Latest News from Greece
Athens repeats warning about Turkish letter to UN on maritime deal
Athens on Wednesday reacted strongly to the submission last week to the United Nations by Turkey's permanent representative to the UN, Feridun Sinirlioglu, of a letter that contained geographical coordinates based on the contentious maritime boundaries accord signed between Ankara and Libya's Tripoli-based government in November, ignoring the existence of Greek islands.
Greece hopes for 'corona bond' to assist virus-hit countries, says spokesman
Greece hopes EU countries will agree on a common debt instrument to raise funds to support economies in combating the new coronavirus, government spokesman Stelios Petsas said in a press briefing Thursday.
"Obviously, the state of the real economy has deteriorated and continues to deteriorate. This is why we are reevaluating the situation on a daily basis," he said.
Finance minister calls for flexibility from banks during coronavirus crisis
Greece urged banks on Thursday to do more to support individual and business borrowers who have been regularly servicing their loans to soften the blow of the coronavirus lockdown.
Southern Europe bonds rally as ECB pushes boundaries with new plan
Southern European government bonds rallied on Thursday, with yields on Italian and Greek debt tumbling after the European Central Bank announced the terms of its 750 billion euro bond-buying scheme to limit the impact of the coronavirus crisis.
Man in Thessaloniki arrested for transporting 12 teenage migrants
Greek authorities arrested a Syrian man after finding 12 Egyptian teenagers hidden in his van following a car chase through the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki early Thursday, police said.
Six arrested, 1,155 fined over lockdown violations
As Greece entered the fourth day of a full lockdown to curb the spread of Covid-19, the Hellenic Police (ELAS) said it arrested six people for opening their business and recorded 1,155 violations of the ban on unnecessary movement on March 25, throughout the country.
Aegean emergency flight to repatriate Greek citizens from Turkey Thursday
Greece will repatriate its citizens and third-country nationals with Greek residence permits from Turkey on Thursday afternoon, the country's Consulate General in Istanbul announced Wednesday.
An Aegean emergency flight will depart from Istanbul's Airport at 5.20 p.m. (Ankara time), but passengers are asked to be at the airport by 3 p.m. local time, at the latest.
Greek economy to shrink 1-3 pct this year, says finance minister
Greece expects its economy to contract by between 1 percent and 3 percent this year due to the impact of the coronavirus, its finance minister said on Thursday.
Magnitude 4.3 quake registered off western Greece
A light earthquake was recorded off the coast of western Greece on Thursday morning, according to the the Athens-based Geodynamic Institute.
At approximately 9.30 a.m. local time, a magnitude 4.3 earthquake was recorded 53 kilometres west of the islands of Strofades in the Ionian Sea, at a depth of 15 kilometers.
No damages were reported.
'Corona bonds' issue placed on the table
Nine European Union countries, including Greece, have requested in a letter to European Council President Charles Michel that the bloc issues a Eurobond to combat the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Greek Independence Day celebrations eclipsed by pandemic
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Parliament Speaker Konstantinos Tasoulas, SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras, Movement for Change leader Fofi Gennimata and Communist Party leader Dimitris Koutsoumbas (l to r) on Wednesday attended a brief ceremony to mark Greece's Independence Day at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier outside Parliament.
Food stores back to 9 p.m. close
As of Thursday, supermarket opening hours will only be 60 minutes longer per day compared to the period before the onset of the coronavirus epidemic in Greece, while this Sunday, and possibly the next, they will remain closed.
ATHEX: Strong gains offset losses seen on Monday
The reserved optimism of Greek epidemiologists about the course of Covid-19 in Greece over the last three days was reflected in stock prices on Tuesday, as confidence in the quickly taken, firm measures and the fiscal easing decided across the European Union have led to some relief for battered bourses, including Athinon Avenue.
Government to expand aid to more types of businesses within fiscal strictures imposed by creditors
The government has said it will expand its stimulus package to more sectors of the economy battered by the state-decreed suspension of the activity of businesses to halt the spread of the Ccoronavirus.
Lavrov extends wishes over March 25 anniversary
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday congratulated his Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias on the occasion of the anniversary of the start of the Greek War of Independence, stressing the importance of bilateral relations on international and regional issues.