Skanderbeg had dispatched the lieutenant to deliver the terms of a truce. There would be no truce, and the Ottomans would continue battling the rebel general until his death in 1468, only then regaining their hold of his native Albania.

If that sounds like the stuff of a Hollywood epic, Mr. DioGuardi agrees.

"It's like Braveheart," Mr. DioGuardi told the Transom. "It's a story about freedom that Americans need to hear. That's why we have a movie in development.

We were standing on the deck of the U.S.S. Intrepid, where Mr. DioGuardi was regaling a table of Republican well-wishers, gathered for a fund-raiser for Iraq Veterans for Congress, with tales of the Albanian hero. They were taking a break from enumerating the failings of Senator Chuck Schumer and President Obama to linger on an obscure episode from medieval Balkan history.

Brussels: Greece, it maintains its decision not to recognize Kosovo, said ANYPEX D. Droutsas General Affairs Council of EU

The Turkish activities in recent months in the Aegean, the developments in Kosovo, the results of the recent visit of Prime Minister George Papandreou in the Middle East and the Iran issue was the main issues mentioned by Deputy Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas today in Brussels, where represented Greece at the General Affairs of the EU in regard to Turkey, D. Droutsas, said to reporters, stressed to his counterparts that the behavior and actions of the Turkish side has a lack of credibility in the eyes of Greece , and the European Union, particularly in terms of its obligations to maintain good neighborly relations with European countries, as a candidate EU country.

The minister referred specifically to the reaction of the Greek diplomacy has been expressed that while the one in action and verbal communications, and on the other hand the demonstration against the Turkish calm challenges. D. The Droutsas also stressed that the Greek side has the will and the means to respond effectively when the same deems appropriate and emphasized the obligation of Turkey to comply fully with the international law of the sea, as already done by the 27 member countries of the EU conclusion, the minister said that the attitude of recent months Turkey on the substance of undermining the bilateral contacts in Ankara and Athens.

On the issue of Kosovo, the Deputy Minister stressed that despite the recent (advisory) ruling of the International Court of Justice, Greece, and other EU countries do not recognize Kosovo, insist on this stance. Mr. Droutsas stressed the intention of the Greek side to promote the European prospects of Balkan countries, as expressed by the so-called strategy of Thessaloniki mapped in 2003 under the Greek Presidency of the EU, but under the latest proposals of the Greek diplomacy.

Commenting on Kosovo he said that Greece is ready to assume its responsibilities to account for the Balkan country as an EU member, and to end will visit Belgrade and Pristina. Greece is a country that can be addressed in both Serbia and Kosovo and will exhaust every possibility to find mutually acceptable solution, said D. Droutsas, while stressing that the mild and serious attitude shown by the Serbian government estimated a positive EU and strengthening the European perspective of Serbia. Perspective, he said, Greece has strongly supported.

Albania welcomes UN court's backing of Kosovo independence

TIRANA, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha on Thursday welcomed a UN court's ruling which backs Kosovo's independence, saying it is a contribution to the peace in the region."This is a historic decision. It is a major contribution to the peace and stability in the Balkans and beyond,"Berisha told reporters after the International Court of Justice announced its ruling.

The court, based in the Hague of the Netherlands, ruled on Thursday that Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia in 2008 didn't violate international law.

"The court's ruling opens a new chapter and will bring a new approach to the relations between Albanians and Serbians," Berisha said. Berisha also called for more countries to recognize the independence of Kosovo, which has only been recognized by 69 countries among the 192 countries in the United Nations. Kosovo, an autonomous Serbian province, declared unilateral independence in February 2008. Among the 2 million people in the province, about 90 percent are ethnic Albanians.

Kosovo's independence has been supported by the United States and most major European countries, but it is firmly rejected by Serbia and its ally Russia.

Albania welcomes UN court's backing of Kosovo independence

TIRANA, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha on Thursday welcomed a UN court's ruling which backs Kosovo's independence, saying it is a contribution to the peace in the region.

"This is a historic decision. It is a major contribution to the peace and stability in the Balkans and beyond,"Berisha told reporters after the International Court of Justice announced its ruling.

The court, based in the Hague of the Netherlands, ruled on Thursday that Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia in 2008 didn't violate international law.

"The court's ruling opens a new chapter and will bring a new approach to the relations between Albanians and Serbians," Berisha said.

Berisha also called for more countries to recognize the independence of Kosovo, which has only been recognized by 69 countries among the 192 countries in the United Nations.

Kosovo, an autonomous Serbian province, declared unilateral independence in February 2008. Among the 2 million people in the province, about 90 percent are ethnic Albanians.

Kosovo's independence has been supported by the United States and most major European countries, but it is firmly rejected by Serbia and its ally Russia.

Albania welcomes UN court's backing of Kosovo independence

TIRANA, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha on Thursday welcomed a UN court's ruling which backs Kosovo's independence, saying it is a contribution to the peace in the region.

"This is a historic decision. It is a major contribution to the peace and stability in the Balkans and beyond,"Berisha told reporters after the International Court of Justice announced its ruling.

The court, based in the Hague of the Netherlands, ruled on Thursday that Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia in 2008 didn't violate international law.

"The court's ruling opens a new chapter and will bring a new approach to the relations between Albanians and Serbians," Berisha said.

Berisha also called for more countries to recognize the independence of Kosovo, which has only been recognized by 69 countries among the 192 countries in the United Nations.

Kosovo, an autonomous Serbian province, declared unilateral independence in February 2008. Among the 2 million people in the province, about 90 percent are ethnic Albanians.

Kosovo's independence has been supported by the United States and most major European countries, but it is firmly rejected by Serbia and its ally Russia.

Italy: Kosovo talks must continue


ROME -- Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said that now that the ICJ’s decision has been given, Serbia and Kosovo must continue talks.


He said that he hopes that Serbia’s request for candidacy status would receive support on Monday in Brussels at the scheduled meeting of the EU Council of Ministers.

“As the ICJ confirmed, Serbia and Kosovo must continue negotiations, because there are many sensitive questions, ethnic, historical, cultural and religious, that must be solved,” he said.

“In northern Kosovo, for example, there are Orthodox monasteries that represent the source of the Serbian Orthodox faith. The road that needs to continue, in any case, is the road towards Europe,” Frattini said.

He added that the ICJ’s decision clearly states that Kosovo must remain a unique case and that it cannot cause a domino effect, since such an event would lead to a crisis of international relations.

Many Greeks Seek to Move Abroad to Escape the Financial Crisis

Due to the current financial turmoil many Greeks are seeking to move abroad for better opportunities. According to a recent poll about four out of ten Greeks which represent 38% of the population, say they are ready to abandon their country and home and establish a new residence as job loss fears rise.
Important to note is the corresponding percentage of the European Union, which is significantly higher at approximately 48%. According to EU research Cyprus, Sweden, and France have the highest percentages of would be migration at 66% while Portugal has the lowest at 31%.

Recently thousands of Greeks have applied to move abroad; the majority of them are educated and young. The USA, UK, Canada & Australia are the most desired destinations.

Albanian and Greek central banks pledge to increase cooperation

Bank of Albania (BoA) will increase its cooperation with the Bank of Greece (BoG), BoA reported after a working visit of the delegation of the Albanian Central Bank headed by Governor Ardian Fullani to the Greek Central Bank.

The visit came in the frame of the continuous cooperation between the respective central banks following the consolidated practice of periodical exchange of information of common interest.

This process is part of the cooperation memorandums signed by both banks trying to coordinate supervisory and regulatory policies.

Fullani and his Greek counterpart Provopoulos discussed the latest economic and financial developments in Albania and Greece, common aspects, their distinctions, and future economic expectations. Both governors shared the opinion that economic policies and structural measures undertaken recently will help the sustainable and long term economic development in both countries.

Fullani and Provopoulos agreed on the importance the process has on co-relation of supervisory and regulatory policies at the interest of the further strengthening of stability and increase of efficiency of respective financial systems.

The increase of financial exchanges is facilitated by the fact that financial groups and banks which operate in both countries are characterized by positive results and improvement of liquidity levels.

Fullani and Provopoulos agreed to increase cooperation in the technical and decision making levels.