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Turkish Press Review, 97-07-29
From: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>
CONTENTS
[01] TURKEY TO CONTINUE SCRUTINY OF TURKISH MINORITY IN BULGARIA
[02] PARTIES AGREE ON CENSUS BILL
[03] NSC MINUTES TO BE PARTIALLY REVEALED
[04] MEETING POSITIVE, BUT NO RESULT
[05] TURKEY AND TRNC TO HOLD TALKS SOON
[06] 29 TERRORISTS KILLED IN THE SOUTHEAST
[07] TURKEY CALLS FOR END TO SYRIAN SUPPORT FOR TERRORISM
[08] TURKEY-ISRAEL FREE TRADE AGREEMENT DELEGATION IN IZMIR
[09] SALOMON BROTHERS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT TURKISH ECONOMY
[10] ARMENIANS CALLING FOR DIALOGUE
[11] ANTI-DRUGS DRIVE
[12] BRIEFING ON REACTIONARY ACTIVITIES
[13] MONEY PROGRAMME INITIATIVES
[14] GIANT PROJECT IN EDUCATION
[15] WORLD BANK CREDIT FOR TURKEY
[16] ALLIANCE AGAINST TURKEY
[17] GREEK INTELLIGENCE TO MONITOR TRNC AND ANKARA
[18] MINISTRY TO RESTORE NEMRUT DAG'S STONE SCULPTURES
TURKISH PRESS REVIEW
JULY 29, 1997
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this
morning
[01] TURKEY TO CONTINUE SCRUTINY OF TURKISH MINORITY IN BULGARIA
The Bulgarian President arrived yesterday in Ankara for a three-day
visit upon the official invitation of his counterpart, Suleyman
Demirel. During the visit, Bulgarian President Stoyanov is expected
to sign a number of bilateral agreements, related to commercial and
military cooperation, tourism, environmental and nuclear safety.
At the welcoming ceremony for his Bulgarian counterpart, President
Demirel said that during this visit they would have the chance to
solve common problems in a neighbourly and friendly atmosphere. They
also planned to review the potential for cooperative efforts in
various fields, he said. Stoyanov, for his part, recalled that Turkey
had backed Bulgaria in its bid for membership in NATO and thanked his
neighbour for its support. /Hurriyet-Sabah/
[02] PARTIES AGREE ON CENSUS BILL
Except for the Welfare Party, all the parliamentary political parties
reached a consensus on Monday on the draft bill for holding a census.
The draft also stipulatesa renewal of the voter registration lists.
Under the agreement, the renewal of the voters' list will be completed
within seven months at the latest, making it unlikely that early
elections are held before 1998. /Milliyet/
[03] NSC MINUTES TO BE PARTIALLY REVEALED
Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Ismet Sezgin said yesterday
that a part of the minutes of the National Security Council (NSC)
meeting would be made public. The move was designed to remove
misunderstandings in the public related to recent controversies
concerning the police and the Naval forces. /All papers/
[04] MEETING POSITIVE, BUT NO RESULT
A meeting between the leaders of the two communities on Cyprus
yesterday was described afterwards as "positive" but observers noted
that no real results were reached. The two leaders, Rauf Denktas of
the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), and Glafkos Clerides
from the Greek Cypriot community spoke with each other for seventy
minutes. /Sabah/
[05] TURKEY AND TRNC TO HOLD TALKS SOON
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Omer Akbel announced on Monday that Turkey
and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus will hold talks in the
near future, however the date has not yet been set. Akbel said that
during the meeting, recent developments related to the Cyprus question
will be taken in hand.
On the other hand, the Greek Cypriot Foreign Ministry has set up a
body to monitor moves jointly initiated by Turkey and Northern Cyprus,
the Anatolia news agency reported.
[06] 29 TERRORISTS KILLED IN THE SOUTHEAST
In operations in Turkey's southeastern provinces, 29 PKK terrorists
were killed during the last week. Five terrorists were captured, and
five others, including one Iranian, surrendered.
During the weekend, PKK terrorists launched an attack against a
military vehicle in the Almus district of Tokat in the Black Sea
region, and two officers were wounded in the attack. PKK terrorists
also kidnapped nine citizens in Hakkari, Yuksekova.
/Milliyet-Hurriyet/
[07] TURKEY CALLS FOR END TO SYRIAN SUPPORT FOR TERRORISM
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Omer Akbel reiterated on Monday Turkey's
position that Syria must end support for terrorism before tensions
between the two countries can be eased. Today's papers also report
that Syria has set up technical equipment to facilitate MED-TV
broadcasts to Turkish provinces close to the Syrian border.
/Milliyet/
[08] TURKEY-ISRAEL FREE TRADE AGREEMENT DELEGATION IN IZMIR
A delegation from Israel has arrived in Turkey to examine trade and
investment possibilities. A related agreement was signed between
Turkey and Israel in March 1996. /All papers/
[09] SALOMON BROTHERS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT TURKISH ECONOMY
According to the Salomon Brothers rating company, the new government
set up in Turkey will have a positive impact on improving the economic
situation in the country. The company predicted that inflation this
year will go no higher that 85 percent, and will decrease to 80
percent "or lower" in 1998. Positive developments with respect to
foreign exchange rates are also expected by the company. /All papers/
[10] ARMENIANS CALLING FOR DIALOGUE
The Armenian administration is showing signs of wanting to restore
ties with Turkey. Officials have indicated that the government in
Erivan, the capital, would like to increase dialogue with Turkey in a
move to improve the current situation. Ties with Armenia have long
been strained over a number of pressing issues, but now Armenia looks
set to put matters straight with Turkey after years of avoiding
controversial matters. /All papers/
[11] ANTI-DRUGS DRIVE
Special anti-drugs teams operating in and around Sakarya, Sivas and
Yozgat have found and seized large amounts of heroin hidden in loads
of corn and nuts. In the Diyarbakir and Sanliurfa regions, police
have confiscated 67 kilos of heroin and arrested two suspects.
/Cumhuriyet/
[12] BRIEFING ON REACTIONARY ACTIVITIES
The Chief of Staff will be holding a briefing on reactionary
activities both inside and outside Turkey. The briefing, planned for
ten o'clock this Tuesday morning, will review and evaluate reactionary
threats against Turkey, cover modernization progress in the armed
forces and regional developments as they affect Turkey. /Sabah/
[13] MONEY PROGRAMME INITIATIVES
President of the Central Bank, Gazi Ercel, and Treasury chief Mahfi
Egilmez will meet tomorrow to sign a new "money programme" protocol as
a start to new efforts to rescue the economy. The protocol will cover
medium and long term low interest rate policy, credit facilities,
restrictions on CB financial resources and Treasury debt repayments to
the Central bank. /Sabah/
[14] GIANT PROJECT IN EDUCATION
During an "Education Summit" yesterday headed by Prime Minister Mesut
Yilmaz and attended by Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, State
Ministers Ozkan, Taner and Asik, Finance Minister Temizel and National
Education Minister Ulugbay, a reform package aimed at the year 2000
was discussed. According to the package, TL 100 trillion will be
provided for education annually. All schools will be equipped with
computers. /Milliyet/
[15] WORLD BANK CREDIT FOR TURKEY
Officials of the World Bank yesterday said that they had approved
extending $1.5 billion in credits to Turkey initially and that this
amount would reach $5 billion in three years' time. However in order
to fully utilize the credit, there will be a condition which calls for
concrete steps in structural reforms yet to be undertaken by Turkey.
/Milliyet/
[16] ALLIANCE AGAINST TURKEY
It is claimed that Syria, Greece and the Greek Cypriot communities are
in alliance against Turkey in order to close Turkey's trade door with
the Middle East. According to the International Relations Agency
(INAF), the plan was prepared by Syrian President Hafiz Esad. The
plan aims to prevent the exportation of Turkish goods to the Middle
East, but to transport European textile goods to Greek Cyprus via
Greece to be marketted in Syria. /Cumhuriyet/
[17] GREEK INTELLIGENCE TO MONITOR TRNC AND ANKARA
Greek Cyprus has formed a body to monitor closely the latest
diplomatic developments between Turkey and Turkish Cyprus. The new
body created by the Greek Cypriot Foreign Ministry will follow every
move made jointly by Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern
Cyprus (TRNC) and will prepare reports on their actions for the Greek
Foreign Ministry and Greek Intelligence.
According to the International Relations Agency (INAF), a Turkish
Cypriot agent, Armenian Manuk Somakyan who speaks fluent Turkish, has
been brought in to head the new intelligence agency. /Sabah/
[18] MINISTRY TO RESTORE NEMRUT DAG'S STONE SCULPTURES
The giant sculptured stone heads at Nemrut Dag (Mount Nemrut) in
southeast Turkey will be restored to their original places and new
regulations will be put into effect to preserve the site, the Anatolia
news agency reported yesterday. The 2,000 year-old sculptures were
erected on the orders of Antiochus, the ruler of the Commagene
kingdom, as a monument to himself at the top of a 2,000 meter (6,000
ft.) high peak near Adiyaman.
END
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