Editorial
Precipitous developments on the military front in Afghanistan are changing global circumstances. The Taleban regime appears to be on the verge of collapse as it stands isolated in the international arena, without any support from its neighbors. The Northern Alliance marches on, supported by US air and commando forces. Kandahar will probably have the same fate as Kabul. This would mark the end of the Taleban regime. Washington’s central aim has been the elimination of Osama bin Laden and the disruption of the Al Qaeda terrorist network but the overthrow of the Taleban regime will indisputably be a major step in this direction. The anti-terrorist campaign is still far from its end but should current predictions be confirmed, the USA will soon have achieved their first aim. This will, no doubt, have a positive effect on the domestic level. It will be long before the wounds of US citizens are healed. It will also take time for the social and economic sphere to recover. The first signs of recovery, however, are already evident while signals coming from the markets over the previous days have been optimistic. For their part, European states are quickly focusing on their previous agendas again – a fact which is also evident in Greece. In our country, familiar problems are back in focus. The new national economy minister is called upon to promote structural changes as this is the only way to develop economic momentum. It is also the only means of overcoming current problems, one of which is the fiscal tricks of his predecessor which have started to emerge. The government, however, is called upon to give practical answers on other issues. Consensual discourse on social security reform is mainly due to the fact that the prime minister seems to have abandoned his original intention of a milder reform. The preparations for the Olympic Games, however, leave no room for such settlements. Great delays have rendered the organization of this major sports event into a time bomb. In any case, the return of the spotlight onto the domestic agenda has caused political repercussions. As the international crisis is defused, the public will judge the government by stricter criteria, a fact which will be inevitably reflected in opinion polls.
