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Turkish Press Review, 98-05-13
From: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>
13.05.98
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning
CONTENTS
[01] DEMIREL RETURNS HOME
[02] SEZGIN: "THE AEGEAN SHOULD BE A SEA OF PEACE"
[03] NAVAL FORCES COMMANDER TO ATHENS
[04] COUNCIL OF MINISTERS APPROVES 'BLUE FLOW' PROJECT
[05] TANER: "WE DO NOT NEED AN AGREEMENT"
[06] AKIN BIRDAL SHOT
[07] US AND GERMANY CONDEMN ATTACK ON BIRDAL
[08] KINKEL: "WE ARE DEEPLY SORROWFUL"
[09] BRITAIN CONDEMNS BIRDAL ATTACK
[10] 'MY TURKEY PARTY' FOUNDED
[11] SALIH YILDIRIM IN WASHINGTON
[12] TURKEY OPENS ADVISOR TENDER FOR THY SELL-OFF
[13] IS BANK SHARES IN LONDON EXCHANGE
[14] ATATURK ON FRENCH TV
[15] POLICE VEHICLE HIT BY MINE
[01] DEMIREL RETURNS HOME
President Suleyman Demirel, who attended the 5th Economic
Cooperation Organization (ECO) Summit in Kazakhstan, returned home last
night. Demirel also visited Cimkent and Turkhistan together with his
Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev yesterday. Later Demirel and
Nazarbayev went to Ahmet Yesevi International Turk-Kazakh University.
In a speech at the university Demirel said that unity, friendship and
love were the principles of the Turkish world which spread from from
Adriatic Sea to the Great Wall of China. /Cumhuriyet/
[02] SEZGIN: "THE AEGEAN SHOULD BE A SEA OF PEACE"
Defense Minister Ismet Sezgin, attending the Western European Union
(WEU) Defense Ministers meeting on the Greek island of Rhodes, gave a
statement to Greek daily newspaper Ta Nea saying that disputes between
Turkey and Greece should be solved through dialogue and good will. He
added that he did not believe that S-300 missiles would be deployed in
to Greek Cyprus, risking further tension in Turkish-Greek relations.
Sezgin added that the Greek Cypriot administration could not, in fact,
represent the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). /Sabah/
[03] NAVAL FORCES COMMANDER TO ATHENS
Naval Forces Commander Admiral Salim Dervisoglu will go to Athens
tomorrow in order to attend a Western European Union (WEU) Naval Forces
Commanders meeting. It is expected that during the visit Dervisoglu
will meet his Greek counterpart. /Sabah/
[04] COUNCIL OF MINISTERS APPROVES 'BLUE FLOW' PROJECT
An agreement related to the 'Blue Flow' project was approved by the
Turkish Council of Ministers yesterday. According to the project,
Russian natural gas will be transported to Turkey through a pipeline to
be laid underneath the Black Sea. The pipeline will be constructed by
RAO Gazprom, a Russian company, in the territories of the Russian
Federation and by a consortium established with RAO Gazprom's main
construction firm and Turkish companies in Turkish territories. The
initial international agreement for this project was signed between
Turkey and Russia on December 15, 1997, in Ankara. /Milliyet/
[05] TANER: "WE DO NOT NEED AN AGREEMENT"
The IMF delegation has completed its annual check in Turkey and has
presented its report. While the IMF delegation wanted reforms to be
made, Head of the IMF Turkish Desk, Martin Hardy, pointed out that
financial discipline should further continue and said: "The best
service to be made by this government will be to reduce the rate of
inflation". State Minister Gunes Taner said for his part that Turkey
had foreign exchange reserves worth $36 billion and added: "We do not
need an agreement with the IMF".
The IMF delegation, which has been making contacts in Turkey for
two weeks, met again with State Minister Taner yesterday. Following the
meeting, Taner noted that the delegation had completed its first report.
Taner stated that in the IMF report, it was pointed out that the rate of
inflation should be reduced and that reforms including especially social
security reform should be realized as soon as possible. /Milliyet/
[06] AKIN BIRDAL SHOT
Leading human rights activist and Human Rights Association (IHD)
Chairman Akin Birdal was shot and seriously wounded by two unidentified
gunmen at his office in Ankara yesterday. Birdal was rushed to a nearby
hospital and underwent surgery for over four hours when six bullets were
removed from his body. Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz condemned the attack
and pledged immediate action to arrest the attackers. "I am deeply
sorrowful and I condemn the attack. The assailants will be caught as
soon as possible". Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit called the
attack "an ugly and grievous incident". Parliament Speaker Hikmet Cetin
said he "strongly condemned" the attack. /All papers/
[07] US AND GERMANY CONDEMN ATTACK ON BIRDAL
The US Administration has condemned the attack on Akin Birdal
yesterday with an official statement. US State Department Spokesman
James Rubin said in a statement that the US administration harshly
condemned that attack on Akin Birdal and called upon Turkish officials
to bring all those responsible to justice. Rubin said: "The US
administration supports all non-governmental organizations, which play
an important role in a democratic state and calls upon the Turkish
government to provide an environment in which these kinds of
organizations can further develop". /Milliyet/
[08] KINKEL: "WE ARE DEEPLY SORROWFUL"
Head of the Greens Group in the European Parliament, German
Parliamentarian Claudia Roth, also condemned the attack on Birdal.
Delivering a speech at a session of the European Parliament's General
Council, Roth called for the immediate arrest and trial of those who
carried out the attack on Birdal. Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister
Klaus Kinkel expressed his sorrow over the attack on Birdal. A German
Foreign Ministry Spokesman said that Kinkel wanted the attackers to be
arrested as soon as possible. /Milliyet/
[09] BRITAIN CONDEMNS BIRDAL ATTACK
British Ambassador to Ankara, David Logan condemned yesterday's
attack on the chairman of the Human Rights Association (IHD), Akin
Birdal, in a letter to IHD General Secretary Hamza Ucar. In his letter
Logan said that they believed that Turkey would continue with efforts to
improve human rights despite such brutal attacks. The Belgian
Ambassador to Ankara also condemned the attack. /Sabah/
[10] 'MY TURKEY PARTY' FOUNDED
An application to set up a new party, the My Turkey Party (TP), was
delivered to the Interior Ministry on Monday. The party's chairman is
the former chairman of the Independent Artisans' and Tradesmen's
Association, Durmus Ali Eker. /All papers/
[11] SALIH YILDIRIM IN WASHINGTON
State Minister Salih Yildirim, who is currently in Washington, said
during a press conference with Turkish journalists that institutions
such as the World Bank, the US Trade and Development Agency (TDA), the
Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the US Eximbank were
interested in financing various social development projects related to
the Southeast Anatolian Project (GAP). Yildirim and his delegation of
senior bureaucrats will leave the US on May 21 after a tour of the
Tennessee Valley Authority and similar projects in Arizona, New York and
California. /All papers/
[12] TURKEY OPENS ADVISOR TENDER FOR THY SELL-OFF
Turkey has launched a tender to select a consultant for the
privatization of Turkish Airlines (THY), the country's Privatization
Administration (OIB) said. In a statement, the OIB said invitations had
been sent to eight candidates for the project to advise on the
international and domestic offering of a 25 % stake in the airline this
year. It asked the eight companies to present their bids by June 1.
Subsequently, a shortlist will be prepared. /All papers/
[13] IS BANK SHARES IN LONDON EXCHANGE
The latest bulletin issued by the Istanbul Stock Exchange (IMKB)
says that Is Bank shares, brokered by the Bank of New York, can be
exchanged on the London Stock Exchange. /Miliyet/
[14] ATATURK ON FRENCH TV
A television programme presented by FredeCric Mitterrand, a
historical programmes specialist on the France-2 TV channel, praised
Ataturk and highlighted aspects of his life and successes. The
programme, which lasted more than one and a half hours, also commented
that other Islamic countries must follow Ataturk principles .
/Hurriyet/
[15] POLICE VEHICLE HIT BY MINE
A vehicle carrying a special Turkish police team was hit by a mine
near Elazig yesterday evening. One policeman died and four were
injured. /Hurriyet/
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