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Turkish Press Review, 05-02-22
From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>
22.02.05
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this
morning
CONTENTS
[01] ERDOGAN, GUL TRAVEL TO BRUSSELS TO ATTEND NATO SUMMIT
[02] CICEK REAFFIRMS CLOSE TURKISH-US PARTNERSHIP
[03] OZKOK MEETS HIS EGYPTIAN COUNTERPART
[04] ATILLA KOC NAMED NEW CULTURE MINISTER
[05] ANOTHER AKP DEPUTY RESIGNS FROM PARTY
[06] ITALIAN SENATE SPEAKER VISITS TURKEY
[07] UNAKITAN STRESSES NEED FOR CONTINUED BUDGETARY DISCIPLINE
[08] LATVIAN FM TO VISIT ANKARA
[09] TALAT: “WE HAVE NO ALTERNATIVE BUT TO FORM A COALITION WITH THE DP”
[10] STUDENT AMNESTY TO BE DEBATED IN PARLIAMENT TOMORROW
[11] HEALTH MINISTER URGES PATIENCE OVER HANDOVER HITCHES IN SSK HOSPITALS
[12] ITALIAN OFFICIAL SET TO HEAD IMF TURKEY MISSION
[13] TURKISH TRADE CENTER TO BE ESTABLISHED IN DUBAI
[14] NY TIMES CALLS FMR ECONOMY MINISTER DERVIS “GOOD CANDIDATE” FOR WB PRESIDENT
[15] FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
[16] NEW SUPPORT BY SAMI KOHEN (MILLIYET)
[01] ERDOGAN, GUL TRAVEL TO BRUSSELS TO ATTEND NATO SUMMIT
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul
yesterday flew to Brussels, Belgium to attend a NATO summit where leaders
from the alliance’s 25 member countries and US President George W. Bush are
set to discuss NATO-European Union relations, the Afghan and Iraq issues,
conflict in the Mideast, etc. Erdogan will also hold bilateral meetings
with his EU counterparts. In addition, he is expected to meet with the US
president today and to exchange views on bilateral relations as well as
regional issues. /Sabah/
[02] CICEK REAFFIRMS CLOSE TURKISH-US PARTNERSHIP
At a press conference following yesterday’s Cabinet meeting, Justice
Minister and government spokesman Cemil Cicek said that bilateral relations
between Turkey and the United States, who he called two allies and friends,
were on the right track. “Ankara attaches the highest importance to its
relations with Washington,” Cicek said. “Our government is committed to
maintain this satisfactory level of bilateral relations in the future.
Although our two countries have had certain problems and crises in the past,
Turkey and the US are strategic partners. As Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul
briefed the Cabinet on this issue, we believe that Turkey will benefit from
its partnership with the US, so relations must be maintained at the present
level.” /Turkiye/
[03] OZKOK MEETS HIS EGYPTIAN COUNTERPART
Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok yesterday met with his Egyptian
counterpart Gen. Hamdi Vehibe in Cairo. “We are willing to continue our
structural relations with Egypt based upon previous agreements,” added
Ozkok in a statement after his meeting. Ozkok later visited a cemetery for
Turkish soldiers and the Cairo Museum. /Star/
[04] ATILLA KOC NAMED NEW CULTURE MINISTER
After meeting with President Ahmet Necdet Sezer at the Cankaya Presidential
Palace yesterday, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that a
ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputy from Aydin, Atilla Koc,
has been appointed the new culture and tourism minister. Justice Minister
Cemil Cicek had been serving as acting minister after Erkan Mumcu resigned
from both the post and the ruling party last week. /Hurriyet/
[05] ANOTHER AKP DEPUTY RESIGNS FROM PARTY
In the wake of last week’s resignation of Culture and Tourism Minister
Erkan Mumcu, Suleyman Saribas, a ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)
deputy from Malatya, yesterday resigned from the party. Speaking to
reporters, Saribas said that he had been experiencing serious differences
of opinion and attitude with the party organization for some time. With
Saribas’s resignation, the AKP’s seats in Parliament fell to 365, still a
comfortable majority, while those of independents rose to seven. /Turkiye/
[06] ITALIAN SENATE SPEAKER VISITS TURKEY
Italian Senate Speaker Marcello Pera yesterday arrived in Ankara upon the
invitation of Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc. In a joint press conference,
Arinc thanked Pera “for the consistent support Italy has shown in Turkey’s
European Union membership bid.” Pera for his part lauded Turkey’s upcoming
accession talks as historic, adding that they should not be used for
political fodder. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan also received Pera. Predicting that Turkey would earn full
membership at the end of its accession talks, Pera said that Turkey’s
membership would enhance the EU’s identity. /Star/
[07] UNAKITAN STRESSES NEED FOR CONTINUED BUDGETARY DISCIPLINE
Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan yesterday released last month’s budget
figures. Touching on recent discussions concerning a government incentive
scheme proposal, Unakitan said that he doesn’t expect disagreements with
the International Monetary Fund. “The important thing is that we remain
decisive in our fiscal discipline,” added Unakitan. /Hurriyet/
[08] LATVIAN FM TO VISIT ANKARA
Latvian Foreign Minister Artis Pabriks, accompanied by a delegation, will
arrive in Ankara tomorrow to pay an official visit. Pabriks is expected to
meet with Turkish officials including President Ahmet Necdet Sezer,
Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc as well as his Turkish counterpart Abdullah
Gul to discuss bilateral relations and regional issues. In addition, the
delegation is set to attend a business meeting in Istanbul. During the
contacts, the itinerary for Latvian President Vike-Vaira Freiberga’s visit
scheduled for April will also be prepared. /Turkish Daily News/
[09] TALAT: “WE HAVE NO ALTERNATIVE BUT TO FORM A COALITION WITH THE DP”
Fresh off his victory at the polls, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
(TRNC) Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Talat said yesterday that his party had no
alternative but to form a coalition with the Democrat Party (DP). On
Sunday’s elections in the TRNC, the center-left Republican Turkish party
(CTP) of Premier Talat, known for his pro-unification stance, won 25 of the
parliament's 50 seats, while the main opposition party took 31%, or 18
seats. The DP came in second with six seats. “A new day will dawn for the
TRNC,” Talat said. “We’ll replace separatist, no-compromise political views
with a new policy to promote peace and a permanent resolution.” In related
news, Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul phoned the leaders of the four
parties which won seats in the TRNC Parliament, including Talat, to
congratulate them and wish them success in their future work. /Aksam /
Star_
[10] STUDENT AMNESTY TO BE DEBATED IN PARLIAMENT TOMORROW
A controversial general student amnesty bill will be taken up by the full
Parliament tomorrow. The bill proposing the pardon of some 700,000 students
dismissed from universities since June 29, 2000, regardless of the reason,
is expected to be passed after its debate in Parliament. Under the measure,
students wanting to benefit from the amnesty could apply to their former
universities in two months. /Turkiye/
[11] HEALTH MINISTER URGES PATIENCE OVER HANDOVER HITCHES IN SSK HOSPITALS
Turmoil and confusion were seen yesterday at many hospitals in big cities
due to the handover of Social Security Authority (SSK) hospitals to state
hospitals. Health Minister Recep Akdag pledged to resolve the hospitals’
problems, saying they stemmed from the suddenness of the handover and would
not be permanent, and also called on citizens to be patient. He also sent
curriculums to hospital administrators nationwide urging them to put on a
positive face for the citizenry. /Turkiye/
[12] ITALIAN OFFICIAL SET TO HEAD IMF TURKEY MISSION
An Italian official is reportedly set to become the new chief of the
International Monetary Fund’s Turkey mission. The official will replace
Reza Moghadam, who has served as mission chief since 2003. /Cumhuriyet/
[13] TURKISH TRADE CENTER TO BE ESTABLISHED IN DUBAI
Abdullah Rashid Lootah, the general coordinator of the Jebel Ali Free Trade
Zone Authority (JAFZA) in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, yesterday stated
that Turkish companies could enjoy many commercial advantages by doing
business in JAFZA, particularly in the food sector. Lootah said that a
Turkish Trade Center would be established in JAFZA over a 9,000-meter-
square area. He also called on Turkish companies to do business in Dubai’s
free trade zone, arguing that JAFZA can provide them with more advantageous
and profitable opportunities than European countries. /Milliyet/
[14] NY TIMES CALLS FMR ECONOMY MINISTER DERVIS “GOOD CANDIDATE” FOR WB
PRESIDENT
As President James Wolfenshon is set to retire in the middle of this year,
the World Bank is currently seeking a new leader. According to the New York
Times editorial page yesterday, candidates to succeed him include “the
former presidents Ernesto Zedillo of Mexico and Fernando Henrique Cardoso
of Brazil, and the former and current finance ministers Gordon Brown of
Britain, Trevor Manuel of South Africa, Leszek Balcerowicz of Poland and
Kemal Dervis of Turkey.” Dervis worked for the WB for 30 years before
serving as economy minister under the Bulent Ecevit administration, and now
is a main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy for Istanbul.
“Good candidates for the job would know the problems of the third world –
particularly Africa – and work to solve them,” the editorial added. “They
would probably not be bankers because the World Bank is almost the opposite
of a bank. It is a development organization that lends money to cure market
failures, financing projects whose returns could not attract other lenders.
The bank's president should be able to generate enthusiasm for helping the
world's poor. And he or she should have experience running a huge, chaotic
bureaucracy.” /Aksam/
[15] FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
[16] NEW SUPPORT BY SAMI KOHEN (MILLIYET)
Columnist Sami Kohen comments on the results of Sunday’s elections in the
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). A summary of his column is as
follows:
“In the weekend elections in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC),
most Turkish Cypriots reaffirmed their support for the Republican Turkish
Party (CTP) and its coalition partner the Democrat Party (DP) and the Talat
government. The election results showed that the majority still accepts UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s plan, as they did last April. Now the CTP is
stronger than after the elections of 14 months ago, which shows an
important shift in the Turkish Cypriots’ stance. A couple of years ago most
people were allergic to the CTP and people had doubts about it. The right
led by the National Unity Party (UBP) got two-thirds of the votes and the
left consisting of the CTP had one-third of the votes back then. Now voters
don’t break themselves down along hard ideological lines like the parties
do. People who support the status quo represent only one-third of votes,
but those who favor a solution represent two-thirds. This socio-political
change has several reasons: conditions on the island and in the region have
changed. The European Union factor led people, particularly young people,
into the direction of change and a solution. Now the CTP has moved to the
center and a pragmatic line under Talat’s leadership. The Justice and
Development Party (AKP) has also started to develop new strategies in
Ankara for a resolution. Whatever the reasons, the results of last
weekend’s elections showed the wishes of the majority. This situation
should cause those who still cling to old feelings and views to see the
current atmosphere more realistically.
Most probably, the election results will cause the formation of a CTP-DP
coalition. What will change with this situation? How will it influence
efforts for a solution? Let’s imagine that the results had been just the
opposite. If certain people opposed to a solution which could bring Turkish
Cypriots into the EU had come to power, Greek Cypriot leader Tassos
Papadopoulos and his supporters would have been quite happy. Then there
would have been great pressure on the Turkish Cypriots. Finally, this would
have caused huge political complications for Ankara and problems for the
Greek Cypriots. Of course the Turkish Cypriots’ desire for a solution and
consensus isn’t enough. The Greek Cypriot administration must take the same
stance. The entire world, including the US and the UN, hailed the TRNC
elections results. This support should have practical efforts. For example,
applying various measures to end the isolation of the TRNC and putting
pressure on Papadopoulos to change his uncompromising stance. Now the EU,
the US and the UN are expected to see the election results as an
opportunity for a resolution and so take necessary steps as soon as
possible.”
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