News Lelemuku

ATHENS, LELEMUKU.COM - Repaying earlier expensive International Monetary Fund loans is a significant step for Greece which will create favorable conditions for its economy, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Monday, promising more relief measures.

"We are gaining points of [economic] freedom," Tsipras said during an interview with Greece's Antenna television. Greece this week plans to file a request to the euro zone's bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), seeking its consent for the early repayment of the loans, sources told Reuters earlier Monday.

The country emerged from its third international bailout since 2010 in August last year.

During the live interview, Tsipras also said his administration would not lower a tax-free threshold, a measure which has been agreed with international lenders and is supposed to take effect next year to broaden the country's tax base.

"The tax free [threshold] will not be reduced as long as Syriza is in government," Tsipras said, referring to his left-wing party in power since 2015.

Elections are due later this year and the leftist leader ruled out an election earlier than that, vowing his government would see through its full term of 4 years.

Greece is expected to meet its fiscal targets again this year and any outperformance will be distributed to the public, Tsipras said.

"After the [Easter] holidays I will meet with the minister of finance to consider what we can offer, not as a pre-election gift but as permanent relief measures because the Greek economy is faring better." (VOA)

ATHENA, LELEMUKU.COM - Greek police fired tear gas to disperse crowds gathered outside parliament on Thursday to protest a deal over the name of neighboring Macedonia, as an at-times angry parliamentary debate spilled into a third day.

Several thousand people massed outside the Greek legislature, some of them chanting "traitors" as lawmakers debated ratification of an agreement reached with the neighboring ex-Yugoslav state last year.

The Greek parliament delayed the expected approval of the U.N.-brokered deal by a day due to an increased number of lawmakers who wanted to have a say.

The so-called Prespes Agreement between Athens and Skopje changes the tiny Balkan nation's name to Republic of North Macedonia, ending a 28-year-old dispute between the two countries.

Although Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras appears to have secured the support of at least 151 deputies in the 300-seat house to get the deal approved, opinion polls have shown most Greeks oppose the term "Macedonia" being used in any agreement.

They fear it could lead to territorial claims over Greece's largest northern province of Macedonia and an appropriation of Greek cultural heritage.

"We feel betrayed," Zografos Stathakopoulos, a 47-year-old protester, said Thursday. "Most Greeks don't want this deal, but politicians are betraying us."

Members of the Greek Communist Party (KKE) unfurled banners on the walls of the ancient Acropolis to protest the deal Thursday.

Protesters chanted "Long live Macedonia, long live Greece!" referring to the Greek province of Macedonia. Police chased protesters on Syntagma Square, the same area of large, violent protests in Athens on Sunday.

There were also protests in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki.

Parliamentary speaker Nikos Voutsis said close to 230 MPs had wanted to have their say. Most are given six minutes to speak, a rule which has been routinely broken in the highly-charged session, which opened Wednesday.

The accord has already been ratified by Macedonia's parliament, and Greek parliamentary endorsement is necessary for the country to eventually join the European Union and NATO.

Protesters are planning new rallies for Friday, before the vote takes place around 1230 GMT. (VOA)

ATHENA, LELEMUKU.COM - Demonstrators in Greece gathered Sunday to protest a deal that would normalize Greek relations with Macedonia.

Greeks have been divided over the deal, in which Macedonia will change its name to the Republic of North Macedonia and Greece will drop its objections to the Balkan country joining NATO and the European Union.

The U.S. State Department said in a tweet Friday that Sunday’s demonstration in Athens is expected to draw 150,000 or more participants.

Greek protesters say Macedonia's new name represents an attempt to appropriate Greek identity and cultural heritage. Macedonia is the name of Greece’s northern province made famous by Alexander the Great's conquests.

Opposition to the deal is particularly strong in the Greek province of Macedonia, where many people have put up posters urging local lawmakers to vote against the agreement.

A nationwide poll in Greece this week found that 70 percent of respondents oppose the deal.

The agreement has caused Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to lose his four-year coalition in parliament after his nationalist allies defected to protest the deal. Following the upheaval, Tsipras narrowly won a confidence vote in parliament on Wednesday.

Tsipras has called for a televised debate on the planned name deal with Macedonia before parliament votes on the agreement.

The Greek prime minister and his Macedonian counterpart, Zoran Zaev, brokered the compromise in June to end a 27-year name dispute between the two neighbors.

Last week, Macedonia's parliament approved a constitutional revision to change the country's name. The agreement has also caused protests in Macedonia, with critics there saying the government gave up too much in the deal.

Tsipras has argued the Macedonia deal will bolster stability in Europe's Balkan region. EU countries have also strongly backed the deal. (VOA)

WASHINGTON, LELEMUKU.COM - Demonstrators in Greece are planning a massive rally Sunday to protest a deal that would normalize Greek relations with Macedonia.

Greeks have been divided over the deal, in which Macedonia will change its name to the Republic of North Macedonia and Greece will drop its objections to the Balkan country's joining NATO and the European Union.

The U.S. State Department said in a tweet Friday that Sunday’s demonstration in Athens is expected to draw 150,000 or more participants.

Greek identity

Greek protesters say Macedonia’s new name represents an attempt to appropriate Greek identity and cultural heritage. Macedonia is the name of Greece’s northern province made famous by Alexander the Great’s conquests.

Opposition to the deal is particularly strong in the Greek province of Macedonia, where many people have put up posters urging local lawmakers to vote against the agreement.

A nationwide poll in Greece this week found that 70 percent of respondents oppose the deal.

The agreement has caused Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to lose his four-year coalition in parliament after his nationalist allies defected to protest the deal. Following the upheaval, Tsipras narrowly won a confidence vote in parliament Wednesday.

Tsipras has called for a televised debate on the planned name deal with Macedonia before parliament votes on the agreement.

The Greek prime minister and his Macedonian counterpart, Zoran Zaev, brokered the compromise in June to end a 27-year name dispute between the two neighbors.

Macedonia approves

Last week, Macedonia’s parliament approved a constitutional revision to change the country’s name. The agreement has also caused protests in Macedonia, with critics there saying the government gave up too much in the deal.

Tsipras has argued the Macedonia deal will bolster stability in Europe’s Balkan region. European Union countries have also strongly backed the deal. (VOA)