The meeting was also attended by Finance Minister Gikas Hardouvelis, Labour Minister Yiannis Vroutsis, Administration and eGovernance Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Deputy Finance Minister George Mavraganis, AMNA reports.

Exiting the Maximos Mansion Hardouvelis said he briefed the two political leaders on the negotiations in Paris. “It went well. We had progress. We did not close the issues. We continue,” he said, while regarding the possible extension of the current programme he said: “there could be one for a very short period of time for technical reasons.”

The government appears certain that there will be an agreement with the troika by the end of the year. A source close to the Prime Minister stated that “those who invest in catastrophe will be disappointed as there was no wreck or destruction in Paris.”

Negotiations with the troika will continue via teleconference calls in the coming days.

Most of the haggling has been over a projected fiscal gap in the 2015 budget, protothema.gr notes. Failure to strike a deal by the December 8 deadline means that the Greek government won’t be able to keep its pledge of quitting its bailout programme by the end of 2014.

The main issues of discontent are:

- A Finance ministry official pinpointed the “number one” issue being the fiscal gap for 2015. A Greek official said that “the timetable is very tight.” Meanwhile, a European source said that the troika would like to see the new law for debt settlement in 100 installments to be scrapped altogether.

- The troika is not satisfied with structural changes in social security thus far and is seeking to see pensions immediately reduced. They also want the pension age to be lifted but believe that this should be done gradually over a five-year period.

- Troika wants businesses to be excluded from the recent law that allows for debt settlement in up to 100 installments.

- Troika believes that there should be a common salary chart for the public sector or, at the very least, a reduction of “extra” bonuses and overtime.

- International creditors are seeking to have VAT rates increase and for VAT exemptions on some islands to no longer apply. They want the reduced 6.5% and 14% VAT rates for items that are considered basic needs to be lifted.

- The troika would like to see Greek labour law to include mass dismissals and changes to the way decisions for strike action are structured as well as changes to the law on unions.

Sources said that discussions with the troika had not resulted in a date being set for the return of troika’s representatives to Athens for a review prior to the Eurogroup meeting on December 8. Nonetheless, the extension of the bailout has yet to be discussed.

The markets have been negative concerning Greece’s early exit from the program with Greek government bonds having slumped and Greece’s 10-year bond close to 8%.

The Middle East Quartet – the diplomatic grouping bringing together the UN, the European Union, Russia and the United States – met at UN Headquarters in New York on the margins of the annual high-level debate of the General Assembly.

The meeting is the first time in one and a half years that the members of the Quartet have met at the level of principals and it follows the most recent round of direct talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians held last month. The Quartet called on all parties to take every possible step to promote conditions conducive to the success of the negotiating process and to refrain from actions that undermine trust or prejudge final status issues.

“The Quartet reaffirmed its determination to lend effective support to the efforts of the parties and their shared commitment to reach a permanent status agreement within the agreed goal of nine months,” the group said in a statement.

It commended the leadership of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and their commitment to remaining engaged in sustained and continuous negotiations to address all of the core issues.

During the meeting, the Quartet received an update from US Secretary of State John Kerry on the progress in the talks since talks resumed on 29 July, as well as a joint briefing on the negotiations by the chief negotiators from both sides.

The group also discussed efforts to boost support to the Palestinian economy, as well as the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the importance of both sides demonstrating a commitment to improving the atmosphere for the negotiations.

The other principals participating in the meeting were UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy of the European Union Catherine Ashton.

They were joined by Quartet Representative Tony Blair and by Israeli chief negotiator Justice Minister Tzipi Livni and Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat.

Through the unanimous adoption of resolution 2118 (2013), the Council called for the speedy implementation of procedures drawn up by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) “for the expeditious destruction of the Syrian Arab Republic’s chemical weapons programme and stringent verification thereof.”

In the text, the Council underscored “that no party in Syria should use, develop, produce, acquire, stockpile, retain, or transfer chemical weapons.”

Defiance of the resolution, including unauthorized transfer of chemical weapons, or any use of chemical weapons by anyone in Syria, would bring about measures under the UN Charter’s binding Chapter VII, which can include sanctions or stronger coercive action, the Council said.

The 15-member body added that it would work with the OPCW in deploying a chemical weapons “monitoring and destruction team” – expecting the full cooperation of the Syrian Government – and it appealed to UN Member States for support, including personnel, expertise, funding and equipment.

It also authorized Member States to acquire, control, transport, transfer and destroy chemical weapons identified by the Director-General of the OPCW, in a way consistent with the Chemical Weapons Convention and the interest of non-proliferation.

“Today’s historic resolution is the first hopeful news on Syria in a long time,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Council following the adoption. “For many months, I have said that the confirmed use of chemical weapons in Syria would require a firm, united response.

“Tonight, the international community has delivered,” he stated.

“As we mark this important step, we must never forget that the catalogue of horrors in Syria continues with bombs and tanks, grenades and guns,” Ban added. “A red light for one form of weapons does not mean a green light for others. This is not a license to kill with conventional weapons. All the violence must end. All the guns must fall silent.”

Earlier yesterday, Ban’s spokesperson said that the UN team led by Swedish scientist ?ke Sellström has been able to resume its fact-finding activities related to all pending credible allegations of chemical weapons use, following its return to Syria this week.

Those allegations include, he said, the 19 March incident at Khan al-Asal, reported first by Syria and subsequently by other Member States. As previously agreed with Syria, the other allegations to be investigated include the 13 April incident at Sheikh Maqsud, reported by the United States, and the 29 April incident at Saraqueb, reported by France and the United Kingdom.

In addition, he said, the mission has continued to follow-up with the Government of Syria and to evaluate information it has provided on three additional allegations, including the incidents at Bahhariyeh on 22 August, at Jobar on 24 August, and at Sahnaya on 25 August.

The team, assisted by experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the OPCW, visited the country last month and found “clear and convincing evidence” that Sarin gas was used in an incident that occurred on 21 August in the Ghouta area on the outskirts of Damascus in which hundreds of people were reportedly killed.

Under the General Assembly-approved guidelines, the spokesperson recalled, the mission is obliged to evaluate all available information related to all allegations reported by Member States, for the purpose of preparing its final report.

Also in today’s resolution, the Council endorsed a plan for a Syrian-led process, with participation of all parties, to end the conflict, which has claimed over 100,000 lives since it began in March 2011 and has led to over 2 million people fleeing the country, with some 4 million internally displaced.

It also called for convening, as soon as possible, an international peace conference that is fully representative of the Syrian people.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Mr. Ban said the aim is to hold the conference in mid-November. “The United Nations is ready to host Geneva II. It is time for the parties to focus on how to build the peaceful, democratic future Syria needs. All those with influence on the parties must use that influence now. It is crucial to keep up the momentum.

“Today can and must be a stepping stone to peace.”

“2013 will be a decisive year for the two-State solution,” Ban said in a message delivered on his behalf to the UN Seminar on Assistance to the Palestinian People, which took place in Rome. “Failure to make tangible progress only means the continuation of suffering, violence and instability in the whole region.”

The two-day seminar, organized by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, is the first such gathering since the General Assembly voted in November 2012 to accord Palestine non-member observer State status at the UN.

In his message, delivered by Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Oscar Fernandez-Taranco, Ban stated that the 45-year occupation – “as demeaning to the inhabitants as it is destabilizing for the region” – must end.

“Jerusalem must emerge through negotiations as the future capital of two States. As provided in the Road Map, there should be an agreed, just, fair and realistic solution to the refugee issue. Both parties must live up to their commitment to resolving these and all other core issues, namely, territory, security, settlements and water.”

The Road Map is the internationally endorsed plan for two States, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security.

The Secretary-General also noted that the meeting takes place as the Palestinian Government faces an unprecedented financial crisis that puts at risk the significant achievements in institution-building made in recent years under the leadership of President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Salaam Fayyad.

“We cannot afford to jeopardize this progress and the considerable investments that have been made by the international community, including the United Nations,” he said, calling on all donors, especially Arab countries, to fulfil their pledges and further increase their support.

The UN continues its support to Palestinian institution-building, and provides critical humanitarian assistance in both the West Bank and Gaza, he said. In response to continuing needs, the UN and its partners are seeking $400 million for humanitarian action this year, with a focus on food insecurity and protection.

“Currently, however, the viability of Palestinian institutions stands on political quicksand, and their future is closely linked to concrete achievements towards the two-State solution, in which Israel and Palestine live side-by-side in peace, security and mutual recognition of each other’s legitimate rights, including self-determination,” Ban stated.

“There is no substitute for negotiations towards this end, and the parties should refrain from any action that undermines prospects for their resumption.”

He also voiced dismay at Israel’s continuing settlement activity in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, all of which is illegal under international law and constitutes “ever-greater impediments” to an eventual peaceful solution.

Also of concern is the situation in Gaza, where 80 per cent of the Palestinian residents depend on humanitarian aid as a result of the Israeli blockade, which has been in place for nearly six years.

The Secretary-General also voiced deep concern, as have other UN officials this week, about the death on Saturday of Palestinian prisoner Arafat Jaradat just days after he was detained by Israeli security forces.

“An independent and transparent investigation into the circumstances of Mr. Jaradat’s death should be conducted urgently, the results of which should be made public as soon as possible,” he stated. “Similarly, a solution must be urgently found for the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody whose health conditions have dramatically deteriorated as a result of their prolonged hunger strike.”

Abdou Salam Diallo, Chairman of the Palestinian Rights Committee, echoed the Secretary-General’s call for an investigation into Mr. Jaradat’s death, and into prison conditions in general.

The Committee, he added, had “knocked on every door,” including of the Security Council and the International Committee of the Red Cross, advocating the speedy release of prisoners, particularly those on hunger strike, whose lives were in imminent danger.

Diallo too said that 2013 would be a “pivotal year” for the peace process and that a push by the international community was needed on multiple fronts – political, economic, legal and others – to re-launch international engagement, restart meaningful negotiations, achieve reconciliation, strengthen Palestinian institutions, and end the Gaza blockade.

“Let us be under no illusion. This is a crisis. A threat to us all. Our economies. Our security. And the well-being of our children and those who will come after,” Ban said at the start of the high-level segment of the 18th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

“The danger signs are all around,” he added, pointing to the unprecedented melting of icecaps, rising sea levels, and land degradation and drought in various parts of the world.

“No one is immune to climate change – rich or poor,” he stated. “It is an existential challenge for the whole human race – our way of life, our plans for the future. We must take ownership. We, collectively, are the problem. Then we should have the solutions.”

The two-week conference brings together the 195 Parties to the UNFCCC, the parent treaty of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. Under the Protocol, 37 States – consisting of highly industrialized countries and countries undergoing the process of transition to a market economy – have legally binding emission limitation and reduction commitments.

Delegates at the two-week conference – that ends this Friday – will, among other goals, try to extend the Kyoto Protocol, whose first commitment period expires at the end of 2012.

“I urge all Parties to work with a spirit of compromise – to take the long view and avoid getting bogged down in minutiae,” Ban told participants. “Let us ensure that we stay on track for an effective, fair, ambitious and universal climate agreement by 2015.”

The Secretary-General said he hoped for five key “deliverables” by Governments in Doha this week, beginning with the adoption of a ratifiable second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol.

“The Kyoto Protocol remains the closest we have to a global, binding climate agreement. It must continue. It is a foundation to build on. It has important institutions, including accounting and legal systems, and the framework that markets sorely need. Its continuation on 1 January 2013 would show that governments remain committed to a more robust climate regime.”

He also expected progress on long-term climate finance, and ensuring that the institutions set up in Cancun and Durban to support mitigation and adaptation by developing countries – including the Green Climate Fund and the Climate Technology Centre and Network – are fully equipped and effective.

In addition, he expected governments to demonstrate, with no ambiguity, that negotiations on a global and legally binding instrument remain on track, and to show how they intend to act on the gap between mitigation pledges and what is required to achieve the two degrees target.

Recent UN-led reports have pointed to the urgency of keeping global average temperatures from rising beyond an internationally agreed level of two degrees Celsius, beyond which climate change would have serious impacts.

“The gap can be bridged. But time is not on our side,” Ban warned.

The President of the General Assembly, Vuk Jeremic, told the meeting that addressing the problem of climate change must become a core national interest of every UN Member State.

“The window of opportunity to prevent the effects of climate change from spiralling out of our control is closing,” he said. “When future generations look upon the choices we made, let them not be forced to exclaim that we failed to act in time. Let them not have to suffer the consequences of the inability to answer the clarion call to act with conscientious foresight.”

Speaking to reporters in Doha today, Ban emphasized that “we are in a race against time,” adding that every delay will require greater future effort or will mean greater future harm.

“If we act together with clear purpose, we can meet this challenge. But we need to be united – governments from all regions, business and civil society. We have a clear choice: stand together, or fall together.”

Sudan’s President, Omar al-Bashir, and his counterpart from South Sudan, Salva Kiir, are scheduled to meet Sunday in Ethiopia to finalize agreements on all issues being discussed under the talks, held under the auspices of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel.

The talks have been designed to enable the two nations to fulfil their obligations under a so-called roadmap aimed at easing tensions, facilitating the resumption of negotiations on post-secession relations and normalizing the relations between the two countries.

“The Secretary-General congratulates the negotiating teams of the two parties for what they have achieved so far,” said a statement issued by his spokesperson.

“He urges both Presidents to now take responsibility for the resolution of their remaining differences, so that their summit concludes with a success that marks an end to the era of conflict and ushers in a new era of peace, cooperation and mutual development for the two countries and their people,” the spokesperson added.

The members of the Council “strongly encouraged the negotiators to continue intensive work to resolve all remaining issues,” Ambassador Peter Wittig of Germany, which holds the Council’s rotating presidency for this month, said in a statement read out to the press.

They affirmed that it is the responsibility of the two presidents “to exercise constructive leadership and demonstrate the political will” to ratify the progress made and bridge the remaining gaps to ensure the successful conclusion of the negotiations on 23 September.

The Council also reiterated its grave concern about the “rapidly worsening” humanitarian situation in Sudan’s South Kordofan and Blue Nile states. Hundreds of thousands of people have fled the two areas in recent months owing to conflict and food shortages.

“The members of the Council once again stressed the urgency of immediately delivering humanitarian relief supplies to the affected civilian populations, so as to avoid any further suffering or loss of life,” said the press statement.

South Sudan became independent from Sudan in July last year, six years after the signing of the peace agreement that ended decades of warfare between the north and the south. However, the peace between the two countries has been threatened in recent months by armed clashes along their common border and outstanding post-independence issues that have yet to be resolved.

The situation between the two countries will also be the subject of a high-level meeting to be convened on 27 September in New York on the margins of the General Assembly’s annual general debate.

According to Kathimerini, a list with the with the first 20 state organizations from around 250 that are to be merged and abolished is expected to be announced today. The first 20 organizations on the list are to be merged with some 200 regional bodies across the country in coming days and weeks while the full list of organizations to come under the ax is to expected to be made public by the end of August, the paper writes.

Government meetings with troika representatives will commence with a list of measures the latter will present, describing the gap between planning and targets accomplished. This list could include actions needed to cover EUR 3 to 4 billion that are missing from the implementation of the bailout agreement.

According to media reports, the meetings will be of preliminary character, since neither of the two sides is ready to negotiate directly. Troika heads will have the results of the inspection of the technical staff that show a gap in state reveneue (estimated somewhere in between EUR 2.4 to 2.6 billion) as well as deficits in pension funds and public hospitals (another EUR 1.2 billion). Given the accelerating recession that is expected to reach 7% of GDP, the hole in the budget could reach around EUR 4 billion by the end of the year.

Troika people know that the Greek government cannot negotiate new measures. In any case, according to the initial planning, discussions are expected to conclude in late August, setting also the basis for an initial draft of the 2013 budget and the revised medium term financial plan.

The next tranche of Eurozone aid is unlikely to be paid before September, the European Commission said yesterday, noting international lenders had to finish an assessment of government-planned reforms that are far behind schedule, Reuters reports from Brussels.

“The members of the Security Council welcomed the resumption of negotiations between Sudan and South Sudan under the auspices of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP),” the Council members said in a press statement on Monday night.

“They noted that there has been a reduction in violence in the border region and commended that some progress was made by both parties in implementing the requirements of resolution 2046,” the Council members added, calling for parties to immediately implement their obligations under its resolution and a roadmap put forward by the African Union (AU).

South Sudan became independent from Sudan in July last year, six years after the signing of a peace agreement that ended decades of warfare between the north and south. However, the peace between the two countries has been threatened by clashes along their common border and outstanding post-independence issues, including the ownership of the Abyei area which straddles the two countries.

Acting under the binding Chapter VII of the UN Charter, the Council adopted resolution 2046 in May. It called on the two countries to immediately end hostilities and resume negotiations to resolve all outstanding issues, including Abyei, and voiced the 15-member body’s intention to take “appropriate measures” if the parties did not comply.

The resolution also called for the parties to activate border security mechanisms, including the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism, without prejudice to ongoing negotiations on disputed areas.

In its press statement, the Council members expressed “strong concern” about delays and stressed that important elements of resolution 2046 remain unresolved by both parties. They also stressed the requirement that Sudan and South Sudan resolve all outstanding issues within the time-frames laid out by the AU Roadmap, as well as the resolution.

“The members of the Security Council underscored the urgency of immediately establishing the necessary border security mechanisms and reiterated that the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone (SDBZ) shall be established, as stipulated in [resolution] 2046, in accordance with the administrative and security map presented to the parties by the AUHIP in November 2011, it being understood that this map in no way prejudices ongoing negotiations on the disputed areas and demarcation of the border,” the Council members said.

The AU Roadmap, put forward by that body’s Peace and Security Council in late April, provided a time-frame and steps – for implementation by both Sudan and South Sudan – aimed at helping ease tensions, facilitate the resumption of negotiations on post-secession relations and normalizing relations between the two countries.

In relation to Abyei, the Council members welcomed the full withdrawal of the Sudanese Armed Forces and Sudanese Police Service personnel, and called on the Government of Sudan to complete the withdrawal of its forces from the contested area by redeploying all oil police in accordance with resolution 2046 and the 20 June 2011 Agreement on Temporary Arrangements for Security in the Abyei Area.

In June 2011, following an outbreak of violence after Sudanese troops took control of the area weeks before South Sudan became independent, the Security Council authorized the establishment of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) to oversee demilitarization of the area and maintain security following an outbreak of violence. In May this year, it extended UNIFSA’s mandate for six months.

In its press statement, the Council also reiterated its “grave concern” about the situation in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states of Sudan, especially in relation to the “rapidly worsening humanitarian situation there, and in this regard expressed concern that the parties have not implemented the relevant provisions of resolution 2046.

The states of Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile, which lie on the border between Sudan and South Sudan, have been beset by fighting between Sudanese forces and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-North) since last year. The SPLM-N was previously part of the rebel movement that fought for the independence of South Sudan.

The fighting has led to the displacement of thousands of people, and led to concerns over the humanitarian situation there.

Ban congratulated the African Union’s High-Level Implementation Panel, under the leadership of former South African President Thabo Mbeki, for its tireless efforts to conclude the negotiations between the two States.

Media reports earlier this week said that Sudan and South Sudan had signed an agreement that provides for free movement and residence of their citizens in each other’s territory.

South Sudan seceded from Sudan in July last year following a referendum on self-determination that capped the implementation of an agreement signed in 2005 to end decades of warfare between the north and the south.

However, the two countries continued to feud over several unresolved issues, including the delineation of the border, control of the disputed territory of Abyei, and more recently tariffs charged by Sudan on South Sudan for the use of a pipeline and port to export oil.