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Turkish Press Review, 97-10-01Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>CONTENTS
TURKISH PRESS REVIEWDIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION,OFFICE OF PRIME MINISTER01.10.97Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning[01] BONN BACKS EU MEMBERSHIP FOR TURKEYGerman leaders extended conditional support yesterday to Turkey's bid to become a member of the European Union (EU). Chancellor Helmut Kohl and Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel told Turkish Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz, on an official visit to Germany, that Bonn backs eventual membership for Turkey in the EU but first expects Ankara to make progress in resolving key domestic and foreign policy problems."Kohl declared that he supported the goal of later Turkish membership in the EU" said Kohl's spokesman Peter Hausmann in a statement after a meeting between Yilmaz and Kohl. "In doing so, Kohl assumes that Turkey will follow calls by the EU to make its own contribution toward reaching this goal" said the statement which stressed that Kohl firmly viewed Turkey as a part of Europe. Yilmaz told reporters he was very satisfied with his talks in Bonn and that he was convinced the 15-nation EU would agree at its December Luxembourg summit to intensify contacts aimed at Turkish membership. "This is a turning point in our relations with the EU" he said. Yilmaz said his government was fully aware of the "partly justified" international criticism of Turkey and said Ankara was working to resolve problem areas. He said that Ankara would continue its fight against the PKK terrorist organization. Aside from talks on EU membership, bilateral economic issues were another focus of the visit and Yilmaz met German business leaders in Bonn. Germany is Turkey's biggest trade partner in the world. Turkey and Germany signed an agreement for the establishment of a university in Istanbul, which will teach all its courses in German. The agreement was signed by German Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Peter Hartmann and Turkish Ambassador Volkan Vural, in the presence of Yilmaz and Kohl. Yilmaz also met with Christian Social Union Parliamentary Group Chairman Michael Glos at the Turkish Embassy yesterday. /All papers/ [02] WATER SUMMIT IN ISTANBULA two-day conference on "World Water: Financing for the Future", organized by the International Herald Tribune opened in Istanbul yesterday. The conference focuses on how radical changes are needed in the provision of water so as to meet the increasing demands of the world's population and socioeconomic development. President Suleyman Demirel made the opening keynote address. "Water and life are inseparable" he stated, "and to invest in water is to invest in humankind". Since half of the world's population will experience increasing water shortages in the coming decades, the problem can only be tackled with mutual understanding and international cooperation, not rivalry and competition, he said.Turkey is involved in several projects, he added, which include the creation of a "peace-pipeline to Middle Eastern nations" and a "3 Stage Plan", which includes the export of Manavgat water. More than 200 delegates from at least 20 countries are participating in the conference. /Cumhuriyet/ [03] TURKISH FORCES GAIN CONTROL ALONG IRAQI BORDERThe PKK terrorist organization, which was forced to call off its so-called "Kurdish National Congress" after the Turkish army began another cross-border operation in northern Iraq, has called on all Kurdish factions to gather in opposition to one of the two biggest Iraqi Kurdish parties, the Mesud Barzani-led Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). Reports based on Turkish security sources emphasized that PKK bases in northern Iraq have been "levelled to the ground" during the cross-border operation while KDP peshmergas have cleared the area completely of the separatists.Meanwhile, KDP radio announced that the first step of the anti-PKK operation was completed successfully. The radio said that the PKK camps in the Matin and Bervari regions had been captured and the separatist organization members had escaped to an area under the control of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), which is led by Celal Talabani. So far, 342 separatists have been killed and a total of 355 taken out of action. The operation is still going on, especially in the Zap region. /All papers/ [04] MCCURRY: "S-300s ARE SERIOUSLY TROUBLING TO THE US"White House Spokesman Michael McCurry reiterated his support for the State Department's view that the disputes in the Aegean between Greece and Turkey were not limited to the controversy concerning the sovereignty of the Kardak_Imia rocks. "Both sides have acknowledged that they have disputes that extend beyond the territorial disputes in the Aegean -Cyprus, for example- and we are encouraging them to continue a very active dialogue in the spirit of two NATO allies who ought to be able to amicably resolve differences" McCurry said.McCurry reiterated the US administration policy that the introduction of Russian-made S-300 missiles into Cyprus would not contribute to stability and thus would constitute a "seriously troubling" factor. "We look negatively on things that would increase tension and have publicly said so. We have been working with all the parties on Cyprus to try to ease tensions, create an environment in which we can work together and try to move their dialogue forward" McCurry added. /Hurriyet/ [05] PIRINCLIK BASE IN DIYARBAKIR CLOSEDThe 41-year old American-Turkish Pirinclik Base near Diyarbakir, known as NATO's frontier post for monitoring the former Soviet Union and the Middle East, was completely closed on September 30. The 280 Turkish workers employed on the base have been removed. The Seventh Turkish Army Corps has now started to use the area as one of its bases. /All papers/[06] VISA CARD TO PROMOTE TURKEYVisa will promote Turkey to 30 million card owners. The project, planned for Holland, France, Italy, London, Sweden, Israel and Portugal, will be applied between October 1997 and December 1998 under the name of "Turkey Welcomes Visa". Within this period of time 21,000 world banks which cooperate with Visa will promote Turkey. Banks will post brochures to more than 30 million visa card owners all over the world about Turkey together with their account advice.Turkish Airlines is the main sponsor of the project. Within the framework of the project, visa card owners will have free tickets to Turkey and they can also enjoy special offers in more than 100 hotels, restaurants and shops. /Hurriyet-Milliyet/ [07] NATO MEDAL TO TURKISH PERSONNELNihat Kilic, who is working as a civilian in NATO, has been presented with a top "Services Award". It is announced that Kilic won the medal with his successful services between 23 December 1992 and 20 December 1995. Nihat Kilic retired on 1 November 1996 from NATO. /Hurriyet/[08] THREE TURKISH FISHERMEN TAKEN HOSTAGEIt is reported that a Turkish fishing boat sailing in international waters around Gaidaros island were shot at by Greek boats last Sunday, and that Turkish fishermen on the boats were taken hostages. With the condition that they would be set free only in return for 200,000 dracha.Turkish officials said that they had already been in contact with Greek officials regarding the matter. /Milliyet-Cumhuriyet/ [09] DENKTAS SENDS LETTER TO ANNANPresident of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Rauf Denktas has sent a letter to UN General Secretary Kofi Annan calling on him to prevent the deployment of Russian-made S-300 missiles on the island. Denktas noted that Russia, as a permanent member of the Security Council, had the responsibility of ensuring peace on the island. He added that if Greek Cypriots do actually deploy the missiles, the political atmosphere in the island will be effected negatively.[10] SYRIA-TURKEY BORDER GATE OPENING FOR TRADEThe Akcakale border gate with Syria is to be opened to trade later this week, the Anatolia news agency reported on Monday. Traders will be allowed to cross the border up to four times a month and be involved in trade worth $200,000. Sanliurfa Governor Sahabettin Harput said the Akcakale border gate was intended to be an alternative to the heavily used Habur Border Gate.[11] TURKEY EYES 10-YEAR MARK EUROBONDTurkey could launch a large mark Eurobond in October, bankers said yesterday. They said it could issue a deal for up to 1 billion marks ($570 million) and was looking at a 10-year maturity. Demand for Turkish bonds has tradititonally been strong in the German market due to large amounts of expatriate Turkish funds in Germany and favourable bond tax treatment. Turkey last tapped the Eurobond market on September 16 with a well-received $600 million 10-year bond. Launched to yield 3.75 percentage points over US Treasury notes, the paper was trading at 3.40 over on Monday. /All papers/END Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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