Cyprus won't be lead to recognize the independence of Kosovo, foreign minister Markos Kyprianou said ahead of Monday's meeting of European top diplomats.

Kyprianou said that last week's announcement of the positive verdict of the UN International Court of Justice regarding the legality of Kosovo's independence will not affect Cyprus' position.

“The decision of the ICJ is restricted only to the specific question which refers to the procedure of the declaration itself. At the same time we believe that when a territorial integrity of a country is concerned, the issue is to be resolved by means of talks and negotiations, and not by unilaterally declaring independence,” said the Cyprus foreign minister.

Cyprus is among 5 EU member-states not to have recognized Kosovo, the other being Greece, Spain, Romania and Slovakia.

Source: novinite.com

Too often over the past decade, the United States, the European Union, and the United Nations have chosen to look the other way in Albanian-populated areas of the Balkans, willfully giving free rein to corrupt political and military officials in the vain hope of gaining local support for international efforts to strengthen “regional stability.”

This “see-no-evil” policy has yielded precious little stability. And it has allowed Kosovo, Albania, and the FYROM to linger on the crumbling edge of the “failed state” abyss. These countries – not to mention their Balkan neighbors, Greece included – need to be Europeanized.

By Nikolaos Martis

WW II Veteran and Former Hellenic Government Minister

The Allies on May 9, 2010 celebrated, as they do every year their Victory and the end of WW II in Europe in 1945. Particularly extensive celebrations to mark the 65th such anniversary took place this year in Moscow, in the presence of Heads of States, with parades of allied armies, and with special solemnity. In the Axis defeat in Europe, Greece contributed significantly. This fact has been ever since very much neglected, although at that time it was admitted openly by leading personalities of WW II.

In 1942, Moscow’s radio station broadcasted to Greece, during the anniversary of the entry of the German troops in Athens: "Unarmed you fought and won fully armed military hordes. You struggled small vs. big, and you prevailed. It could not be any other way, because you are Greek. Due to your prolonged resistance, Russia gained time to prepare to defend itself. We Thank you”.

Jennifer Lopez has officially "withdrawn" from a concert in a European territory currently under military occupation, claiming she never would have agreed to perform had she known the "relevant circumstances" surrounding the intense political situation.

Lopez was scheduled to perform in Turkish-occupied Northern Cyprus,  an area that neither the United Nations nor the European Union recognize as anindependent sovereign state, because of the way it was illegally occupied by the Turkish military in 1974.

Chicago’s Greek community is famous for their dedication to their Greek heritage. Early June many factors and events made Chicago even more Greek than what it normally is. Greek owned Earth Friendly Products opened the largest green commercial facility in Illinois. The Blackhawks hockey team won the Stanley Cup with Greek-American Adam Burish being one of the champs. Greek America’s three day weekend kicked off with a welcoming reception, and a gathering to watch the Greek National Soccer team against South Korea. The National Innovative Conference took place at the Resolution Digital Studios and was followed by the long awaited 40 under 40 Awards Gala.

What Dan Brown’s book The Da Vinci Code did for the Holy Grail, could this book do the same for Aphrodite and Cyprus?

No one doubts the power of the media anymore and once the wheels start turning and the press and the promotional people kick-in the inevitable publicity ball starts to roll. The sensationalism that rocked the world in the Da Vinci Code proved to be the key to open a whole new industry for Dan Brown and his readers.

Spawned by the book, came the movie and subsequent novels as well as a whole plethora of merchandising.

The Greek Gardens Exhibit opened Saturday at the Botanical Conservatory in Fort Wayne. The summer exhibit of ancient Greek culture and mythology features rocky terrain supporting familiar herbs like rosemary, lavender, and thyme as well as shrubs and trees like figs, oleander, and palms.

“We’ve tried to get a collection of Mediterranean plants which are found in Greece or plants that at least look Mediterranean,” said Andy Force, with the Botanical Conservatory. ”The garden is not a true Greek garden and some of the plants are not Mediterranean, but it gives a Mediterranean look and a Greek look to the garden and that’s what we tried to capture.”