Meeting with Obama
Prime Minister George Papandreou met with US President Barack Obama in Washington yesterday.
After the meeting Papandreou said that the US is willing to work with the European Union to regulate the international financial system so speculators cannot target countries with troubled economies.
The premier said that the issue of speculation will be discussed at the G20 summit in Canada, in June. The two leaders also discussed foreign policy issues such as the Cyprus issue, the integration of Western Balkans into Euro-Atlantic institutions, as well as Greece’s relations with Turkey.
Visa Waiver
Furthermore, the US side announced that Greece will be included in the ‘visa waiver’ programme, thus enabling Greek citizens to travel to the US without a visa.
Papandreou termed the visa waiver “a vote of confidence” to Greece and noted that the Greek government is determined to respond to its obligations and cooperate closely at international level on the tackling of terrorism.
Kathimerini daily: US joins fight against speculators
The White House: Honouring Greek Independence Day 
(21.35mins)
Papandreou’s Op-ed
In an op-ed published in the International Herald Tribune (IHT), Papandreou notes that the Greek case is not an outlier, but one more flare-up in a broken system of financial regulation and predatory behaviour.
“If global economic growth is to be sustainable, we need better coordination and greater solidarity between nations… We must now establish and enforce clear rules to contain the inordinate power of markets over our national economies and our common currency – not for Greece’s sake, but for Europe’s,” he stresses.
Prime Minister’s website: Meeting with President Barack Obama: Prime Minister’s statement ; Brookings Institution: Prime Minister’s speech & YouTube: PM’s speech at Brookings Institution
New York Times & International Herald Tribune: Prime Minister’s article “Greece is not an island“; Hellenic Finance Ministry: Newsletter Updating Greek Fiscal Measures 
(GREEK NEWS AGENDA)
Filed under: Balkans, Business, Cyprus, Economy, European Union, Government, Greece, Greek Prime Minister, Greeks Abroad, history, International Relations, Media, Politics, Turkey | Tagged: article, Balkans, Barack, Brookings, citizens, Common, coordination, currency, Current Affairs, Cyprus, Day, Economic, economies, Economy, Euro-Atlantic, Europe, European, fight, Finance, financial, fiscal, foreign, G20, George, Global, Government, Greece, Greek, growth, Hellenic, Herald, house, Independence, Institution, institutions, integration, International, island, issue, issues, πρωθυπουργός, πρόγραμμα, παγκόσμια, πολίτες, πολιτική, ρυθμίσεις, συνάντηση, σχέσεις, σύστημα, τρομοκρατία, φορολογικά, Έλληνας, Έλληνες, Ένωση, Ίδρυμα, Ανεξαρτησία, Βαλκάνια, Γιώργος, Δυτικά, Διεθνές, Ευρω-ατλαντικές, Ευρώπη, Εθνική, Ελλάδα, Ελληνικό, Ελληνική, ΗΠΑ, Κυπριακό, Λευκός, Ουάσιγκτον, Οίκος, Οικονομικό, Οικονομικών, Ομπάμα, Πρόεδρος, Παπανδρέου, Σύνοδος, Τουρκία, Υπουργείο, άρθρο, αγορές, αλληλεγγύη, αμερικανός, ανάπτυξη, βίζα, δήλωση, δελτίο, επέτειος, ευρωπαϊκή, εφημερίδα, ενσωμάτωση, εξωτερική, θέματα, θεσμοί, ιστοελίδα, κυβέρνηση, κατάργηση, κερδοσκόπους, κερδοσκοπία, κοινό, μέτρα, νόμισμα, οικονομία, οικονομίες, οικονομική, ομιλία, markets, Measures, meeting, Minister, Ministry, national, New, newsletter, Obama, of, Papandreou, Policy, Politics, premier, President, Prime, Programme, Regulation, relations, rules, Solidarity, speculation, speculators, Speech, statement, summit, System, terrorism, Times, Tribune, Turkey, Union, updating, US, Visa, Waiver, Washington, website, Western, white, with, York | Comments Off on PM George Papandreou at the White House
Furthermore, ordinary budget expenditures declined by 12.8% year-on-year against a targeted 5.5% reduction and primary expenditures decreased by 12.7% against a targeted 5.4% annual decrease.
Embassy of Greece in Poland Press & Communication Office 