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Turkish Press Review, 96-11-21
From: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>
CONTENTS
[01] TURKEY WILL VETO WEU USE OF NATO FORCES
[02] TURKEY REJECTS CONDITIONS ON MEDA CREDITS
[03] VICE PRESIDENT DISCUSSES WORLD BANK SUPPORT FOR TURKEY
[04] TERROR PARALYZES EDUCATION IN THE SOUTHEAST
[05] SECURITY FORCES KILL 30 PKK TERRORISTS
[06] OCALAN: "PKK IS THE KEY TO SOLVING THE IRAQ PROBLEM"
[07] TURKEY PUTS STATE BANKS ON SALE
[08] TURKEY TO SET UP NEW NUCLEAR PLANT
[09] NEW RETIREMENT DEAL FOR TURKISH WORKERS ABROAD
[10] TURKISH FOOTBALL MAINTAINS WINNING STREAK
[11] WORLD BUSINESSMEN IN ANTALYA SUMMIT
[12] SECOND INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS FORUM
[13] BLOW TO A RELIGIOUS ORGANISATION
TURKISH PRESS REVIEW
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1996
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning
[01] TURKEY WILL VETO WEU USE OF NATO FORCES
During a WEU Ministerial Council meeting in Ostende, Belgium,
Foreign Minister Tansu Ciller said that Turkey would veto the use
of NATO forces by the WEU because Greece wanted to block the
participation of countries that are not full members in the WEU
decision making process. At a weekly conference on Wednesday,
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Omer Akbel said that "until a new
decision is issued there will be no further progress towards the
use of NATO forces in WEU operations". Turkey is a "partner" in
the WEU, one step below full membership but one level above
"observer" status. /Sabah/
[02] TURKEY REJECTS CONDITIONS ON MEDA CREDITS
During a meeting on Tuesday with Hans Van Der Broek, European
Commission member in charge of foreign affairs, Foreign Minister
Tansu Ciller conveyed the Turkish decision to reject conditions
set for EU credits to Turkey within the framework of the MEDA
programme. The aid, aimed at helping Turkey set up a customs
union with the EU, would be conditional on improving human rights
in Turkey and spending the credits on projects in southeastern
Anatolia. Turkey's rejection of conditions on MEDA credits was
also conveyed by Uluc Ozulker, Turkey's EU permanent
representative, during a meeting of the Turkish-EU Joint
Parliamentary Commission on Tuesday. /Sabah/
[03] VICE PRESIDENT DISCUSSES WORLD BANK SUPPORT FOR TURKEY
Johannes Linn, World Bank (WB) vice president for Europe and
Central Asia, left Ankara on November 20 after cordial
discussions with Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan, Deputy Prime
Minister and Foreign Minister Tansu Ciller and other top level
officials, following visits to Istanbul and southeastern
Anatolia. Linn reviewed the progress of ongoing projects financed
by the WB and discussed possible areas of future support from the
bank. /Sabah/
[04] TERROR PARALYZES EDUCATION IN THE SOUTHEAST
More than 2,000 schools are closed this year in the eastern
regions of Turkey. Fearing for their lives, many teachers are
reluctant to continue their jobs in the region. The outlawed PKK
terrorist organization views teachers as legitimate targets. More
than 120 teachers have been brutally murdered by the PKK over the
last few years. Officials say more than 25 percent of the
teachers in the southeastern provinces no longer show up for
work. One possible solution to the problem is the establishment
of large regional boarding schools that can be better protected
against PKK attacks, say the security forces. /All papers/
[05] SECURITY FORCES KILL 30 PKK TERRORISTS
Security forces on Wednesday killed 30 PKK terrorists during
operations in several parts of the Southeast. A rebel group is
still surrounded near Ciraf mountain in Siirt where at least 19
PKK terrorists have been killed. /Sabah/
[06] OCALAN: "PKK IS THE KEY TO SOLVING THE IRAQ PROBLEM"
In an interview with the French daily Le Figaro, PKK leader
Abdullah Ocalan claimed that the PKK was the key to solving the
problems in Iraq, and denied that he was a pawn of Syria. Ocalan
repeated his proposals for a federation with Turkey, Iraq and
Iran./Hurriyet/
[07] TURKEY PUTS STATE BANKS ON SALE
Turkey has put three state banks on sale as the first part of the
government's ambitious privatization plan, the Privatization
Administration said. The fully state-owned Etibank has been
split into three banks to form Etibank, Denizbank and Anadolubank
to make the sell-off easier for buyers. The privatization of
Etibank and its two offshoots is seen as a key step to implement
the government's sell-off plans, which have raised $3.1 billion
since 1986. /All papers/
[08] TURKEY TO SET UP NEW NUCLEAR PLANT
Energy Minister Recai Kutan said that Turkey is to invite bids
next week for the construction of at least one nuclear plant. The
construction a 1,400 megawatt plant at the Mediterranean coastal
site of Akkuyu, near the port of Mesrin, is planned. /All papers/
[09] NEW RETIREMENT DEAL FOR TURKISH WORKERS ABROAD
In the third economic resources package put forward by the
Welfare Party (RP) led coalition government, Turkish workers in
Germany are included in a new deal leading to increased
retirement benefits.
Turkish workers abroad are invited to deposit one thousand marks
a month in the Ziraat Bank which will be used by the Treasury to
resolve current economic problems. In return, for deposits made
now, Turkish workers will have the right to benefit from a
"super" pension scheme in the future. In other words, premiums
paid now in the form of foreign currency will open the way to a
more secure retirement, says the government project. /Cumhuriyet/
[10] TURKISH FOOTBALL MAINTAINS WINNING STREAK
Leading national team Fenerbahce continues to hold on to its
winning streak in the European Champions league. With a 1-0 win
over Austria's Rapid Wien team in the 76th minute, Fenerbahce
moves into second place in the standings, boosting Turkey's
chances in the early rounds of play-offs. /All papers/
[11] WORLD BUSINESSMEN IN ANTALYA SUMMIT
The 86th session of the Executive Board of the International
Chamber of Commerce (ICC) hosted by the Turkish Union of Chambers
and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB) will begin in Antalya today.
Chairman of the ICC Executive Board Rahmi Koc will head the
session which will last two days. At the meeting, which will be
attended by over 100 businessmen from 30 countries, the "172nd
Session of the ICC Council" and a "Meeting of Permanent
Administrators of National Committees" will also be held. The
main theme of the meetings will be a programme called "IBCC-NET",
which foresees the establishment of a computer network between
Chambers of Commerce, to facilitate especially exports and
imports. /Hurriyet/
[12] SECOND INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS FORUM
The Second International Business Forum was hosted by the Turkish
Private Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association (MUSIAD)
during which the "establishment of a global business network
between Muslim countries" was discussed. Prime Minister Necmettin
Erbakan, MUSIAD Chairman Erol Yarar and representatives of many
other countries attended the forum. /Cumhuriyet/
[13] BLOW TO A RELIGIOUS ORGANISATION
A fanatical religious group responsible for kidnapping the son of
a Jewish businessman for ransom has been dealt a severe blow by
the police, it was revealed yesterday. Istanbul Director of
Security Kemal Yazicioglu, in a press conference he held
yesterday said that a group of religious extremists hiding behind
the Islamic religon had formed themselves into a terror
organisation. Noting that it was impossible for Islam to have any
ties with terrorism, he added that eight members of an
organisation called 'Ceysullah' (Allah's soldiers) had been
arrested on suspicion of kidnapping the son of the businessman
who was later saved and returned to his family following a
security operation by the Istanbul police. Yazicioglu stated that
the kidnaping didnot stem from any ideology but was an attempt to
extort ransom money for buying new weapons. It was also
understood that the group had been formed and trained in
Afghanistan to destroy the present secular constitutional system
and replace it by a theocratic order./Sabah/
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