GREECE SCRAPS U.S. BASE CLOSURE REQUEST

  Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou has
  withdrawn a request to Washington to suspend operations at an
  American army base near Athens as a Greek-Turkish row over oil
  rights in the Aegean eased.
      A Turkish research ship which Greece had threatened to
  tackle if it sailed into disputed waters in the Aegean Sea kept
  to Turkish territorial waters yesterday, avoiding a potential
  clash.
      Papandreou expressed qualified optimism after briefing
  opposition leaders on Aegean developments early yesterday.
      The Greek government later withdrew Friday's request to
  Washington to close down its telecommunications base at Nea
  Makri, north of Athens, saying that the reasons which had
  prompted it to make the request were no longer valid.
      Under the terms of the U.S.-Greek bases accord, Greece has
  the right to ask for suspension of operations at times when its
  national interests are threatened.
      The row in the Aegean erupted after Turkey said it would
  search for oil round three Greek islands off its coast
  following an announcement from Greece that it planned to drill
  east of Thassos island after taking control of a Canadian-led
  oil consortium operating in the northern Aegean.
      Turkey accused Greece of breaching the 1976 Berne Agreement
  under which both sides agreed to preserve the status quo in the
  Aegean until their continental shelf dispute was settled.
  Athens says it considers the accord inactive.
      The Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement it had
  received an assurance from Greece that it would not carry out
  oil activities outside its territorial waters. Greece declined
  comment on the statement.
      Papandreou repeated an invitation to Turkey to take the
  long-standing continental shelf dispute to the International
  Court of Justice at The Hague.
      Conservative opposition leader Constantine Mitsotakis said
  he had urged Papandreou to accept an offer from NATO General
  Secretary Lord Carrington to help resolve the row.
  

