New Year's Day

What we are all wishing for at the change of the year is that the country manages to avoid a period of even greater instability and a deeper financial crisis in 2015.

In his final New Year’s message as president of the republic, Karolos Papoulias called for Greece’s political parties to show unity.

“National unity is necessary for success,” he said.

Turkey welcomed the New Year with hikes on tobacco and alcohol taxes just a few days after announcing increases in fees, stamp taxes and official fines for traffic and tax offences.

According to a statement released in the Official Gazette on Jan. 1, fixed taxes charged on alcoholic beverages, cigarettes and tobacco products have been raised.

Traditional New Year's Day charity event held in Belgrade

BELGRADE -- The humanitarian campaign and event dubbed "Open Heart Street" is being held once again in Belgrade on the first day of the new year.

As many as a million revelers braved frigid weather and poured into New York's Times Square for America's annual New Year party, which this year featured Taylor Swift.
     
Revelers in the Big Apple, wearing red traditional festive top hats, kissed and snapped selfies as a giant illuminated crystal ball slid down a pole, touching ground at precisely the stroke of midnight.

New regulations decreasing the amount of salt in tomato paste and edible olives and forbidding the addition of extra sugar to fruit juices have entered into force with the start of the new year.

The Food, Agriculture and Livestock Ministry said in a statement that efforts to protect the health of the consumers continued non-stop and that the new regulation was part of these efforts.

Shortly after midnight, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov congratulated his Facebook subscribers in a brief New Year's address.

"2014 was a year full of significant events for the country. They made us more compassionate, more open to dialoguе, and more strong-willed. We did a good job over the past few months," he declared.

The ceremonial of the symbolic renewal of the calendar year over December 31 - January 1 means the burial of the old year and the birth of the new one, and it is called the old year before and the new year, after the midnight.

The Year divinity is born, grows, ages and dies along the calendar year and revives after 365 days, and 366 in leap years.

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PM and interior minister visit on duty firefighters

BELGRADE -- Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic and Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic visited one hour after midnight on Thursday the Fire Brigade in Belgrade.

Accompanied by Police Director Milorad Veljovic, they wished firefighters a happy new year, and saw that the night was passing peacefully.

In his New Year's address to the nation, Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev cited volunteering as a bright example of social solidarity during the critical periods in 2014 when the country was grappling with the damage caused by natural disasters.

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