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Turkish Press Review, 06-04-27
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
27.04.2006
AUSTRALIAN GOVERNOR-GENERAL
VISITS ANKARA
ERDOGAN ENCOURAGES TURKISH
SCHOLARS TO AIM FOR NOBEL PRIZE
GUL, RICE DISCUSS BILATERAL
TIES, TERRORIST PKK
FM GUL ATTENDS UNOFFICIAL
MEETING OF NATO COUNTERPARTS
FOREIGN MINISTRY: “TURKISH
SOLDIERS WILL STAY IN NORTHERN IRAQ AS LONG AS
PKK PRESENCE PERSISTS”
EU GREENLIGHTS TURKEY’S TALKS
ON EDUCATION AND CULTURE
ISTANBUL HOSTING WORLD
BUSINESSWOMEN’S SUMMIT
CHP DEPUTY CHAIR: “PARLIAMENT
SHOULD BE BRIEFED ON THE STRATEGIC COMMON VISION
PAPER”
IRAN’S LARIJANI SET TO VISIT
ANKARA NEXT WEEK
GREEK PRESS: “RICE BACKS
TURKEY”
NEW ENVIRONMENT LAW INTRODUCES
TOUGH FINES
FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE
COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…
WHO’S CHANGED?
BY DENIZ ULKE ARIBOGAN (AKSAM)
CONTENTS
[01] AUSTRALIAN GOVERNOR-GENERAL VISITS
ANKARA
[02] ERDOGAN ENCOURAGES TURKISH SCHOLARS
TO AIM FOR NOBEL PRIZE
[03] GUL, RICE DISCUSS BILATERAL TIES,
TERRORIST PKK
[04] FM GUL ATTENDS UNOFFICIAL MEETING
OF NATO COUNTERPARTS
[05] FOREIGN MINISTRY: “TURKISH SOLDIERS
WILL STAY IN NORTHERN IRAQ AS LONG AS PKK
PRESENCE PERSISTS”
[06] EU GREENLIGHTS TURKEY’S TALKS ON
EDUCATION AND CULTURE
[07] ISTANBUL HOSTING WORLD
BUSINESSWOMEN’S SUMMIT
[08] CHP DEPUTY CHAIR: “PARLIAMENT
SHOULD BE BRIEFED ON THE STRATEGIC COMMON VISION
PAPER”
[09] IRAN’S LARIJANI SET TO VISIT ANKARA
NEXT WEEK
[10] GREEK PRESS: “RICE BACKS TURKEY”
[11] NEW ENVIRONMENT LAW INTRODUCES
TOUGH FINES
[12] FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE
COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…
[13] WHO’S CHANGED?
BY DENIZ ULKE ARIBOGAN (AKSAM)
[01] AUSTRALIAN GOVERNOR-GENERAL VISITS
ANKARA
Australian Governor-General
Michael Jeffery, who is currently visiting
Turkey for ceremonies marking the 91st
anniversary of the Battle of Canakkale,
yesterday met separately with President Ahmet
Necdet Sezer and Parliament Speaker Bulent
Arinc. In the evening, Sezer hosted a dinner in
the honor of his overseas guest. /Turkiye/
[02] ERDOGAN ENCOURAGES TURKISH SCHOLARS
TO AIM FOR NOBEL PRIZE
Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, accompanied by
Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan, Health Minister
Recep Akdag and Education Minister Huseyin Celik
yesterday visited Ankara’s Bilkent University
Nanotechnology Institute. Addressing a meeting
there, Erdogan encouraged scholars to work hard,
adding that in future years he hopes to see a
Turkish scholar winning the Nobel Prize. Erdogan
also paid a visit to Professor Ihsan Dogramaci,
the founder of Bilkent University. /Turkiye/
[03] GUL, RICE DISCUSS BILATERAL TIES,
TERRORIST PKK
US
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, paying an
official visit to Turkey, yesterday met with
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul to discuss a
number of issues, including bilateral relations.
During their meeting, Gul said that cooperation
between the two countries should be further
developed. Gul further reportedly stated that
Ankara appreciated the US’ longtime recognition
of the PKK as a terrorist group, and called for
the US to play a more active role against the
PKK at a time when it has been stepping up
attacks. For her part, Rice reportedly said that
Ankara and Washington trusted each other and
added, “Our dialogue should be strengthened.”
Following the meeting, diplomats said that
Rice’s visit would bolster close ties between
Washington and Ankara. The diplomats stated that
there was strategic cooperation between the two
countries and that there should be more talks in
order to develop this cooperation. After
completing her contacts in Turkey, Rice
proceeded to Iraq. /Turkiye/
[04] FM GUL ATTENDS UNOFFICIAL MEETING
OF NATO COUNTERPARTS
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul left Ankara
yesterday morning to attend a two-day unofficial
NATO foreign ministers meeting to be held in
Sofia, Bulgaria. Gul traveled by land due to his
recent ear illness, and he and his accompanying
delegation spent the night in Edirne. The group
is expected to go to Sofia this morning. The
next NATO summit set for Riga, Latvia this
November and general security issues will be
debated during the meetings, which starts today.
/Star/
[05] FOREIGN MINISTRY: “TURKISH SOLDIERS
WILL STAY IN NORTHERN IRAQ AS LONG AS PKK
PRESENCE PERSISTS”
The Foreign Ministry yesterday
responded to a note from Iraq claiming that
Ankara was conducting “hot pursuit” in northern
Iraq. The Foreign Ministry stressed that Turkish
soldiers would continue to stay in the region as
long as the presence of the terrorist PKK
persists there. In related news, Foreign
Ministry spokesman Namik Tan said that the
measures taken by the government in the region
aimed at ensuring security. “The presence of PKK
necessitates these measures,” added Tan.
/Milliyet/
[06] EU GREENLIGHTS TURKEY’S TALKS ON
EDUCATION AND CULTURE
During the meeting of the European Union
Permanent Representatives Committee (COREPER) in
Brussels held yesterday, the body gave the
go-ahead to begin Ankara’s EU talks on the
education and culture chapter. The invitation
letter to be sent to Ankara will reportedly not
include any reference to political criteria.
/Sabah/
[07] ISTANBUL HOSTING WORLD
BUSINESSWOMEN’S SUMMIT
The
two-day World Businesswomen’s Summit is due to
begin in Istanbul today. Afghan President Hamid
Karzai’s wife Ziniat arrived in Istanbul on
Tuesday to attend the summit. Later, Bosnia
Herzegovina prime minister’s wife Niado Terzic
and Lebanon Parliament speaker’s wife Randa
Berri arrived yesterday in Istanbul to attend
the summit. However, Egyptian President Hosni
Mubarak’s wife Suzanne Mubarek cancelled her
visit to Turkey. /Sabah/
[08] CHP DEPUTY CHAIR: “PARLIAMENT
SHOULD BE BRIEFED ON THE STRATEGIC COMMON VISION
PAPER”
The main opposition Republican
People’s Party (CHP) yesterday balked at a
strategic common vision paper to be developed
between Turkey and the US as announced after the
Tuesday meeting of US Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice and her Turkish counterpart
Abdullah Gul. CHP Deputy Chairman Onur Oymen
said that they found such a prospect unrealistic
and that the government should tell Parliament
about the document. Oymen said that two
countries’ basic strategic issues must overlap
in order to speak about a strategic cooperation
between them. Oymen said that no strategic
partnership is possible in this context, adding,
“The US may have a strategic partnership with
Israel or Britain. But the US doesn’t speak
about effective intervention in northern Iraq to
fight against the terrorist PKK. There are
different views on the visit of Hamas to Turkey
(in February). They have different thoughts on
the Cyprus issue. The US accepts Southern Cyprus
as the ‘Cypriot state’.” /Star/
[09] IRAN’S LARIJANI SET TO VISIT ANKARA
NEXT WEEK
Iran’s top nuclear negotiator is planning to
visit Turkey next Wednesday, diplomatic sources
said yesterday. Larijani’s visit, originally
planned for this week, was postponed due to US
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s decision
to visit Ankara on Tuesday. Turkish sources said
that Ankara is willing to listen to one of
Iran’s highest officials responsible for their
nuclear program talk about Tehran’s ideas.
Larijani is Iran’s top negotiator during talks
with Russia and Western states, and he is
secretary general of Tehran’s Supreme National
Security Council (SNSC). /The New Anatolian/
[10] GREEK PRESS: “RICE BACKS TURKEY”
The remarks of US Secretary of
State Condoleezza Rice, speaking to Athens
dailies prior to her visit to Ankara, were
reported in the Greek press with the headings,
“Rice backs Turkey.” She told the papers,
“Though Cyprus is a divided island, when it
(Greek Cyprus) entered the European Union, this
caused anxiety that its position would
complicate Turkey’s EU bid. But (Greek) Cyprus
was saying the opposite. Now it should keep its
promises.” Rice said that the Annan plan was a
fair solution for the island, and she also
reproached Greek Cypriots for rejecting the plan
two years ago. She said that she had wanted to
explore both in Athens and Ankara if there is
the basis for a new initiative. /Star/
[11] NEW ENVIRONMENT LAW INTRODUCES
TOUGH FINES
The
new Environment Law, after being shelved for 11
years, has finally been passed by Parliament,
stipulating tough fines for environmental
polluters. Environment Minister Osman Pepe said
he had repeatedly voiced concern over the
previous failure to pass the bill into law,
adding that Turkey needs to spend 35 billion
euros just to conform to European Union
standards. Under the new law, fish farms cannot
be established in protected coastal areas of
archeological and natural importance.
Environmental education is set as a priority for
schools. In addition, noise pollution is banned,
and those found guilty of committing that
infraction will pay fines of between YTL
200-6,000. /Turkish Daily News/
[12] FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE
COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…
[13] WHO’S CHANGED?
BY DENIZ ULKE ARIBOGAN (AKSAM)
Columnist Deniz Ulke Aribogan comments on
Turkish-US relations. A summary of her column is
as follows:
“Calculations of loss and gain are like a book
of accounts which is never closed. All the
details, figures, supporters, non-supporters,
friends, enemies, etc. are written in it. Then,
it’s sai,d ‘Look, we did this in the past and we
didn’t forget that.’ Sometimes the sacks over
the heads of Turkish soldiers in northern Iraq
(in July 2003), Turkey’s rejection of deployment
of US soldiers in March 2003 or Hamas’ visit
(this February) are brought up. Actually, all
these are bargaining chips which don’t create
great changes in the big political picture but
are like the little brushstrokes on a painting.
Rises and falls are normal and the negative
behavior against you can be trump cards which
can strengthen your hand at the bargaining
table. Alliance with Turkey is an indispensable
relation for the US, which has become an
essential element of the Middle East. It’s a
great risk even for the world’s greatest
military power to continue its presence in a
region this far away from its center. This is a
very expensive choice both economically and
politically, because the need for allies is
always greater than ever in an operation away
from one’s center. A foreign policy doctrine
constructed on unilateralism can’t succeed, if
you’re not an isolationist. It’s possible to be
allies in politics, if not friends. For this
purpose, common interests and concerns are
necessary. Centers of strength in the world are
now more varied and numerous than ever. No
single power can govern the world alone. There
are those who think that they can understand
this through trial and error. Creators of the
doctrine of unilateral foreign policy in the US
are being slowly shed. Now, there’s a foreign
policy perspective which prefers a role of
leadership, rather than that of master.
In
this respect, US Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice’s visit is important. Even if crises occur
sometimes, no party wants a huge crisis. As a
matter of fact, more than 30 high-ranking visits
were paid during the last year between Turkey
and the US. They know the importance of
bilateral relations, but there are angry masses
on both sides. The public in Turkey is very
angry with US policies. Many people in Turkey
think that the US is Turkey’s greatest enemy.
The terrorist PKK is associated not with Kurds,
but with the US in our minds. Although the US
has the PKK on its list of terrorists, nobody
believes the US’ sincerity on this issue. The US
might think that this is a false image, but it’s
a mistake to look for the problem somewhere
else. It would be enough to consider not only
Turkey’s, but also the masses’ stance in the
world. However, after Rice became the driver, a
partial change started to emerge. There’s no
change in general aims, don’t get me wrong. The
US is leaning towards concluding its operation
in the Middle East, but it seems the method will
be different.”
ARCHIVE
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