Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 11-05-17

Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT PRESS

[01] Ozersay holds contacts in Berlin

[02] Eroglu comments on Keryneia's town planning

[03] Kucuk says they might establish a unit against money laundering

[04] Soyer criticizes a NATO exercise in the British military bases in Cyprus

[05] So-called deputies to attend the European Parliament meeting

[06] A workshop on the "Cyprus dispute" at "UKU"

[07] Tatar says that the "budget" deficit of the breakaway regime is decreased

[08] First charter flight from Manchester arrives in the occupied area

[09] Kioneli's "population" grows

[B] TURKISH PRESS

[10] Turkey's budget posts a surplus in April for the first time in 23 years

[11] Erdogan on Turkey's economy: Turkey to pay off IMF debts by April 2013

[12] Iraq, Turkey intensify talks on new border gate

[13] Erdogan: "Election threshold could be lowered in 2015"

[14] Turkish Parliament Speaker to attend G-20 Parliament Speakers' Meeting

[15] UK to expand its activities in Turkey

[16] An Armenian community to establish a new party in Turkey

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT PRESS

[01] Ozersay holds contacts in Berlin

In addition, Ozersay paid a courtesy visit to the Turkish Ambassador to Berlin Ahmet Acet and visited the so-called honorary consulate of the occupation regime in the city of Werl. Today, Ozersay will meet with the Turkish-German Law Council, which was established in March, where the legal dimensions of the Cyprus problem will be evaluated. Ozersay will return to the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus on Wednesday.

[02] Eroglu comments on Keryneia's town planning

Moreover Eroglu commenting on the proposed construction of skyscrapers in Keryneia said that the issue can be handled with the decision taken by the "government." Orhan Tolun, the spokesperson of the initiative however said that the decision taken is not enough, since "ministerial decisions" continuously change and the beauty of Keryneia disappears in the sake of development.

[03] Kucuk says they might establish a unit against money laundering

Addressing yesterday the "assembly" of the breakaway regime, he noted that the US Ambassador and the British High Commissioner to Lefkosia are very much interested with the issue.

"After an invitation by the US Ambassador I met with him at lunch and I saw that they are closely interested with the "black money" issue. We cannot remain indifferent to this issue", he said.

Kucuk noted that last week he had invited the British High Commissioner to dinner and the issue of "black money" came again onto their agenda. He argued that his party has always been sensitive on the matter of "black money" and supported the "laws" prepared in the past on this issue. He said he expects the support of all parties on this issue. Kucuk added that he discussed with the British High Commissioner the issue of projects which will develop their relations with the EU and especially the inclusion of the occupied area of Cyprus into a project regarding livestock breeding that started in the government-controlled area of the island.

Turkish Cypriot daily Halkin Sesi (17.05.11) refers to the issue under the title "The government will establish an intelligence organization" and writes that Kucuk said they will start working for establishing an intelligence organization on money laundering which will be either under the "prime minister's office" or the "presidency".

(I/Ts.)

[04] Soyer criticizes a NATO exercise in the British military bases in Cyprus

Soyer argued that this act constitutes an initiative towards the accession of Cyprus to NATO, noting that such a thing before the solution of the Cyprus problem is discussed publicly. He expressed his worry that this accession will happen before the solution of the Cyprus problem, as it had happened with the accession of Cyprus into the EU. He criticized the mentality of the National Unity Party and Dervis Eroglu which he, inter alia, called "passive, diffident and trying to postpone the solution of the Cyprus problem".

Soyer criticized also the fact that Britain stopped the procedures for issuing visa in the occupied part of Cyprus for the "citizens of the TRNC" who want to travel to the UK.

(I/Ts.)

[05] So-called deputies to attend the European Parliament meeting

[06] A workshop on the "Cyprus dispute" at "UKU"

Denktas, inter alia, said that the Cyprus Government did not exist after the 1963 incidents, adding, that although a partnership government was set in Cyprus, it has allegedly remained. He said that the aim of the Greek Cypriots is to remove the guarantorship and to free from the agreement of guarantees.

Denktas also said that Turkey will not make any concession on the issue of the "national cause" as it is called. He added that the Greek Cypriots' aim is to achieve the departure of Turkey from Cyprus and to break the relations between Turkey and the breakaway regime.

Referring to the international aspect of the Cyprus problem, Talat said that they should pursue a political policy compatible with the world. He added that if they want to announce to the world on the realities going on in the occupied area, they should continue using the international law and the political standards. He also said that their recognition is related to the international law.

Dr Ahmet Zeki, a lecturer of the International Affairs Faculty of Baskent University, said that the "Cyprus dispute" may be classified in a better way, adding that "it should be Cyprus Turkish people and not a Turkish Cypriot community."

[07] Tatar says that the "budget" deficit of the breakaway regime is decreased

Responding to criticism against his "government" yesterday at the "assembly", Tatar noted that the course of the economy is good in this sense. He admitted, though, that personnel expenses increased in the first three months of 2011, noting that this is because of the increase on overtime payments.

(I/Ts.)

[08] First charter flight from Manchester arrives in the occupied area

The tour operators use the fleet of Onur Air, one of the biggest airlines in Turkey, which currently has 4 flights per week from Stansted, Manchester and Birmingham. The director of Cyprus Paradise and Cyprus Premier said that flights will continue also during the winter, every Saturday from Manchester and Sunday from Stansted, and for the next summer season they will try to establish flights from various areas of the UK. He also mentioned that their target for the first year is to transport 20 thousand passengers.

[09] Kioneli's "population" grows

Speaking to the paper, the so-called mayor of Kioneli Ahmet Benli, inter alia, said that they feel proud of transforming Kioneli "from a village to a city", noting that "Kioneli becomes bigger, its budget becomes bigger, but its problems never become bigger".

[B] TURKISH PRESS

[10] Turkey's budget posts a surplus in April for the first time in 23 years

According to the figures, Turkey's central management budget yielded a surplus of 1.1 billion Turkish lira (TL) in April 2011. (One U.S. dollar is equal to 1.59 TL). The budget posted a surplus in April for the first time in 23 years.

Budget expenditures were 22.4 billion U.S. dollars and incomes were 23.5 billion TL in April.

In the period between January and April, budget expenses were 95.3 billion TL and incomes at 92.2 billion TL. The budget deficit was 3 billion TL in the relevant period.

[11] Erdogan on Turkey's economy: Turkey to pay off IMF debts by April 2013

Speaking at the 66th General Assembly of the Union of Chambers & Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) in Ankara on Monday, Erdogan said: "Although we have less than a month ahead of the general elections on June 12, there are not any uncertainties or any concerns about the economy."

"Today, Turkstat announced that the jobless rate was down to 11.5%. It will further drop in the coming months," he said.

"Gross foreign exchange reserves of the Turkish Central Bank including gold rose to $95.3 billion. Reserves increased by $63 billion in the last 8.5 years. In 2002, Turkey's total debt to IMF was $23.5 billion. Now, our debt is $5 billion. We can repay that debt instantly. But, we are not in a hurry since we borrowed it very cheaply. Turkey will pay off all its debt to IMF by April 2013," he said.

"Sales of automobiles and household appliances are on the rise. In the first four months of this year, 177 thousand automobiles were sold. In the same period last year, 104 thousand automobiles were sold in Turkey. On the other hand, sales of automobiles increased up to 510 thousands in 2010 from 91 thousands in 2002. Our tourism revenues also increased to $21 billion in 2010 from $8.5 billion in 2002," he said. "Turkey has never seen such an atmosphere of stability during an election period before," he added.

[12] Iraq, Turkey intensify talks on new border gate

Although on the agenda for more than a decade, were ups and down between the two neighboring countries, the opening of a new border gate became almost an urban legend at some stage. Yet, as a sign of improving mutual will for improving relations as well as the presence of a growing mutual confidence between the two nations, attempts to make this project a reality, have been intensified.

"The opening of a new border gate near the Ibrahim Khalil border gate has come on the agenda of our talks with Turkish officials," Iraq's newly appointed Planning Minister Ali Youssef al-Shukri told Today's Zaman last week in 0
stanbul during a brief interview on the sidelines of the Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC-IV).

While in 0
stanbul, Dr al-Shukri had separate talks with Turkey's Economy Minister and the State Minister for Planning with the intent to strengthen bilateral cooperation between the two countries covering the agenda of talks. Dr al-Shukri called on Turkish corporations to invest in Iraq. "We haven't yet determined an exact venue for the new border gate. A lot of further meetings need to be held in order to be able to determine the venue," al-Shukri told Today's Zaman. "It is a fact that the financial aspect of this plan is really significant which necessitates involvement of the Finance Ministries in the issue actively. Nonetheless, as the [Iraqi] Ministry of Planning, we attach high importance to the opening of a new border gate with Turkey as it will pave the way for new investments from Turkey to Iraq," al-Shukri added.

[13] Erdogan: "Election threshold could be lowered in 2015"

The current 10% threshold for parliamentary representation was criticized by opposition parties for being too high, while the Prime Minister defends it as a way to maintain stability. "If we reach our goals by 2015, we may change it [the threshold] by one or two points". The Prime Minister defined these "goals" as "a strong economy, and a constitution citizens can call their own."

The current threshold, however, "has to be maintained [until then] to ensure stability and trust," Erdogan said adding that they plan on changing the Political Parties Law and the Election Law. "Subjects like the election threshold should be set on certain foundations" Erdogan added.

[14] Turkish Parliament Speaker to attend G-20 Parliament Speakers' Meeting

Sahin will leave for Seoul on Tuesday as the guest of South Korean Parliament Speaker Park Hee Tae.

He is set to visit the International Rainbow School and meet with representatives of Turkish non-governmental organizations in South Korea on May 18. The Meeting of G-20 Parliament Speakers will begin on May 19.

Sahin will deliver a speech at the first session of the meeting on the fight against terrorism and the inter-parliamentary cooperation strategies for world peace.

[15] UK to expand its activities in Turkey

Turkey's growing role in the Middle East, its membership in the G-20 and its becoming more vocal and active around the world were among the factors that contributed to the decision, according to Embassy official Giles Portman."We are focusing on the countries that we think are going to have a global influence in the future. In all the Consulates in Europe we will be reducing our staff; Istanbul is the only Consulate in Europe where we are growing our political staff."

British Foreign Minister William Hague in his statements last week announced that there would be a shift of resources in Britain's diplomatic missions around the world. Besides significantly increasing its presence in emerging superpowers China and India, Hague said the U.K. would also make a substantial expansion of its diplomatic strength in Brazil, Turkey, Mexico and Indonesia.

Portman said also the following: "This is something that is going to boost our power of influence, particularly in the most powerful economies in the future. Turkey was identified as one of those important countries, so there would probably be new Consulates opening in several big cities in Turkey. The names of the cities are not certain yet but we might open subordinate Consulates on the south coast of Turkey as well as in some big industrial cities such as Bursa and Kayseri".

Portman added that the Embassy in Ankara and the Consulate in Istanbul will also get bigger, with a combination of more senior British diplomats and senior Turkish staff based in both cities. He also said the following: "We have actually been expanding in Turkey for several years now. We have a new strategic partnership that was launched last year. But what the Foreign Secretary wanted to do is to make a strategic shift by reducing some of our staff in some European countries and focusing on the countries that we think are going to have a global influence in the future."

According to Portman, Turkey "is a vital partner in NATO, has an important influence in Middle Eastern countries as an EU candidate and negotiating country, is very popular with British tourists and is a country with which we certainly want to double our trade."

All of these factors "make Turkey very important to us," he said, explaining that this is "why we decided to focus even more resources on Turkey in the future."

Portman said the new missions would focus closely on the "prosperity agenda," which he said "means support for Turkey but also support for British business. It is also about increasing our trade links and continuing our support for Turkey's EU accession."

The shift in resources might also create new areas of work in the Consulates' commercial and trade areas, Portman said. "We want to continue our work on increasing prosperity and work on things like energy security and energy cooperation with Turkey," he added.

[16] An Armenian community to establish a new party in Turkey

The party's founder 0
smet Sahin, is a former deputy candidate from Istanbul s second region who ran on the ranks of the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party, or BDP, until he was excluded from the candidate list. The new party s name will be publicly announced following the general elections of June 12. Sahin also served in BDP's ranks in previous elections.

In his statements, Sahin, who is a prominent member of the Hemsin community, told Hurriyet Daily News that they will become a party that will produce global solutions for social problems and protect the general interests of all oppressed people. "Our party will remain completely outside the left-right paradigm", Sahin said.

The Hemsin were originally Armenians who fled to the Pontus region along the eastern Black Sea as Arab troops occupied their homeland in 790. In 1480 the Ottomans conquered the area and in 1600 instituted the "devsirme," in which suitable young boys were taken from Christian families to be educated. The Christians in the region often converted to Islam to get rid of the "devsirme" and other taxes that were applied to them.

Referring to AKP's policy towards the Armenians, Sahin said: "It would have been naive to expect positive results. The AKP still uses the Armenian identity as a form of curse in tete a tete debates". Sahin then accused the ruling AKP and the main opposition CHP of nationalism, and added that the Armenian community of Istanbul is still an inconsequential factor in Turkey's political and social structure. "The presence of even a single Armenian deputy in Parliament would remind Turkey of its history; it would force Turkey to face up to its own history. Turkey does not have the courage to face up to its history," said Sahin. TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION http://www.moi.gov.cy/pio

EG/

Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article