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Maria Spassova

Special GRReporter correspondent in Nicosia

The newly elected Greek PM Georgios Papandreou arrived in Cyprus on his first official visit abroad. His choice was not random but a sign of support to the Cyprian government and his efforts to find a solution to the Cyprian problem, before the awaited EC report in December about Turkey’s progress. The official Greek delegation was greeted in Larnaka personally by Cyprian president Dimitris Hristofias.

Papandreou’s program in Nicosia is starting at noon with official meeting of both delegations in the Presidential Palace, where the meeting will end with a press conference by the Greek PM and the Cyprian president. After that Georgios Papandreou will visit the Prisoners graves in the Central prison building in the Cyprian capital, where the heroes from the Cyprian national freedom war against Great Britain are buried. After that the Greek Prime Minister will visit Macedonia Hill, where the Greek Nord Atlas airplane crashes during the Turkish invasion.

During the later afternoon hours Papandreou will meet 4 Cyprian party leaders – general secretary of AKEL Andros Kiprianou, DISI vice-president Neofotos Averoff, DIKO president Marios Karoyan and the president of the Cyprian social democrats Yanakis Omirou. Tonight the Cyprian president will give out a special dinner for the newly elected Greek PM. Tomorrow morning Papandreou will meet representatives of two more parties – EVROKO president Dimitris Silouris and general secretary of the Ecologists Movement Yoanna Papayotou. Right after this he will meet representatives of the Cyprian committee of relatives of missing persons and the Committee of the Occupied Municipalities.

Later on the leader of the Greek government will visit the Archbishop of Cyprus Chrisostomos and around lunch he will speak in front of the Cyprian parliament.