Greek ultra-nationalists protest at joint Euro 2008 with Turkey
( 2001-11-21 10:30 ) (7 )

Greek ultra-nationalists protested here on Tuesday at moves by traditional rivals Greece and Turkey to put forward a bid to co-host the 2008 European football championships.

Police said that up to fifty protesters gathered outside the Greek Football Federation headquarters, waving Greek flags and brandishing banners proclaiming"The demonstration was organised to coincide with a meeting of Greek football bosses to discuss the joint candidature, which was signed by both federations on November 16 in Istanbul.

Greece and Turkey will have to beat a joint bid by Austria and Switzerland to host the tournament, while Scotland has also expressed an interest in bidding for.

The joint bid of Turkey and Greece is the latest step in a remarkable reconciliation between the two neighbours, who have several times came to the brink of war in the past several decades.

Bilateral tensions eased in 1999 following unprecedented solidarity the two nations displayed in the wake of earthquakes that hit them less than a month apart.

Since then, they have signed several cooperation accords on secondary issues, but remain at loggerheads over complex territorial disputes in the Aegean and the divided island of Cyprus.