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Turkish Press Review 96-05-21
From: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>
CONTENTS
[01] BOSNIAN SOLDIERS VISIT TURKEY FOR TRAINING
[02] GEN. KARADAYI RECEIVES BRITISH AIR FORCE COMMANDER
[03] TURKISH NAVAL FORCES COMMANDER VISITS ISRAEL
[04] CLINTON: "TURKEY WILL BE EXTENDED FOREIGN AID"
[05] TURKISH DEPUTIES TO GO BACK TO WEU
[06] TEN PKK MILITANTS KILLED IN SOUTHEAST
[07] ATATURK AWARD TO HOLBROOKE
[08] ITALY TEMPORARILY LIFTS TRANSIT VISA RESTRICTIONS
[09] GREECE NOW OFFERS KARDAK TOUR TO PARLIAMENTARIANS
[10] US PUTS COBRAS ON HOLD
[11] NEW IRAQ PETROL DEAL ON THE WAY
[12] TENSION DURING ATHENS NATO MEETING
[13] TURKEY SHARING IN US ANTI-TERROR MEETING
TURKISH PRESS REVIEW
TUESDAY MAY 21, 1996
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning
[01] BOSNIAN SOLDIERS VISIT TURKEY FOR TRAINING
The training of the Bosnian-Croatian Federation Armed Forces
began in Ankara yesterday. Ceremonies were held at the
Armoured Units School at Etimesgut and at the Training
Division headquarters at Polatli. The staff president of the
Land Forces headquarters said that the Turkish Armed Forces
are supporting the dignified struggle of the Bosnians
against the violent attacks they have suffered. "I
congratulate you for your great courage and devotion. It is
a great pleasure for us to contribute to your training and
we will try to do our best to help you" Commander Aktulga
said. Commander Aktulga also conveyed the best wishes of L
and Forces Commander Hikmet Bayar for the Bosnians' success.
/Sabah/
[02] GEN. KARADAYI RECEIVES BRITISH AIR FORCE COMMANDER
Gen. Ismail Hakki Karadayi, Chief of General Staff, received
Marshall Michael Graydon, commander of the British Royal Air
Forces. Graydon, who is the official guest of Air Forces
Commander Gen. Ahmet Corekci, met with Karadayi yesterday at
the General Staff headquarters. Graydon will leave Turkey
today after visiting the Air Force Command in Diyarbakir.
/All papers/
[03] TURKISH NAVAL FORCES COMMANDER VISITS ISRAEL
Turkish Naval Forces Commander Admiral Guven Erkaya visited
Israel within the framework of the agreement for military
cooperation recently signed between Turkey and Israel.
During his visit, Admiral Erkaya is expected to discuss in
detail naval-military cooperation.
Prior to the visit of the Turkish admiral, the Haaretz
newspaper published in Israel, claimed that Turkey and
Israel were planning to organize joint naval-military
operations in the Mediterranean. Israeli officials have
stated however, t hat the bilateral cooperation agreement
does not cover any joint military operations, but only
cooperation for sea-rescue training. According to Defence
Minister Oltan Sungurlu, the agreement also foresees mutual
port visits by Turkish and Israeli naval vessels. /Milliyet/
[04] CLINTON: "TURKEY WILL BE EXTENDED FOREIGN AID"
The efforts of Republican Party Candidate President Bob Dole
and of the Armenia n lobby in the US Congress to stop US
credits for Turkey have failed. Dole and other leading
figures in the Armenian lobby previously managed to add a
"human aid corridor" provision to the Foreign Aid Law, a
provision aimed at stopping a id to Turkey, as Dole stated
while submitting the proposal. Nevertheless, Clinton has
used his right to veto the provision in case it is found to
be contrary to national interests.
In the 1996 fiscal year, Turkey will be extended by the US
$320 million as foreign military aid, and $33.5 million in
economic support aid. /Sabah/
[05] TURKISH DEPUTIES TO GO BACK TO WEU
Turkish deputies, who walked out of the Western European
Union (WEU) Parliamentary Assembly last year, will go back
to the assembly for the upcoming Paris meeting scheduled for
June 3-6. The meeting of the assembly will take up various
reports on Bosnia, European intelligence policy and US-
European security. The parliamentary delegation from Turkey,
an associate member of the WEU, walked out of the meeting
last year when they were not given the right to vote in the
parliamentary assembly proper but only at commission level.
/All papers/
[06] TEN PKK MILITANTS KILLED IN SOUTHEAST
Ten PKK militants were killed, 46 caught and three turned
themselves in during security operations in the Southeast.
Six of the militants were killed in Sirnak, three in Bingol
and one in Siirt. The three who turned themselves in
surrendered to the security forces in Batman, Diyarbakir and
Sirnak. /All papers/
[07] ATATURK AWARD TO HOLBROOKE
At the "Cosmos Club" in Washington, the Ataturk Society of
America awarded Richard Holbrooke, the former assistant
secretary of state, with the "Ataturk Peace and Democracy
Award". US President Bill Clinton, Speaker of the House of
Representatives Newt Gingrich, and President of the Turkish
Constitutional Court Yekta Gungor Ozden, sent messages
congratulating Holbrooke and thanking ASA for it s
contribution to peace and democracy. Holbrooke noted that
Ataturk was among t he 100 most important leaders of the
century. "It is important, with respect to relations between
the US and Turkey, that the secular, democratic and liberal
traditions of Ataturk are sustained in Turkey. Turkey is the
most significant country in the world regarding its
strategic location and will remain so for the next 10 years"
he said. He concluded by saying that it was of the utmost
importance that close relations between Turkey and the US
should continue. /Hurriyet /
[08] ITALY TEMPORARILY LIFTS TRANSIT VISA RESTRICTIONS
Italy, as it does every year, has announced that it will
temporarily lift its transit visa restrictions for Turkish
citizens residing in the EU countries and Switzerland. The
exemption for transit visas will be valid all summer, from
May 20 to September 30. /All papers/
[09] GREECE NOW OFFERS KARDAK TOUR TO PARLIAMENTARIANS
After respective Turkish and Greek information tours for
journalists, Greece has now taken foreign parliamentarians
to the twin islets of Kardak, the Anatolia news agency
reported. The six parliamentarians' visit to the region was
arranged by Panayotis Sguridis, deputy spokesman of the
Greek Parliament, who is know n in Turkey for his meeting
with outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leader Abdullah
Ocalan, in Lebanon. The trip started from Istankoy (Kos) and
proceeded to Kardak. The six deputies, three from Canada and
three from the US, were in Athens for a North Atlantic
Assembly (NATO) meeting, where Turkish and Greek deputies
had a verbal clash when some Greek deputies claimed that
Turkey posed a threat to Greece's territorial integrity. The
Turkish deputies left the meeting in response.//
[10] US PUTS COBRAS ON HOLD
The news from Washington is that the Clinton administration
has put Turkey's order for Super Cobra helicopters on hold.
Turkey's Foreign Minister, Emre Gonensay, who is making a
visit to the US, has been told that the helicopter sale will
not go through "for the time being."
During a 45 minute talk with Secretary of State Warren
Christopher, Gonensay was told that the ten helicopters
would be held back until after the upcoming US elections. On
the other hand, the US has shown its support for Turkey in
connection with Aegean issues. Other matters taken up during
the current visit, include restructuring the mandate for the
"hammer" strike force based at Incirlik near Adana. /All
papers/
[11] NEW IRAQ PETROL DEAL ON THE WAY
Now that the UN has agreed to ease economic sanctions
against Iraq, and allow petrol sales to offset the cost of
buying food and other vital supplies, everything looks set
for the opening of the overland Kirkuk-Yumurtalik petrol
pipeline. There is also a possibility that the Iraqi crude
could be refined in Turkey, depending on the decisions of
the UN committee dealing with the situation. Iraq will be
allowed to sell only a specified amount of petrol on the
world market, but Turkey hopes that by getting a share of
the business, if only for the specified six month period,
losses from years of pipeline inactivity will be to some
extent made up. /Milliyet-Sabah/
[12] TENSION DURING ATHENS NATO MEETING
Remarks coming from President of the Greek parliament,
Apostllos Kaklamanlis, added to tension built up during
sessions of the NATO General Council in Athens which
finished yesterday. Kaklamanlis accused Turkey of
expansionist designs in the Aegean region, in response to
which the Turkish delegation, led by Turkish Ambassador to
Athens, Umit Pamir, left the meeting. Tensions were later
eased when Greek Prime Minister Kostas Simitis stood up for
his speech and spoke about the Greek desire for peace with
Turkey. /Cumhuriyet /
[13] TURKEY SHARING IN US ANTI-TERROR MEETING
Turkey will be represented at a meeting in Washington today
that will discuss anti-terror measures by chief of Turkey's
contra-terror units, Mehmet Eymur. Eymur will be there in
Washington with top experts from Germany and Israel to
examine issues stemming from the international "fight
gainst terrorism"-and Syr ia's support for terrorism will
figure prominently on the agenda. In fact, the whole of the
Middle East region will come under close inspection during
the mee ting sessions. /Milliyet/
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