|
|
|
Turkish Press Review, 05-06-23
From: 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>
e-mail :
newspot@byegm.gov.tr
<caption> <_caption>
Summary of the political and economic
news in the Turkish press this morning
23.06.2005
FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
CONTENTS
[01] ERDOGAN VOWS TO SOLVE HEADSCARF ISSUE
[02] GUL PLEDGES TO SUPPORT IRAQ
[03] ARINC CONDEMNS GERMAN PARLIAMENT’S DECISION
[04] NEW INITIATIVES PLANNED ON ARMENIA
[05] UN UNDERSECRETARY: “LAUNCHING A NEW CYPRUS PROCESS NOW WOULD BE INADVISABLE”
[06] ISRAEL TO STREAMLINE VISAS FOR TURKISH BUSINESSMEN
[07] BARROSO: “TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP BID SHOULD BE OPENLY DISCUSSED”
[08] COURT RULES TERRORIST FEHRIYE ERDAL WON’T BE TRIED IN BELGIUM
[09] GEN. BUYUKANIT VISITS GREECE
[10] TURKEY TO BUY 17 SEAHAWK HELICOPTERS
[11] TUSIAD: “OUR PRIORITY MUST BE EXTENDING THE CUSTOMS UNION”
[12] GERMAN PEACE AWARD GOES TO ORHAN PAMUK
[13] FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
[14] GOOD NEWS NEEDED BY SEMIH IDIZ (MILLIYET)
[01] ERDOGAN VOWS TO SOLVE HEADSCARF ISSUE
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday that his government
would solve a number of public issues, including the headscarf issue.
Addressing his Justice and Development Party (AKP) parliamentary group
meeting, Erdogan warned that problems which are neglected might lead to
bigger issues, adding that his party would solve them and relieve the
tension. In addition, he spoke at the AKP Ankara Provincial Chairmanship’s
Political Academy. Stressing that his party was practicing politics with
wisdom, knowledge and experience, the premier said that the AKP was the
party to fulfill the nation’s will. Commenting on proposals to lower the 10
percent election threshold, Erdogan said that the party had no plans to try
and change it, adding that it helped Turkey to preserve its stability.
/Star/
[02] GUL PLEDGES TO SUPPORT IRAQ
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said yesterday that Turkey’s support to Iraq
during its political transition period would continue, adding however that
Turkey was frustrated with the terrorist presence in northern Iraq which
should be ended. Speaking at a conference organized jointly by the European
Union and the US in Brussels to discuss the future of Iraq, Gul stated that
the period of preparing a constitution would set out the Iraqis’ destiny.
“The Iraqis will solve their national issues themselves,” said Gul.
Stressing that Ankara’s dialogue with the Iraqi government was going on at
the highest level, Gul pointed out that Iraqi Premier Ibrahim al-Jaafari’s
first visit abroad had been to Turkey. After completing his contacts in
Brussels, Gul returned to Turkey yesterday. /Turkiye/
[03] ARINC CONDEMNS GERMAN PARLIAMENT’S DECISION
Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc yesterday sent a letter to his German
counterpart Wolfgang Thierse condemning the approval of an Armenian
resolution last week in the German Federal Parliament. Stressing that the
decision had caused anger among Turkish parliamentarians, Arinc said that
both government officials and parliamentarians visiting Germany over the
last three months had expressed Turkish views on the matter and warned of
possible anger among Turks if such a decision was made. This one-sided
decision made by a friendly allied country deeply wounded some 3 million
Turks living in Germany, said Arinc. /Turkiye/
[04] NEW INITIATIVES PLANNED ON ARMENIA
In order to reduce recent tension over the so-called Armenian genocide
claims, the Turkish government has started to shift some of its policies.
After ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Balikesir Deputy Turan
Comez’s visit to Armenia earlier this month, he began to prepare a
comprehensive new program about Armenian relations along with the
Republican People’s Party’s (CHP). Under the new program, Turkey hopes to
advance relations with Armenia while avoiding any missteps. First of all,
there are plans to form a joint parliamentary group to discuss common
problems. Also, the government will propose a student exchange program with
Armenia. Moreover, 20 Armenian journalists will be invited to do research
in Turkey into the so-called Armenian genocide. And finally some football,
volleyball and basketball teams will hold friendly matches with their
Armenian counterparts. /Hurriyet/
[05] UN UNDERSECRETARY: “LAUNCHING A NEW CYPRUS PROCESS NOW WOULD BE
INADVISABLE”
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan wants to move very carefully in the search
for a solution to reunify Cyprus, UN Undersecretary for Political Affairs
Kieran Prendergast told the UN Security Council yesterday. A divided Cyprus
is unacceptable, he said, but “launching an intensive new process
prematurely would be inadvisable.” Prendergast added that all parties want
to see the resumption of peace negotiations with the rejected Annan plan
serving as the basis of the talks. “Political figures on both sides are
maintaining contacts in an effort to promote mutual understanding,” he
said. “On the negative side, however, the gap between the parties appears
to be wide, while confidence between them does not seem high. These two
factors, especially in combination, make efforts to establish common ground
extremely difficult.” /Milliyet/
[06] ISRAEL TO STREAMLINE VISAS FOR TURKISH BUSINESSMEN
Israeli Ankara Ambassador Pinhas Avivi yesterday announced new measures to
streamline visa procedures for Turkish businessmen. Under the new
procedures, Turkish businessmen who are members of a recognized economic
organization or businessmen association will be allowed to obtain multi-
entry visas from Israel for up to three years. “This is an important step
to eliminate bureaucratic obstacles in visa applications,” he said. Avivi
also reiterated Israel’s support for Turkey’s European Union membership
bid. “Israel lends its full support to Turkey’s EU membership bid,” he
added. “An EU member Turkey would be a guarantee of stability and
development in the region.” /Aksam/
[07] BARROSO: “TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP BID SHOULD BE OPENLY DISCUSSED”
The European Union needs to have a frank discussion on Turkey's candidacy
to join the bloc, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said
yesterday. Although Barroso stood firm on the EU's commitments to opening
accession talks with Turkey, he also argued that public concerns on the
issue should be “discussed seriously.” Barroso called for a “frank
discussion'' of Turkey's prospects of joining the European Union. “We
should discuss seriously the signals that were sent by the [French and
Dutch] electorate regarding Turkey,” he told a Brussels press conference
yesterday. /All Papers/
[08] COURT RULES TERRORIST FEHRIYE ERDAL WON’T BE TRIED IN BELGIUM
Belgium’s Court of Bruges yesterday ruled that Fehriye Erdal, a member of
the terrorist group DHKP-C, cannot be tried in the country for crimes she
committed in Turkey. The court decided that DHKP-C militants would be tried
in the Bruges criminal court on charges of stockpiling weapons and
possessing illegal propaganda. However, according to the ruling, Belgian
courts have no jurisdiction to try Erdal, who is a suspect in the Ozdemir
Sabanci assassination. Fernand Schmitz, lawyer of the Sabanci family,
announced that they would appeal to the Higher Court of Ghent. /Sabah/
[09] GEN. BUYUKANIT VISITS GREECE
Land Forces Commander Gen. Yasar Buyukanit yesterday traveled to Athens as
the official guest of his Greek counterpart Gen. Nikolaos Dukas. Gen.
Buyukanit yesterday attended a banquet held by Turkey’s Ambassador to
Athens Tahsin Burcuoglu in his honor. He will start his official meetings
today and will separately meet with Gen. Dukas, Greek Chief of General
Staff Vice Adm. Panayotis Hinofotis and Defense Minister Spilios
Spiliotopoulos. Gen. Buyukanit is expected to return to Turkey tomorrow.
/Aksam/
[10] TURKEY TO BUY 17 SEAHAWK HELICOPTERS
Speaking to reporters after a Defense Industry Executive Committee meeting,
Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul said that 17 Seahawk Helicopters would be
bought from US aircraft maker Sikorsky. The committee chaired by Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the Turkish Armed Forces’ (TSK)
needs for the next decade and decided to buy 17 Seahawk helicopters as well
as spare parts and equipment. In addition, he stressed that 20 fire-
fighting helicopters are also slated to be bought for the Forestry General
Directorate. /Turkiye/
[11] TUSIAD: “OUR PRIORITY MUST BE EXTENDING THE CUSTOMS UNION”
The top item on Turkey’s agenda should be concluding the protocol that will
extend its Customs Union to the 10 new members of the European Union, said
Turkish Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association (TUSIAD) Chairman
Omer Sabanci yesterday. “Including the new members of the EU in the Customs
Union is an important matter that should be dealt with before Turkey’s full
membership negotiations begin,” added Sabanci. “Therefore, delaying or
discarding this protocol would mean delaying our membership talks, and this
would contradict Turkey’s perspective.” Some have argued that extending the
treaty would amount to recognizing Greek Cyprus, but the government has
denied this. Turkey’s EU talks are due to begin on Oct. 3. /Milliyet/
[12] GERMAN PEACE AWARD GOES TO ORHAN PAMUK
The German Publishers’ and Booksellers’ Association has chosen Turkish
author Orhan Pamuk as the recipient of its peace prize. According to the
association, this award will be given to Pamuk to recognize his efforts for
human and minority rights and his fearless remarks about Turkey’s political
problems. They also praised Pamuk’s exploration of “the historical
footprints of the West in the East and the East in the West.” Asked whether
the award has anything to do with Pamuk’s controversial comments about the
Armenian issue, an association representative said that it did not. The
association’s prize jury added, “Pamuk has created a genre in which Europe
and Islamic Turkey coexist.” He will receive the prize on Oct. 23.
/Hurriyet/
[13] FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
[14] GOOD NEWS NEEDED BY SEMIH IDIZ (MILLIYET)
Columnist Semih Idiz comments on the need for good news from Turkey. A
summary of his column is as follows:
“In spite of confusing signals from the European Union to Turkey, everybody
says our membership talks will start on Oct. 3. The EU should keep its
promise on this date, but certain EU circles, including France and Germany,
say they will continue to try to persuade Turkey to give up its EU
membership bid and that an important part of these efforts will be the
‘negotiation framework’ document. This document will determine the way the
talks will be held. It’s expected that it will be approved by the 25 EU
members. For this reason, those opposed to Turkey will likely add to the
criteria for Turkey’s EU membership. How will this happen? These countries
won’t stipulate new criteria, though they would like to. However, they will
take certain preconditions from the ‘general’ level to the ‘specific’ one.
For example, good neighborly relations are among the EU’s general
conditions. This is a general expression. However, it’s likely that certain
EU members will try to make this concrete by saying that as part of good
neighborly relations, Turkey has to open its borders with Armenia. This is
valid also for the issue of minority foundations. This issue isn’t a
precondition for Turkey’s membership. It’s included in the general
framework called ‘minority rights.’ However, at this point, they might say
that the issue of minority foundations will be an indicator of Turkey’s
commitments about minority rights. If they say that, certain people in
Turkey will use take up anti-EU rhetoric. Those who are opposed Turkey
within the EU also trust the demagogic words of these people.
However, whatever their subjective calculations are, not everybody in the
EU is opposed to Turkey, including Britain, which next week will begin its
term presidency. Of course France might say that Britain is supporting
Turkey to hinder the European bloc. Every country in Europe is making
calculations, and so should we. However, we should do this in the right way
and benefit from others’ calculations. Whatever the reason, those who
support Ankara now expect good news from us. They say, ‘This way we can
gird ourselves against those opposed to Turkey’.”
ARCHIVE
<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="http:/_www.byegm.gov.tr_statistic/countcode.js">
</script>
|
