Cyprus PIO: Turkish Press and Other Media, 08-01-15

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From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] Gul will ask from Amr Musa the lifting of isolations and from Mubarak support for TRNC´s effort to search for oil

[02] Statements by Erdogan on Cyprus from Spain

[03] Turkish Cypriot TDP declares its manifesto and claims that the current situation in Cyprus is not in favour of the Turkish Cypriots

[04] Statements by Soyer on the missing Iraqi athletes and human trafficking

[05] Serdar Denktas leaves open the possibility of his party resigning from the so-called assembly

[06] Turkish diplomat on the ECHR ruling regarding missing Cypriots

[07] The Spanish Prime Minister supports Turkey´s EU membership and views trade between the two countries

[08] Erdogan defends Turkeys closer ties with Iran and argues that the US showed understanding on the issue

[09] Turkey eager to get a share from Saudi Arabian Investment Fund

[10] Meeting with Merkel, Sarkozy in May

[11] Ministers of Turkey, Syria and Iraq agreed on joint projects of common interest by utilizing Euphrates and Tigris resources

[12] Prime Minister Karamanlis to visit Turkey between January 23-25

[B] Commentaries, Editorials and Analysis

[13] From the Turkish Press of 14 January 2008

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] Gul will ask from Amr Musa the lifting of isolations and from Mubarak support for TRNC´s effort to search for oil

(EA)

[02] Statements by Erdogan on Cyprus from Spain

Referring to the referendum held on 23 April 2004 in Cyprus Mr. Erdogan claimed that north Cyprus was punished and south Cyprus was admitted to the EU.

Mr. Erdogan went on and said: Is there any ground so that south Cyprus could be called as Cyprus? There is not. Because at this moment the north Cyprus is not benefiting from the opportunities that the south Cyprus is benefiting on the international, EU and local basis, so, how come that the south Cyprus is speaking on behalf of the north Cyprus? It cannot. The Annan plan was doing away with this, but now this is not done, of course the solution of this should be within the framework of the UN. Is the UN able to solve this problem? Until now it was unable to do it.

If a southern Cypriot buys a kilo of cheese from north Cyprus immediately he is taken to court and punished. Such situation prevails there. We have difficulty to understand how the South Cyprus became EU member.

Look, we are in the course of a negotiation process and still I have difficulty to understand the decision taken by the EU. What is that decision? For example the negotiations could be opened but they could be closed. Why they could not be closed? It could not be closed unless the Cyprus problem is settled. Who is the guilty? TurkeyAre we really the guilty? No, the guilty is Cyprus itself. It is incomprehensible. It is intransigent. It refuses to sit around the negotiating table Unless you sit around a negotiating table it is not possible to reach an agreement. So for this reason continuously they try to make Turkey to foot the bills. Or they come and say to the north Cyprus come and become a minority of south Cyprus. No, the north Cyprus will never become the minority of the south Cyprus, it will not. We are saying this from the very beginning, and continue to say it. It is not possible for us to say yes to an unfair thing on the island where we are a guarantor power. This is the crux of the matter. I do not consider it right for the EU to fix the process as regards the date 2015.

The Turkish daily newspapers (15.01.08) covered Erdogans statements as follows:

Under the subtitle, The TRNC does not become a minority, Hurriyet reports on the statements of Mr Erdogan at the breakfast press conference organised by the Europa Press news agency. The Turkish Premier when asked about Turkeys EU process and the attitude of the French President Nicolas Sarkozy said: Countries that could not fulfil the criteria are now EU members. One of these is south Cyprus, which obstructs our membership, as well. This country did not adapt to the Copenhagen or the Maastricht criteria; tell me how they could complete this job. TRNC will never be Cyprus minority. As Turkey we will never say yes to anything unjust. Esteemed Sarkozy made his election campaign on Turkey. And now he sees the difficulties of this. Through the media he continues to talk about Turkey. In May there will be a meeting in Germany between the leaders of France, Germany and Turkey.

On Erdogans statatements regarding the Cyprus problem Bugun newspaper reports that Mr Erdogan stated: The Greek Cypriot Administration of South Cyprus is mentioned as Cyprus in the EU states. This cannot be accepted. It is sought for North Cyprus to become a minority of South Cyprus. This is not possible. (Answering a question whether the Cyprus problem has a similarity to the Kosovo issue). These days the administration of Kosovo announced its independence. We are evaluating the developments. I would like to say that we look positively towards the independence of Kosovo. Is there any aspect of this that compares to Cyprus or not? There is no relation.

Under the subtitle The situation in Cyprus is very different from the one in Kosovo, Sabah reports on the statements of Turkeys Prime Minister, Mr Recep Tayyip Erdogan, answering a question whether there is any similarity between the Kosovo issue and the Cyprus problem. Mr Erdogan said: I would like to point out that we see positively the independence of Kosovo. Is there any aspect of this that compares to Cyprus or not? There is no relation. Cyprus is very different from the Kosovo issue.

Aksam reports on the statements of Recep Tayyip Erdogan and under the subtitle The TRNC does not become a minority, writes the following: The EU resolution: the negotiations may start but they cannot be closed. Why can they not be closed unless the Cyprus problem is resolved? They are trying to make Turkey pay the bill continuously. The TRNC will never be South Cyprus minority.

(MHY/EA)

[03] Turkish Cypriot TDP declares its manifesto and claims that the current situation in Cyprus is not in favour of the Turkish Cypriots

The President of the Communal Democracy Party (TDP) Mehmet Cakici has declared his partys manifesto at a press conference today.

The partys manifesto is made up of a series of principles under five main titles.

Speaking during the press conference the President of the Communal Democracy Party Mehmet Cakici pointed to the importance of a determined political struggle in order to allow the Turkish Cypriot People to keep its existence in peace and prosperity.

He added the reason for failing to reach a federal solution in Cyprus was the Greek Cypriot sides rejection of the Annan Plan during the 2004 referenda and expressed the view that the current situation on the island is not in favor of the Turkish Cypriot people.

On the same issue, Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (15.01.08) reports that the leader of the Communal Democracy Party (TDP) Mehmet Cakici held a press conference yesterday and announced his partys five-point principles under the title: Manifesto.

In the Manifesto it says that the Turkish Cypriot Community is the sole source of the sovereignty in the north Cyprus and it is the sole boss of its house. It says that the TDP will act in such a way that the TRNC as a local administration will be the politically equal and the partner of the federal wing of the future federal State of Cyprus.

In the Manifesto under the title Initiative will be taken for peace the TDP says that in order to secure a real and lasting peace, first an active policy will be pursued. Effort will be made so that the Turkish Cypriots, being EU citizens, to be represented in every organ of the EU. Opening of the Nicosia Airport and Varosha under the UN auspices will be put on the negotiating table. And the basic objective will be the total demilitarization of the whole of Cyprus.

(MHY)

[04] Statements by Soyer on the missing Iraqi athletes and human trafficking

Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer has stressed that human trafficking is a problem for the whole world and added that the international gangs are also trying to use both the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and the south Cyprus for such purposes.

He also explained that necessary legal arrangements have been made to tackle with issue.

Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer stated that the Iraqi sports team which arrived in the TRNC for a training camp had harmed the republics esteem by seeking asylum in south Cyprus and added that the necessary measures should be taken to prevent similar illegal border activities.

Stressing that the issue of human trafficking is a problem for the whole world, the Premier stated that the international gangs are also trying to use both the TRNC and south Cyprus for such purposes.

Explaining that a radar station has been built by the Cyprus Turkish Security Forces at Kantara, he said that the Northern shore and the gulf of Gazimagusa (occupied Famagusta) will be observed easily by this way.

Stating that the Cyprus Turkish Security Forces has increased the number of coastguard boats, Mr. Soyer explained that necessary arrangements were also made on the law in fighting with human trafficking.

[05] Serdar Denktas leaves open the possibility of his party resigning from the so-called assembly

(MHY)

[06] Turkish diplomat on the ECHR ruling regarding missing Cypriots

Turkey remains hopeful that the Grand Chamber will view favorably its appeal of the top European court's recent ruling in a case revolving around nine Greek Cypriots missing since 1974.

The Grand Chamber is the appeals body of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

The Chamber may rule that these nine Greek Cypriots, 30 years after their disappearance, can no longer be considered missing persons and should be presumed dead,' in line with the rationa temporis principle of international law, said one Turkish diplomat, who asked not to be identified.

According to this principle, a court may allow the families of missing persons to initiate legal procedures, such as those required for inheritance, on the assumption that the missing are no longer alive.

In our case, more than 30 years have passed since their disappearance, the official said. That means the Chamber should reverse its ruling. However it is a very complicated and technical issue. The Court, itself, is confused on this case.

The EHCR Thursday ruled that Turkey violated the right to life of nine Cypriots by failing to investigate their disappearance during its 1974 intervention in northern Cyprus. The decision represents the EHCR's final ruling on the case, which the missing persons' relatives filed in 1990.

The Cypriots went missing after being apprehended by Turkish forces during the military intervention that left the Mediterranean island split into ethnic Greek and Turkish sectors.

By a 6-1 vote, judges at the Strasbourg-based court ruled that "there had been a continuous violation of Article 2 (right to life) of the European Convention on Human Rights resulting from Turkey's failure to conduct an effective investigation into the whereabouts and fate" of the nine Cypriots.

Subtitle: No compensation asked of Turkey

The Turkish official said the ruling had gone just about as expected and, while not altogether satisfactory, left some grounds for consolation.

Foremost among these was the court's refusal to order compensation, the diplomat said, noting that such a step would have been very bad for us, insofar as it would constitute a precedent for future cases.

Each of the applicants was awarded 4,000 euros ($5,900) for costs.

Subtitle:The Cyprus government welcomed the ruling.

"The decision of the ECHR is a positive development and the government expresses its satisfaction, especially on a humanitarian issue as sensitive and tragic as this one," government spokesman, Vasilis Palmas, told reporters.

Turkey has three months to appeal the case to the Grand Chamber.

[07] The Spanish Prime Minister supports Turkeys EU membership and views trade between the two countries

Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said that acceptation of Turkey's full membership will be the most important decision that EU will made in the 21st century.

Speaking at Turkish-Spanish Business Council meeting in Madrid on Monday, Zapatero said that Europe has always kept its promises, and he expressed hope that it would not change its decision about Turkey. (full membership to the Union)

Stressing that the Turkish economy has recorded great progress in the last five years, Zapatero said that the trade volume target --which is 10 billion USD-- between Turkey and Spain will soon be reached. He added that Turkey has a strategical importance for Spain in economic aspect. Zapatero called on Turkish businessmen to invest in Spain.

On the same issue, Ankara Anatolia news agency (14.01.08) reports the following from Madrid: Spain has always supported and will continue to support Turkey's accession to the EU, Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said after his meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Madrid on Monday.

Zapatero said that Turkey is the third biggest partner of Spain in economy, adding that they have all facilities to further increase the trade volume between the two countries which is 7 billion Euro in 2007.

Noting that Turkey and Spain are two big economies, Zapatero said that the two countries have dynamic sectors. Zapatero added that foreign ministers of the two countries were instructed to start activities to develop institutional relations.

[08] Erdogan defends Turkey´s closer ties with Iran and argues that the US showed understanding on the issue

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday that U.S. authorities showed understanding about Turkey's gas deal with Iran and added that there was no problem regarding this matter.

PM Erdogan attended a breakfast organized by 'Europa Press' in Spanish capital of Madrid.

Asked why Turkey got closer with Iran although this country had problems with the United States and Israel, Erdogan said Israel or the United States were unable to meet Turkey's natural gas demand. "So I have to take care of myself," he told reporters.

"United States is a friend, a strategic partner and an ally of Turkey. But they have to understand us since we must import gas from Iran," Erdogan said. "Our American friends showed understanding when we brought up this issue in our talks. There is no problem about this matter," he added.

Despite having made a promise to Turkey that the supply of natural gas would resume on Monday, Iran announced that the supply of natural gas which was halted last week would not begin due to "extremely cold temperatures."

[09] Turkey eager to get a share from Saudi Arabian Investment Fund

Turkey is eager to get a share from the biggest public-capitalized "investment fund" of the world that will be established by Saudi Arabia.

Within this framework, a Turkish delegation headed by State Minister Mehmet Simsek will leave for Dubai on Monday in order to attend a 2-day international investment conference.

According to sources, Turkish officials will invite the fund executives to make wide-scale investments in Turkey.

Officials will also brief investors from the Gulf countries on the investment environment in Turkey, as well as privatization, real estate and tourism projects. Meanwhile, officials said that executives of investment funds from the Gulf countries were particularly interested in investing in energy, telecommunication, retail and logistics sectors.

Saudi Arabia, the biggest oil producer in the world, decided to establish a giant investment fund in order to protect its rising oil incomes. The new fund will compete with other investment funds in the Middle East and Asia. The fund, which will have a minimum initial value of 900 billion USD, is expected to reach 1 trillion USD in value within this year.

[10] Meeting with Merkel, Sarkozy in May

While reiterating Ankara's objection to any option short of Turkey's full membership in the EU, Erdoan said he would meet with the leaders of Germany and France -- which oppose Ankara's bid to join the EU -- in May to discuss future relations between the EU and Turkey. Erdoan had already said last week that the meeting would take place in Germany, but he had not given a date. Turkey rejects outright the idea of any privileged partnership that would replace full membership in the 27-nation bloc. French President Nicolas Sarkozy proposes membership in a "Mediterranean Union" instead of Turkish EU membership.

[11] Ministers of Turkey, Syria and Iraq agreed on joint projects of common interest by utilizing Euphrates and Tigris resources

Ministers of Syria, Iraq and Turkey dealing with water resources on Saturday asserted that there was no row over the quota of each from the water of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers.

Syria's Minister of Irrigation Nader Al-Boni, Iraq's water Resources Minister Abdullatif Gamal Rasheed and the Turkish Minister of Environment and Forestry Veysel Eroglu held talks in Damascus.

The meeting was characterized by collective thinking for investing the joint water resources available for the three countries, the three Ministers told reporters following their talks.

Al-Boni said they had agreed on each country's quota of the Euphrates and Tigris waters.

Turkish friends would never think to cut off water supplies for Syria and Iraq and Syria cannot consider using the water from the two rivers without passing Iraq's quota, the Syrian Minister said.

The ministerial committee also agreed to set up projects on Tigris for the common interests of the three countries in addition to opening a joint training center. Regular meetings of technical committee and ministers are also essential, Al-Boni said.

He added that they had agreed to exchange expertise and data for developing the joint water resources for the good of the region's peoples.

Al-Bonai referred to the water pact signed between Syria and Turkey in 1987, as "historical." According to the pact, Turkey lets 500 cubic metres of water for Syria a second. The Turkish side now allows 700 to 750 cubic metres a second, he said asserting that there are "not problems to be put on the table regarding water from Turkey to Syria or from Syria into Iraq." According to the Syrian Irrigation Minister, Iraq gets 80 percent of its water supplies from the water coming from Turkey through Syria, higher than the 58 percent provided for in the relevant pact.

For his part, the Turkish Minister said the "historical" meeting had discussed several issues on the joint water resources. Eroglu underlined that the necessity of the just and rational use of the Euphrates and Tigris waters, setting up a data bank and drawing up a plan for the water resources available for the three countries.

The Iraqi Minister called for turning the outcome of the ministerial meeting into agreements for dividing the water resources among the three countries.Rasheed said that the meeting was "positive" and could be built upon it for future cooperation and coordination.

[12] Prime Minister Karamanlis to visit Turkey between January 23-25

The last Greek prime minister to make an official visit to Turkey was Karamanlis' uncle, Constantine Karamanlis, in 1959. Karamanlis was originally supposed to visit Turkey in 2005, but the visit failed to take place as Turkey's relations with the European Union began to sour because of the slow progress of its negotiations to join the bloc. Karamanlis' visit will come at a time when the countries have been experiencing considerable tension on certain issues, particularly in recent weeks. In late December the Turkish Foreign Ministry delivered a diplomatic note to the Greek Embassy in Ankara concerning a large number of violations of Turkey's territorial waters in the Aegean Sea by the Greek Coast Guard and fishing boats.

Bilateral cooperation in the energy and banking sectors will be the key items of talks between Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Karamanlis. In the summer of 2007 Ziraat Bank -- the largest public bank in Turkey as well as the most profitable national bank -- received legal approval from the Greek Central Bank to initiate banking services and is supposed to open its first office in the Greek capital of Athens. The procedure for the opening of the branch is expected to be finalized during Karamanlis' visit.

[B] Commentaries, Editorials and Analysis

[13] From the Turkish Press of 14 January 2008

a) Gul´s visit to the United States:

In an article entitled "Tête-à-Tête with Kissinger", Milli Gazete columnist Osman Toprak calls on President Gul to explain why, during the New York leg of his visit to the United States, he had a 45-minute private meeting with Henry Kissinger, the "architect," of the current US foreign policies and the "brains" behind the United States' "imperialist" vision.

In an article entitled "He brought four critical messages," Hurriyet columnist Fatih Cekirge writes about the results of Turkish President Abdullah Gul's visit to the United States last week. He says that US officials told the Turkish side that Turkey should abandon its concerns about Kirkuk and encourage Turkish companies to join projects aimed at producing oil in Kirkuk while cooperating with the United States in coordinating an energy route in Asia and the Caucasus. Cekirge says: "Sharing Kirkuk's oil reserves and energy were the most important aspects of Gul's visit to Washington which were overshadowed by discussions about the PKK."

An interview entitled "We have been cooperating with the United States in the field of energy for 20 Years" in Milliyet quotes Necdet Pamir, an expert in energy, as saying that Turkey cannot take a concrete step in the field of energy until the United States withdraws its troops from Iraq and political stability is achieved in the country. He ascribes reports that Turkey and the United States have reached an agreement to cooperate in tapping Iraq's oil reserves to a public relations exercise aimed at polishing the United States' image in Turkey.

In an article entitled "They are opening a hole in the Ramparts," Ortadogu columnist Orhan Karatas quotes Nationalist Action Party, MHP, leader Devlet Bahceli as saying that his party will staunchly oppose the government's plan to amend Article 301 of the Penal Code because reasons cited by the government do not coincide with the realities of Turkey. Responding to a question about visits paid by Erdogan and Gul to the United States, Bahceli argues that describing the PKK as a common enemy will not be sufficient to root out separatism. He states: "What will those who have declared that the PKK is a common enemy propose after terrorists have been liquidated? There are reports about some political projects. They are trying to unite political parties which make the same statements and demands as the PKK. Their only difference is that they do not use weapons. They intend to replace armed separatists with those who are not armed. They will later advise us to hold negotiations with them in order to resolve the problem."

In an article entitled "To those causing a diplomatic tempest in a teapot", Zaman's Washington correspondent Ali H. Aslan accuses certain "doom merchants" in Turkey of trying to undermine alliance relations between the United States and Turkey in drawing public attention to White House correspondent Dana Perino's use of the term "political solution" in a statement regarding Turkey's fight against the PKK. He also claims that "if what is meant by a political solution is dialog with the PKK and scenarios of a federation or of partition, this could not be said to be Washington's policy."

In an article entitled "Energy move in chess and the eradication of the PKK", Zaman columnist Mehmet Yilmaz argues that while there is no concrete evidence to support allegations that Turkey has pledged to support a US military campaign against Iran in return for securing Washington's backing for its latest operations against the PKK, it is obvious from President Gul's remarks announcing an agreement with the United States to "operate Iraq's oil fields jointly" that Turkey and the United States have developed a "new strategy" to promote "common interests" related to energy security and energy marketing.

In an article entitled "Washington's dilemma between Ankara and Arbil", Today's Zaman columnist Omer Taspinar argues that Turkey was given the following "implicit message" by the Bush administration during Gul's recent visit to Washington: "There is no excuse for not inviting Iraqi President Jalal Talabani to Ankara."

b) Turkish-EU relations: In an article entitled "Summit meeting with Sarkozy and Merkel may be a turning point," Milliyet columnist Semih Idiz says that a summit meeting which Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan plans to hold with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the first part of the year may turn out to be a turning point in Turkish-EU relations. Predicting that Sarkozy will come under pressure to drop his opposition to Turkey's accession to the Union because it conflicts with the United States' vision based on global peace, Idiz says that US support will not be the only factor which will strengthen Turkey's hand in the summit because there are influential countries in the EU which are in favor of Turkey's membership.

EG/

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