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Turkish Press Review, 07-04-12Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning12.04.2007CONTENTS
[01] ERDOGAN TO MEET WITH POLITICAL PARTY LEADERSPrime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday said that he wouldn’t speak with main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal about his presidential candidacy. Erdogan responded to reporters’ questions after an award ceremony held by his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and said that he was planning to meet with political party leaders who hadn’t expressed their views. Erdogan will meet with opposition True Path Party (DYP) leader Mehmet Agar. He is also expected to meet with Social Democratic People’s Party (SHP) leader Murat Karayalcin and People’s Ascent Party (HYP) leader Yasar Nuri Ozturk. /Star/[02] GUL: “WE DON’T SIT AND WATCH THE DEVELOPMENTS”Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said yesterday that Ankara which wants Iraq to protect its unity, cannot only sit and watch the developments against it. Speaking to reporters before a meeting in Ankara with the representatives from economy and business world to discuss ongoing studies on Turkey’s United Nations Security Council temporary membership bid, Gul said Turkey would like a formation in Iraq depending on friendship and fraternity, adding that it would only be possible with respect for rights of all groups in the region. Turkey will protect itself, if harmful attacks continue against it, added Turkey’s top diplomat. /Turkiye-Sabah/[03] ANKARA PREPARES AN IRAQ PLANAnkara is preparing an Iraq plan to be implemented if the Iraqi administration doesn’t take steps against the terrorist group PKK. Under the action plan being prepared by the Foreign Ministry, Turkey will carry the issue to international platforms including the United Nations and lower political relations with Iraq. Afterwards, economic sanctions will be imposed. If no positive developments are recorded, then military operations will be on the agenda. Closure of Habur border gate, cutting energy power transferred to northern Iraq and delivery of construction materials as well as petroleum products, and diminishing dispatch of food are among the economic sanctions to be imposed. Furthermore, private airlines’ direct flights from Istanbul to Iraq are planned to be cancelled. In related news, Levent Bilman, spokesman of the Foreign Ministry, said yesterday that the note submitted to Iraq earlier this week urged the administration to ensure security along the Turkish border, capture of the PKK militants and surrender to Turkey, as well as implement its responsibilities within the framework of the United Nations. He added that Ankara awaits the reply of the Iraqi administration soon. /Turkiye/[04] PARLIAMENT SPEAKER ANNOUNCES ELECTION SCHEDULEParliament Speaker Bulent Arinc yesterday met with deputy group chairmen of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and presented a schedule for the upcoming presidential election. He proposed two alternatives referring to the election schedule. First formula calls for holding the first round of elections on April 26, the second round on May 1, the third round on May 8 and the forth round on May 15. According to the second formula, elections will start on May 3, the second round on May 7, the third round on May 11 and the last round on May 15. /Hurriyet/[05] FM GUL TO TRAVEL TO TRNCForeign Minister Abdullah Gul is set to travel to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). During his two-day stay, Gul is expected to meet with President Mehmet Ali Talat and Cyprus Turkish Peace Forces Commander Lieutenant-General Hayri Kivrikoglu and attend a series of opening ceremonies. /Turkiye/[06] GUL AND BABACAN GIVE SIGNALS ON EARLY ELECTIONSState Minister for Economy Ali Babacan supported some ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) official’s statements on early elections and strengthened the thesis on AKP to bring forward the elections. Speaking to Milliyet daily, Babacan said, “Presidential election ends in May,” adding, “There’s no need to wait for months for the general elections. My personal opinion is that we should bring forward the elections in order to provide the new parliament to begin new legislative term as of Oct. 1. If we held elections in November it requires additional budget. Parliament will begin to work in February. If we bring forward general elections two months we will bring in four months to the parliament and the government. Meanwhile, after being asked about Babacan’s statements on early elections, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said, “Date of the elections is certain, but if there will be a change due to technical reasons, that’s different.” /Cumhuriyet/[07] BUYUKANIT TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCEChief of General Staff Gen.Yasar Buyukanit is set to hold a press conference this afternoon. A written statement released by the Office of General Staff said Buyukanit will inform the public concerning the recent developments related to the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK). It is highly expected that Buyukanit mention the press reports arguing that top commanders of the army planned to stage a coup in 2004, based on the alleged diary of retired Naval Forces Commander Adm. Ozden Ornek. The conference will be the first press conference at the General Staff headquarters after 21 months. In related news, Buyukanit yesterday paid a courtesy visit to newly appointed Security Director General Oguz Kaan Koksal in Ankara. Stressing that policemen and soldiers are integral parts, the top commander said the two organizations are working together to ensure peace in the country. /Milliyet/[08] WASHINGTON BACKS TURKEYWhile the US evaluates Turkey’s note to Iraq following Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani’s recent statements as Turkey’s appreciation, the Washington administration states that northern Iraq is the unique stable region of the country and sends messages to Turkey not to damage stability. The US doesn’t want Turkey to impose economic sanctions on the region. Meanwhile, the US conveyed to Turkey’s Special Envoy for Iraq Oguz Celikkol, currently in Washington, that they would do their utmost to make Iraqi-Turkish Commission on the Fight Against Terrorism functional again. But Ankara opposes to this. In related news, French daily Le Figaro claimed that the crisis between Turkey and the Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani reflected the sensitivity of the Kurdish issue. The paper drew attention to the Iraqi conference to be held in Egypt instead of Istanbul and claimed that Turkey had difficulty in imposing itself in the diplomacy game in the region. /Cumhuriyet/FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS... [09] TURKEY AND IRAQBY TURGUT TAHRANLI (RADIKAL)Columnist Turgut Tahranli comments on Turkey’s relations with Iraq. A summary of his column is as follows: “It seems that discussion caused by Kurdish leader Massud Barzani’s remarks last weekend was linked with other issues concerning Turkey’s policy on Iraq and extended. The essence of this discussion was about intervening in a domestic affair. Legally, rules and the international application about this issue aren’t ambiguous. Therefore, there must be no problem about announcing concerns about this issue through a diplomatic language which wouldn’t obstruct communications between the two sides. However, as we have been seeing from the last weekend to today, the only problem isn’t the intervention in domestic affairs. In addition, the presence of terrorist PKK in northern Iraq or its using this region as a logistic support is the other parallel issue of discussion. As is known, this isn’t a new development. This problem has been known since the 1980’s. However, it should be understood that these two issues of discussion should be kept separate carefully and then a stance should be assumed. Let me be clearer. If Turkey’s concerns about the change of demographic structure in Kirkuk and remarks made by Barzani are to be evaluated in terms of intervening in domestic affairs in terms of two sides, it seems a requirement not to ignore the international standards which cause or prevent such a definition. However, the fact that northern Iraq is being used in a way that would cause Turkey to be concerned doesn’t indicate a situation necessarily overlapping with the former issue. And maybe it can be appropriate for causing a more serious problem, because the prohibition of using force and threatening to use force is a legal and binding rule which covers all the international legal actors. In the light of these developments, among the first reactions of Turkey against Barzani’s remarks was its request of support from the US secretary of state. Now the US is the occupying force in Iraq. In parallel to this, it can be said that it has an authority on this country. However, Turkey, which is its neighboring state, recognized Iraq as an independent and sovereign state and always mentioned its policy about it. Now, how can it show openly that it expects help from the US in a diplomatic stance which is fully outside this essence? This is unacceptable not only in terms of international law, but also concerning the Turkish-Iraqi relations. Foreign Ministry stated during its press conference this week that this desperate situation was completely changed and a note was sent to Iraqi authorities to inform them on these concerns. Maybe it can be thought that efforts were made to repair this mistaken initiative. Now, as far as it can be seen, two basic problems which are different from each other, started to be discussed and this situation causes complication about what sort of a policy will be effective about these issues. For example, it’s equally meaningless to defend such ‘alternatives’ as military intervention about concerns over a demographic change and to ignore the fact that the border security can’t be ensured effectively. In terms of relations between the states, just like relations between the people, the meaning of determining why the two states need each other cannot be explained only with the fact that the power is determining. This gains more power in relations between the two countries, because even if you want, you can’t leave your neighbor with whom you live next to each other. Instead of this, planning to ignore it cannot be considered a solution. Thus, the value of making efforts for living together not by standing back to back, but by looking at each other should be seen by the two sides.” [10] BARZANI: TURKEY’S NEW OCALANBY MEHMET TEZKAN (VATAN)Columnist Mehmet Tezkan comments on the terrorist PKK head Ocalan, Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani and his recent remarks. A summary of his column is as follows: “Turkey has struggled against the terrorist leader Abdullah Ocalan for years. From 1984 till 1999… The terrorist leader had a protector then: Syria. He would talk large and threaten Turkey. Ankara would then turn to Syria, call Syrian President Hafız Esat and want him to make the terrorist leader stop talking. And he would always say that he is not in Syria and they didn’t know where he was. The same things went on for years… And one day Syria saw that the straw that broke the camel's back came. He caught the terrorist leader and deported him. Thus, the main base of the terrorist PKK shifted to northern Iraq. After nearly five years of silence, when the US invaded Iraq, both the terrorist PKK and the peshmergas found themselves a new protector. And Turkey got another trouble, a new Ocalan: Barzani. He talks large and threatens Turkey, too. Ankara calls Baghdad and wants them to make him stop talking, just like they used to call Syria. Terrorist PKK and its leader Ocalan used to be on the top of the agenda at National Security Council meetings. Today, terrorist PKK is taken up again but together with Barzani. Because he looks after it. But what is the problem? The Kirkuk referendum… Barzani aims at making Kirkuk a Kurdish city and the capital of the Kurdish state he plans to establish. Ankara objects and says that the demographic structure of Kirkuk is being changed. In such an atmosphere Barzani said that if Turkey intervened in Kirkuk, they would intervene in Diyarbakir. What courage! How would he intervene? By sending the PKK militants he is supporting with weapons to Turkey? If so, it means that he became like terrorist Ocalan.” Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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