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Turkish Press Review, 05-06-15
From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>
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Summary of the political and economic
news in the Turkish press this morning
15.06.2005
FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
CONTENTS
[01] ERDOGAN: “THE CURRENT PARLIAMENT WILL ELECT THE PRESIDENT”
[02] ERDOGAN TO TRAVEL TO LEBANON TODAY
[03] GUL: “WE WILL RESOLVE THE HEADSCARF ISSUE”
[04] SWEDEN’S CROWN PRINCESS VICTORIA MEETS ERDOGAN
[05] FISCHER WARNS OF HIGH PRICE OF CLOSING DOORS TO TURKEY
[06] GREEK CYPRIOTS SUPPORT TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP
[07] GREEK CYPRIOTS WANT TO OPEN AN EMBASSY IN ANKARA
[08] LAGENDJIK: “THE ONLY GOAL OF TURKEY’S MEMBERSHIP NEGOTIATIONS IS FULL MEMBERSHIP”
[09] TURKEY, KAZAKHSTAN AGREE TO FURTHER DEVELOP MILITARY COOPERATION
[10] TURKEY, US SIGN AGREEMENT ON MASS DESTRUCTION WEAPONS
[11] BABACAN TO TRAVEL TO BRUSSELS
[12] FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
[13] US-EU-TURKISH LINE BY ALI BAYRAMOGLU (YENI SAFAK)
[01] ERDOGAN: “THE CURRENT PARLIAMENT WILL ELECT THE PRESIDENT”
Addressing his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) group meeting,
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday criticized the main
opposition Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) and Turkey’s 9th President
Suleyman Demirel’s recent comments on presidential elections and stressed
that the current parliament would elect the president, not a new one. CHP
head Deniz Baykal had previously proposed that a new parliament should
elect the president. “Baykal’s statement is disrespectful of the Turkish
nation and its parliament,” Erdogan said. In related news, the premier held
a banquet yesterday at the Prime Ministry Residence in honor of the
ambassadors of the European Union countries. Ambassadors urged Erdogan to
continue reforms towards Turkey’s EU membership bid. “We want to support
your membership bid in Europe, but Turkey has yet to fulfill the required
criteria,” they reportedly said. “You should go on making new reforms.”
/Milliyet/
[02] ERDOGAN TO TRAVEL TO LEBANON TODAY
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will leave for Lebanon today to attend
the Arab Countries Economy Forum in Beirut. During his opening speech at
the gathering, Erdogan is expected to point to the importance of stability
and peace in the Middle East and express Turkey’s readiness to contribute
to the efforts for reaching a settlement in the region. /Turkiye/
[03] GUL: “WE WILL RESOLVE THE HEADSCARF ISSUE”
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul harshly reacted to the incident in Erzurum’s
Ataturk University where some students’ mothers wearing headscarves were
not allowed to attend the graduation ceremony. Responding the questions of
the reporters before yesterday’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)
group meeting, Gul argued that those who are responsible for the incident
should be ashamed of what they did. Remarking that such an incident could
only take place in primitive societies where democracy and individual
rights do not exist, Gul pledged that the government would deal with this
issue and solve it soon. In related news, Gul also stated that Turkey would
sign the additional protocol of Ankara Agreement extending Turkey’s Customs
Union to 10 new EU members after the translation process is completed. “The
EU was late in signing the text, so Brussels will have to wait for our
signature too,” he said. “The summer recess of the parliament will begin in
the following days, and there are other important laws on our agenda. We’ll
of course sign it but we don’t have to rush.” /Aksam/
[04] SWEDEN’S CROWN PRINCESS VICTORIA MEETS ERDOGAN
Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria yesterday met with Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan and opened the exhibition of a photograph showing the
grandfather of his father with the founder of the Republic of Turkey, M.
Kemal Ataturk at the Swedish Embassy. Princess Victoria also presented two
Turkish students, Zeliha Aydin and Ozge Yucel, scholarship certificates in
honor of former Foreign Minister Anna Lindh, who was killed in 2003 and was
well known for her support to Turkey’s EU membership bid. /Star, Aksam/
[05] FISCHER WARNS OF HIGH PRICE OF CLOSING DOORS TO TURKEY
German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said the price of EU’s closing its
doors to Turkey would be very high. Speaking at a security conference in
Berlin, Fischer said the alternative to Turkey becoming a modern Western
society was “crises, or even worse.” Doors can be closed to Turkey, but the
price of this will be very high, stated the German minister. In addition,
European Union Commissioner Guenter Verheugen said that if Turkey’s EU
membership became uncertain, democratic reforms would be in danger and
promises made to this country would not be kept. In an interview to German
Suddeutsche Zeitung, Verheugen pointed to Turkey’s importance as an ally
and security gate for the Mideast. Stressing that the decision on Ankara’s
membership would be made after at least 10 years, Verheugen said that
Turkey would then be completely different with reforms. Europeans will
decide on Turkey at that time, added the EU commissioner. /Turkiye/
[06] GREEK CYPRIOTS SUPPORT TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP
Greek Cypriot administration’s representative in Washington Euripides
Evriviades said yesterday that Greek Cypriots supported Turkey’s European
Union membership. Evriviades expressed his hope that the results of the
referendums in France and the Netherlands would not block Turkey’s schedule
for accession talks. Delivering a speech at a gathering organized by The
Nixon Center, Evriviades pointed out that for a settlement on Cyprus,
Turkey’s EU membership process needed to go further. /Turkiye/
[07] GREEK CYPRIOTS WANT TO OPEN AN EMBASSY IN ANKARA
The Greek Cypriot Administration wants to open an embassy or a
representation in Ankara after Turkey signs the additional protocol
extending Turkey’s Customs Union to 10 new members. The Greek Cypriots have
conveyed their request to Brussels and underlined that their priority is to
put pressure on Turkey to open its air space and ports to Greek Cypriot-
flagged planes and ships. /All Papers/
[08] LAGENDJIK: “THE ONLY GOAL OF TURKEY’S MEMBERSHIP NEGOTIATIONS IS FULL
MEMBERSHIP”
Turkey-European Union Joint Parliamentary Commission Co-Chairman Joos
Lagendjik stated that most of the members of the European Parliament
believe that the only goal of Turkey’s membership negotiations should be
full membership. “The French and Dutch ‘no’ to the EU constitution is not
directly related to Turkey’s membership process,” he said. “Recent
discussions primarily focus on 10 new members of the bloc.” /Sabah/
[09] TURKEY, KAZAKHSTAN AGREE TO FURTHER DEVELOP MILITARY COOPERATION
Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok who is currently visiting
Kazakhstan, yesterday met with Defense Minister Muhtar Altunbayev in
Astana. During their talks, the two top officials agreed to further develop
military relations. Ozkok stressed that the support of the Turkish military
to Kazakhstan would continue. For his part, Altunbayev pointed out that
Turkey had sent his country military vehicles and equipments and trained
over 300 Kazakh military students, moreover, lent support for establishing
their flee on the Caspian Sea. /Turkiye/
[10] TURKEY, US SIGN AGREEMENT ON MASS DESTRUCTION WEAPONS
Turkey and the US yesterday signed an agreement to prevent the
proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and take under control the
materials and technology used to develop such weapons. A Foreign Ministry
statement said that Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ali Tuygan and US
Ambassador to Ankara Eric Edelman signed the agreement for a period of
three years. /Turkiye/
[11] BABACAN TO TRAVEL TO BRUSSELS
Chief Negotiator Ali Babacan is set to travel to Brussels today to meet
with European Union officials. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul will also go
to Brussels tomorrow, and they will both meet with EU officials to discuss
Turkey’s membership bid and lobby for the beginning of the country’s
membership negotiations on Oct. 3 as scheduled. /Cumhuriyet/
[12] FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
[13] US-EU-TURKISH LINE BY ALI BAYRAMOGLU (YENI SAFAK)
Columnist Ali Bayramoglu comments on the relations between the US, the
European Union and Turkey. A summary of his column is as follows:
“Two basic axis of the Turkish foreign policy, namely, relations with the
US and the European Union, is getting on the right track again. Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent visit to the US was aiming to remove
the atmosphere of tension between the two countries and renew the relations
directly and through first-hand contacts. This visit reached its aim with
its main lines. Firstly, both parties are accepting the differences of each
other. Therefore, one shouldn’t take the clamor in the Turkish and the US
press about such issues as anti-US approach in Syria and Turkey into
seriously. Of course Syria is a field of problem between the two countries.
There is a difference between the US’ policy of full isolation towards
Syria and Turkey’s stance to favor the establishment of a democratic change
not in a short period of time and through persuasion. However, it should be
emphasized that this difference isn’t about the essence, but method. In
addition, the change of method in US President George W. Bush’s regional
policies and the fact that this change started to influence the Turkish-US
relations generally and in terms of Syria should be emphasized.
Lecturer Ömer Taţpýnar summarizes this change in one of his articles as
follows: ‘The problems experienced by the US in Iraq was instructive in
terms of showing the problems of military alternative. The Bush
administration understood the impossibility of democratization as a result
of military operation in Syria and Iran. Even the most fervent new
conservatives in Washington can’t talk about changing the regime in the
Middle East by force. In this situation, all hopes are dependent on the
process of democratization as a result of the economic, social and cultural
development to be created by the Greater Middle East Initiative. In other
words, firstly social and economic development and than the concept of
democracy is dominant. In this respect, Turkey gained a new importance for
the US in discussions on the Islam world and democracy. This increasing
profile derived from the fact that Turkey has been considered the most
successful example of the theory of modernization and more importantly,
Turkey’s population is Muslim. Thus, the place of Turkey, but the essence
of Turkey started to be considered important following the Sept. 11
attacks. In other words, now Turkey is gaining importance and value not
only in geostrategic terms, but also in terms of its political and
civilization identity.’
Within this framework, even if the Erdogan government couldn’t solved all
the problems with its relations with the US, it could seize an atmosphere
of calmness when compared to the situation of 5-6 months ago and removed
the picture of crisis. A similar analysis can be made on the Turkish-EU
relations. A question mark was put on these relations following the French
and Dutch rejection of the referendum on the EU Constitution. Of course,
this question mark is continuing and it will continue to exist for a long
period of time. The route followed by the Eu and the model it adopted was
interrupted and the process of enlargement started to be discussed.
Meanwhile, the decision taken on December 17, 2004 was confirmed during the
EU Foreign Ministers meeting and it was stated that the process of
enlargement would continue. Thus, there is no political obstacle before
starting membership negotiations with Turkey on Oct. 3 and the technical
obstacle was solved to a great extend when the EU approved the additional
protocol that will provide new EU member countries with the opportunity to
benefit from the Customs Union Agreement. This obstacle will be removed
completely with Turkey’s approval. Obviously, Turkey could reach a healthy
basis within temporary and critical balances internationally. We hope that
domestic and foreign inputs wouldn’t spoil this balance.”
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