London - About half the dogs and a third of all cats in Britain are too fat, a veterinary charity warned Thursday.

Worse: most pet owners don't notice that their four-legged friends are packing too many pounds.

According to the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals, only a fifth of cat owners are aware that their pet has a weight problem. That applied to only a third of dog owners.

Since so many dogs and cats are overweight, pet owners have unrealistic perceptions of the ideal weight and shape for their pet, said veterinarian Sean Wensley.

Athens - Greek government spokesman Theodoros Rousopoulos resigned on Thursday over a real-estate scandal that has linked the conservative government with a monastery in northern Greece.

Rousopoulos reportedly handed in his resignation to Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis and the prime minister accepted it, thanking him for his support to the party over the past eight years.

Stuttgart - German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck rejected Thursday a protest from Switzerland, two days after he said in Paris that the Alpine republic was not doing enough to stop tax evaders.

Speaking in Stuttgart, Steinbrueck, who oversaw Germany's rescue package last week for ailing banks, said, "I'll keep naming names." He said he would continue to be outspoken whenever "Germans are invited to evade taxes."

He criticized Berne for summoning the German ambassador to hear a protest over his Tuesday remarks.

Prague - A senior Czech government official Thursday criticized French President Nicolas Sarkozy's reported efforts to boost the eurozone's influence in 2009 at the expense of countries presiding over the larger European Union.

Sarkozy is seeking to stay in control of European economic policy for at least a year, arguing that he is the only leader suitable for the task of steering Europe through the global financial crisis, the Le Monde newspaper reported Wednesday.