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Turkish Press Review, 97-07-10Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>CONTENTS
TURKISH PRESS REVIEWJULY 10, 1997Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning.[01] ANKARA CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC AFTER TURCO-GREEK ACCORDAnkara is cautiously optimistic following the U.S-supported agreement reached between Greece and Turkey on Tuesday in Madrid at the NATO summit. The agreement covers a set of principles designed to improve the testy relations between the two countries and includes a commitment to settle disputes by peaceful means.Following the agreement between Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem and his Greek counterpart Theodoros Pangalos, Cem said at a press conference that Turkey has certain expectations of Greece. Greece should refrain from using discourteous remarks against Turkey, he said, and should obey the rules and principles of NATO./Cumhuriyet/ [02] UN CYPRUS TALKS BEGIN WITH GOODWILLThe leaders of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities on Cyprus met on Wednesday in New York in an effort to revive talks aimed at finding a federal settlement to the 34-year-old intercommunal problem on the eastern Mediterranean island.U.S. President Bill Clinton's special envoy to Cyprus, Richard Holbrooke, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's special advisor to Cyprus, Diego Cordovez, and Cordovez' deputy, Gustav Feissel, were also present at a dinner following the talks./CUmhuriyet/Hurriyet_Sabah [03] US:"NEW BEGINNING FOR TURKEY AND GREECE"The U.S. administration, buoyed by positive statements that emerged from a Madrid NATO summit meeting of Turkish, Greek and Amarican foreign ministers, did not hesitate to describe the developments as a hopeful sign of a "new begining."During a meeting hosted by U.S. Secretary of State Madeline Albright, the Greek Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos and Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem reached "a convergence of views on a basis for promoting better relations," according to James Foley, the U.S. State Department deputy spokesman. The foreign ministers' meeting was followed by discussions between Turkish President Suleyman Demirel and Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis, again held within the framework of meetings held during the NATO Madrid summit./All papers/ [04] DEMIREL GETS BUSY AT MADRID SUMMITPresident Suleyman Demirel affirmed Wednesday that "Turkey attaches particular importance to the possibility of regional cooperation under the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council," during his address before the Madrid gathering of allied and partner heads of state and government.Speaking also at the signing ceremony of the NATO-Ukraine Charter, Demirel called Ukraine "a key player in the whole Eurasian security architecture" and added that NATO's 'external adaptation" would have been incomplete if the Ukrainian dimension had been missing. Before leaving for Ankara Demirel spoke to journalists saying that he had received positive messages from the participants of the meeting about Turkey's image. Evaluating the summit Demirel said that it had been very fruitful and that he had had very good talks with the co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group (US and France) for resolving the Azerbaijan conflict (in Nagorno-Karabakh). Demirel returned home later on Wednesday./Milliyet/ [05] BULGARIA TO SIGN MINORITIES AGREEMENTBulgarian Prime Minister Ivan Kostov announced on Wednesday that his country will sign the International Minorities Agreement and that Bulgaria's leading party was determined to realize this goal. Kostov, saying that President Petar Stoyanov was expected to meet the political parties' representatives in Parliament next week, stated that Bulgaria would then present its approach to the minority concept.When Bulgaria signs the agreement, the Turkish people living in that country will consequently have their national minority status recognized. Their cultural, political and social rights will be guaranteed by the Bulgarian government./Cumhuriyet/ [06] 40 TERRORISTS KILLED IN SOUTHEASTSecurity forces have killed 40 terrorists from the out-lawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) over the last four days in several clashes in the southeastern part of Turkey. The Emergency Rule Regional Governor's office said on Wednesday in a statement that the clashes took place in the eastern provinces of Van and Bitlis, and the southestern provinces of Hakkari, Sirnak, Diyarbakir, Mardin and Tunceli. Operations are still underway to capture terrorists in the region, officials said./Sabah/Hurriyet_[07] REBELLION QUELLED AT METRISThe quelling of the Tuesday night rebellion in Metris Prison ended with five people dead and ten wounded. The revolt, started on Tuesday night, ended early Wednesday morning, when security forces stormed the section of the prison where the revolt took place. The dead and wounded, who were taken to Sagmalcilar State Hospital, were all prisoners - either convicts or those awaiting trial.Justice Minister Oltan Sungurlu stressed from Ankara that the revolt had no political angle to it./Milliyet/Sabah_ [08] QATAR, TURKEY CLOSE TO GAS DEALSQatar and Turkey are close to concluding an agreement for the supply of one million tons a year of liquefied natural gas (LNG) for 25 years from mid-1999, officials said. A Qatari delegation, led by the undersecretary at the Ministry of Finance, Economy and Trade and chairman of Ras Laffan LNG Company, Youssef Hussein Kamal, left for Ankara on Monday, to finalize the deal, officials said./All papers/[09] SMALL BUSINESSES IN TURKEY LOOKING BETTERAccording to a report by the British Grant Thornton International group, small and medium size businesses in Turkey are looking forward to a brighter future than their European colleagues. The GTI report points out that in comparison to similar small businesses in Europe, Malta and Switzerland, Turkish small and medium size businesses are more optimistic about the future and expect more from future developments. /Milliyet/[10] RACIST ANTI-TURK ATTACK IN GERMANYFour German skin-heads attacked a 25 year old Turkish street buffet owner in the town of Potsdam. After threatening to burn down the buffet, the skin-heads tried to wreck the buffet, which was defended by the Turkish owner. During the fight which followed, one of the skin-heads, a 15 year old youth was seriously wounded in the chest. Police officials later arrested the Turk, who has not been named, and are investigating the attack. /Sabah/[11] TURKISH DOCTOR AWARDEDOne of the world's most prestigious awards for medical advancement, the "Electra" award, has been presented to Turkish brain surgeon Ali Zirh.Awarded only once every four years, Zirh has been given the award for his work on brain malfunctions and his discoveries on the workings of the brain. The accomplishments of Zirh in these specialised areas of medical practice are particular interest to individuals suffering from Parkison's disease. /Sabah/ [12] GOVERNMENT PROGRAMME TO BE DISCUSSEDToday, discussions will be held regarding the 55th government programme read out by Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz last Monday at the General Council of the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TGNA). A vote of confidence in the programme will be held on 12 July. /Milliyet/[13] LETTER FROM YILMAZ TO EU MEMBERSPrime Minister Mesut Yilmaz has sent a letter to the prime ministers of 15 members of the European Union (EU) noting that the 55th government established following the resignation of the Refahyol coalition was determined to move closer to full EU membership. In his letter, Yilmaz said that Turkey's relations with the EU dated back 30 years and that the new government was determined to achieve full EU membership. /Cumhuriyet/[14] BURNS STATEMENT ON FRIGATES TO BE GIVEN TO TURKEYUS State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns said in a press conference yesterday that the US administration believed that all military commitments made to Turkey and Greece should be carried out. Burns pointed out that they would work very hard in Congress in the coming term regarding the frigates and Cobra helicopters, which have been promised, but not yet given to Turkey. Further, Senator Sarbanes, member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who previously blocked the frigate agreement to Turkey, has withdrawn his opposition to the deal.Meanwhile, the US administration believes that the Yilmaz government policy will bring new stability to Turkey. US State Secretary Madeleine Albright sent a congratulatory message to Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem last week without even awaiting the result of the upcoming vote of confidence in the new Turkish government. /Hurriyet/ [15] PEACE CONCERT IN BERGAMAThe Orchestra of the Greek EPT 3 Radio-Television Channel will give a "Peace Concert" on 12 July in the Bergama District of Izmir. The concert, organized under the slogan "The Aegean should be a Sea of Peace" will be held at the ancient Asklepion Theatre. Bergama Mayor Sefa Taskin said: "We hope that everyone who supports peace in the Aegean and in the world will come to Bergama on Saturday". /Cumhuriyet/[16] WORLD TOURISM MEETINGThe 12th General Council Meeting of the World Tourism Organization will be held in Turkey on 17-24 October. Tourism ministers, official delegations and sector representatives from 133 countries will participate in the meeting. A written statement made by the Tourism Ministry said that President Suleyman Demirel will make an official opening speech at the general council meeting. /Cumhuriyet/[17] 50.YIL HIGH SCHOOL: WORLD CHAMPIONThe Ankara 50.Yil High School defeated Peru with a score of 3-0 in the World High Schools Football Championship held in Lima, Peru and became the World Champion. Representatives from 16 countries participated in the championship. /Hurriyet/END Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |