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Turkish Press Review, 02-10-30Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr><LINK href="http://www.byegm.gov.tr_yayinlarimiz_chr_pics_css/tpr.css" rel=STYLESHEET type=text/css> <map name="FPMap1"> </map> <map name="FPMap1"></map> Press & Information Turkish Press Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning30.10.200279TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY CELEBRATED SEZER: “IT IS THE PRESIDENT’S ROLE TO APPOINT A PRIME MINISTER” GUREL: “TURKEY CAN’T ACCEPT A CONDITIONAL DATE FOR EU ACCESSION TALKS” OZKOK: “TURKEY’S POLITICAL LEADERSHIP WILL DECIDE ON A POSSIBLE IRAQ OPERATION” YILMAZ: “TURKEY MAY GET A CONDITIONAL DATE AT THE COPENHAGEN SUMMIT” CEM: “THE YTP WILL SHAPE TURKEY’S FUTURE” FISCHER: “TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP IS IMPORTANT TO US” BLAIR, SCHROEDER FEEL HEAT AFTER DECLARING SUPPORT FOR TURKEY TALABANI: “IN CERTAIN SITUATIONS, TURKEY COULD INTERVENE IN IRAQ’S DOMESTIC AFFAIRS” FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS... ESDP AND THE CYPRUS ISSUE BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI (STAR) DISCUSSIONS AT HOME AND ABROAD BY CUNEYT ARCAYUREK (CUMHURIYET)CONTENTS
[01] 79TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY CELEBRATEDThe 79th anniversary of the declaration of the Republic by the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, was celebrated with great enthusiasm yesterday throughout the country, in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), and at Turkey’s missions abroad. The first ceremony of the day in the capital Ankara began early in the morning at Anitkabir, Ataturk’s mausoleum, with the attendance of President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, Parliament Speaker Omer Izgi, Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok, political party leaders, members of the Cabinet and other high-level officials. The celebrations continued throughout the day with scores of ceremonies across the width and breadth of the nation. /All Papers/[02] SEZER: “IT IS THE PRESIDENT’S ROLE TO APPOINT A PRIME MINISTER”Under the Constitution, it is the president’s task to appoint the prime minister, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer told reporters yesterday at a reception marking the 79th anniversary of the foundation of the Republic of Turkey. When asked about Justice and Development Party (AKP) leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent statement that members of the AKP would select a prime minister, Sezer said, “The Constitution assigns the power and role of appointing a prime minister to the president, not to persons not even eligible to be elected as a deputies.” Though many polls indicate that the AKP will win next Sunday’s elections, Erdogan himself has been ruled ineligible to run for deputy, which could produce an unprecedented situation should the polls prove true. Article 104, section B of Turkey’s Constitution specifies that the president has the duty “to appoint the prime minister and to accept his or her resignation.” /All papers/[03] GUREL: “TURKEY CAN’T ACCEPT A CONDITIONAL DATE FOR EU ACCESSION TALKS”Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sukru Sina Gurel said yesterday that Turkey wouldn’t hesitate to reject a “conditional” date for its EU accession talks if the EU makes such an offer. “Turkey has taken swift, giant steps to comply with the Copenhagen criteria,” Gurel stressed. “Turkey deserves to receive a date for its accession talks in 2003, and we won’t accept any other offer from the EU.” /Aksam/[04] OZKOK: “TURKEY’S POLITICAL LEADERSHIP WILL DECIDE ON A POSSIBLE IRAQ OPERATION”Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok, at Anitkabir yesterday to participate in Republic Day ceremonies, declined to answer a number of reporters’ questions, saying that now was a sensitive time for Turkey so addressing political concerns would be improper. Asked about a possible United States operation against Iraq, Ozkok, Turkey’s top military officer, stated that the nation’s political leadership would decide its course on issues concerning Iraq and northern Iraq. /Milliyet/[05] YILMAZ: “TURKEY MAY GET A CONDITIONAL DATE AT THE COPENHAGEN SUMMIT”After meeting with Gunter Verheugen, commisioner for European Union enlargement, Deputy Prime Minister and Motherland Party (ANAP) leader Mesut Yilmaz said yesterday that there was a strong possibility Turkey would get a “conditional date” at European Union’s Copenhagen summit in December. Speaking to reporters after the leaders’ meeting, Yilmaz said that it was impossible that Turkey would be turned back entirely at the summit, since the EU was leaning towards granting this conditional date. Other Turkish leaders have publicly said that any result short of the EU setting a firm date would be unacceptable. Yilmaz also commented that Turkey needed to work very hard in the leadup to the summit, adding that he hoped next Sunday’s general elections would help the nation’s EU bid. “The short-term performance of Turkey’s post-election government will have enormous importance,” stated Yilmaz. /Milliyet/[06] CEM: “THE YTP WILL SHAPE TURKEY’S FUTURE”New Turkey Party (YTP) leader Ismail Cem yesterday confidently predicted that his party would shape the future of the nation. Speaking to reporters after meeting with an advocacy group for disabled persons, Cem said he was pleased that he and the other political party leaders were touring the country and speaking to its voters. When the people listen to us, he added, they will be able to see that the YTP is a breed apart from its competitors. /Milliyet/[07] FISCHER: “TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP IS IMPORTANT TO US”Speaking at the Federal Parliament yesterday, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said, “One can have difference of opinions on Turkey’s European Union membership, but we won’t integrate Turkey for the sake of the United States.” Pointing out that Turkey was situated in a contentions region, Fischer said, “If the EU closes its doors to Turkey, that would also mean closing the doors to civil rule in this country and to those who are fighting for modernization.” He added, “Perhaps Turkey is a difficult partner in some respects, but the path that some are proposing would play into the hands of Turkey’s anti-EU membership circles and spell the end of the nation’s modernization.” /Turkiye/[08] BLAIR, SCHROEDER FEEL HEAT AFTER DECLARING SUPPORT FOR TURKEYOpposition parties in Britain and Germany reacted harshly yesterday to their countries’ prime ministers, Tony Blair and Gerard Schroeder, who announced their support for setting a date for Turkey’s European Union accession talks in the wake of last week’s EU summit in Brussels. British newspaper the Daily Telegraph reported that opposition Conservative MPs as well as Labour backbenchers stated that Turkey’s EU membership bid shouldn’t be supported before a settlement was reached on Cyprus. Meanwhile, in Germany, both Angela Merkel, the chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union Party (CDU), and Guido Westerwelle, the Free Democratic Party’s (FDP) chairman, criticized Schroeder’s statement of support. /Turkiye/[09] TALABANI: “IN CERTAIN SITUATIONS, TURKEY COULD INTERVENE IN IRAQ’S DOMESTIC AFFAIRS”Turkey might see fit to intervene in Iraq should a Kurdish state be formed in northern Iraq or the nation’s Turkmen population be threatened, said Iraqi Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (IPUK) leader Jalal Talabani at a meeting of Iraqi opposition groups, according to reports in an Iranian newspaper yesterday. “We have no intention of forming a Kurdish state in northern Iraq,” added Talabani. “The Turkmens are our brothers and sisters, and in no way will we threaten them.” /Cumhuriyet/[10] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...[11] ESDP AND THE CYPRUS ISSUE BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI (STAR)Columnist Zeynep Gurcanli comments on last week’s EU Brussels summit where important decisions were made concerning the ESDP. A summary of her column is as follows:“I believe that Turkey is currently facing one of the greatest diplomatic crises of its history, although our politicians are blind to this due to their tunnel-vision preoccupation with campaigning ahead of next Sunday’s polls. The European Union summit held last week in Brussels was of great importance to us not only because the EU member countries discussed whether or not to set a specific date for the beginning of our country’s accession negotiations, but also because they reached agreement on another significant issue, the European Defense and Security Policy (ESDP). This new arrangement was made in spite of the already existing Ankara Document, a settlement prepared through the joint efforts of Britain, the US and Turkey. Upon Greece’s opposition to the Ankara Document earlier this year, the other EU member states prepared another proposal on the issue to present to Turkey. This new proposal is likely to spur new diplomatic crises since it is blatantly skewed towards Greece’s views. The EU wants certain candidate countries slated to join the Union next year to take part in a new European army to be formed under the ESDP. For instance, the Greek Cypriot administration, which is not recognized by Turkey, is one of these countries. When the Greek Cypriots join the Union in 2004, as they are shortlisted to do, they will also gain the right to join both the European army and the ESDP’s decision-making mechanism. The worst of this is that the Greek Cypriot administration will have the right to take part in military operations carried out using NATO facilities. In addition, this new proposal is also likely to cause new problems concerning the Cyprus issue. The proposal stresses that NATO, of which Turkey is a member, cannot conduct operations against any EU member or candidate countries and that all activities carried out by NATO should be fully concordant with any relevant UN resolutions. There is an ulterior motive behind these diplomatic statements, one meant to forestall possible Turkish actions on Cyprus. One could even argue that the EU is trying to persuade the world that the presence of Turkish troops on Cyprus is ‘illegal’ and in breach of UN resolutions. That’s what the new proposal points to. Even although the parties had already reached an agreement on the ESDP, the EU keeps moving the goal posts. Since Turkey isn’t an EU member, it can neither be represented nor express its views at EU summits where such important decisions are made. Furthermore, the EU countries are putting pressure on Turkey to make concessions on certain significant issues since our country is currently working to get a date for its accession talks. At this point, what Turkey needs is a strong government to deal with these problems. I hope that the Nov. 3 elections will bring our country such a government, one which won’t let us down.” [12] DISCUSSIONS AT HOME AND ABROAD BY CUNEYT ARCAYUREK (CUMHURIYET)Columnist Cuneyt Arcayurek comments on the discussions both at home and abroad concerning Turkey’s upcoming elections. A summary of his column is as follows:“Turkey’s future continues to be a topic of conversation both here and in other countries. These conversations focus mostly on two issues: the result of our elections and Turkey’s role in the Iraq issue. The media in European Union member countries is feeling the pressure of public opinion and also being affected by Turkey’s policies. It’s also unclear if a positive result will emerge from the Copenhagen summit on December 12-13. As of now, the EU will neither say that a date can be given, nor that it can. They have found an excuse. EU term President Denmark’s Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen openly said, ‘The result of Turkey’s general elections will play a very important role in terms of our evaluation of it.’ I wonder if he meant this, between the lines: ‘Does your hesitancy come from the possibility that if the Justice and Development Party (AKP) comes to power, the EU media and European nations alike will interpret this result as having established an Islamist government in Turkey?’ Or will they look at the stance of the new government towards the EU and then decide about giving a green light to our membership negotiations? It’s impossible to answer these questions. Some Western publications seem to encourage the worries within the EU. Belgian daily La Quinzaine wrote, ‘The EU member countries are aware of Turkey’s importance and their consciences are troubled.’ However, it doesn’t openly write but instead implies that the EU has no alternative but to give Turkey a date. While the United States has been putting pressure on the EU for Turkey’s membership, some prominent US media outlets have been covering our country in a way that heightens the Europeans’ concerns and suspicions. For example, Time magazine’s Europe edition wrote, ‘As they have in every election over the past 12 years, Turks are ready to embrace the unknown’ -- by ‘unknown’ meaning Recep Tayyip Erdogan! Erdogan told the magazine that he was moderate in all things and that he had no intention of imposing Sharia rule on Turkey, even if the law permitted this. Of course the magazine must have seen behind the mask of Erdogan’s words, since it then adds, ‘Saying anything else, of course, would land him in jail again.’ According to the magazine, some of his supporters, including ‘the 8% of Turks who are considered fundamentalists [and] would like to see Shaira,’ will put pressure on Erdogan when he comes to power. As Time wrote, Turkey faces not only a selection between east and west on Nov. 3, but also an expected vote against hypocrisy and false promises. The legal argument put forth by former Parliament Speaker Husamettin Cindoruk on television and newspapers yesterday is nothing to be sniffed at. He said that the AKP has flouted the law and that votes for it would be declared invalid. His reasoning is based on the law: According to the Deputies Election Law, first the emblem of the party and then the name of its leader appear on the ballot slip. Yet the name of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose leadership and founding membership of the AKP were slated to end, still appears on the ballot. If this situation is the ‘misleading declaration,’ then the AKP’s votes will be cancelled!” ARCHIVE <script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="http:/_www.byegm.gov.tr_statistic/countcode.js"> </script> Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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