WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3698/98 by Gerhard HAGER to the Council. Attendance of Council meetings
C 182/120 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 28. 6. 1999 in addition, in the area of visas, meetings are held regularly (once per Presidency) with representatives of the applicant countries. The latest of these meetings took place on 26 and 27 November 1998 in Brussels. A seminar on the security of documents is also planned for January 1999. (1999/C 182/162) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3689/98 by Nikitas Kaklamanis (UPE) to the Commission (7 December 1998) Subject: Motifs on euro coins and notes Speaking on behalf of the Commission, Commissioner Yves-Thibault de Silguy has repeatedly stated that any inaccuracy in the motifs on euro coins and notes will be corrected in good time so as to avoid offending nationalist sentiment among the peoples of the Member States of the Union. One glaring inaccuracy is undoubtedly the omission of the Greek islands on coins of the single European currency, which under- standably engenders misgivings and bitterness among Greek citizens. According to available information (cited in the report ‘on denominations and technical specifications of euro coins intended for circulation’ by Mrs Soltwedel Schäfer, Doc. A4-0401/98), the coinage has already started. Will the Commission say whether the omissions and inaccuracies in the depiction of the Greek islands on euro coins have been corrected so as to avoid offending nationalist sentiment among Greek citizens of the Union? Answer given by Mr de Silguy on behalf of the Commission (25 January 1999) As the Honourable Member recalls, the endorsement, by the Amsterdam European Council, of the euro coins was subject to a number of minor modifications requested by Member States. Following discussion by the monetary committee, the revised designs were presented to the Ecofin Council on 17 November 1997. Having received the Parliament’s opinion, the Council recorded its unanimous agreement on its common position on the technical specifications of euro coins. Specifically with regard to islands, a minimum surface area criterion of 2 500 km2 was applied for the 1 and 2 euro coins and the 10, 20 and 50 cent coins. This led to the inclusion of the island of Crete and other European islands in these coins. In addition, the representation of Greece, in particular Chalkidiki and Peloponnesos, was corrected. (1999/C 182/163) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3698/98 by Gerhard Hager (NI) to the Council (4 December 1998) Subject: Attendance of Council meetings The informal meeting of Home Affairs and Justice Ministers held in Vienna on 29/30 October 1998 was not attended by the French and Belgian Ministers or the British Home Secretary