Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 16-12-28

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

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS

[01] Ak?nc? reiterated that the withdrawal of the Turkish troops from the island is a red line for them

[02] Former Turkish Cypriot negotiators on the Geneva summit

[03] Political crisis between the parties of the "coalition government" over the approval of a "draft law" regarding privatizations

[04] Ertugruloglu met with Erdogan

[05] Second part of survey reveals that Diyalog is the most read Turkish Cypriot paper

[06] Occupied Lefka area became the "6th district" of the breakaway regime

[07] Erdogan: "US-led coalition failed to keep its promises; Turkey will liberate Al-Bab"

[08] Turkey's Simsek: "EU is a key anchor and Turkey should not lose it"

[09] First 3 articles of amendment package approved by Constitutional Committee

[10] HDP Deputy asked for Charter talks to be suspended until arrested MPs released

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS

[01] Ak?nc? reiterated that the withdrawal of the Turkish troops from the island is a red line for them

Speaking to BBC's Turkish service, Ak?nc? said that the main aim of the two sides is to return from Geneva with a decision to hold referenda later in the year.

He, however, alleged that it will not be possible to solve all the outstanding issues at the summit.

Ak?nc? underlined that the complete withdrawal of the Turkish troops from the island as demanded by the Greek Cypriot side and Greece is not possible as this is a red line for the Turkish Cypriot side.

He added that a limited number of troops will remain on the island in the event of a settlement as this is a necessity. "Mr. Anastasiades and I are from the same generation. This current attempt actually is the final attempt of our generation" said Ak?nc?, warning that this could be the last opportunity to reach peace on the island.

"The younger generations are growing without getting knowing one another, without speaking each other's' language. They cross over to the other side as tourists. Naturally they are foreign to each other. It would be extremely hard for these two communities to come together" he further argued.

[02] Former Turkish Cypriot negotiators on the Geneva summit

Issuing a written statement on the issue, the two former negotiators evaluated the upcoming Geneva summit and claimed that the Turkish Cypriot side should not attend the talks in Geneva if the United Nations attempt to carry out a fait accompli on the issue.

They further stated that should such an attempt be made, the strongest reaction should be given.

Pointing out that the announcement made by the UN regarding the conference on Cyprus set to take place in Geneva next month was explicitly clear as to who would be taking part, Olgun and Ertug added: "No one apart from the two sides in Cyprus and the three guarantor powers of Turkey, Greece and the UK will be sitting at the table".

They further alleged that it is unnecessary for other actors to be present at the Cyprus summit. "It is our firm belief that the participation of actors, other than those stated, will only serve as an obstacle to achieve results from the summit" the joint statement claimed.

[03] Political crisis between the parties of the "coalition government" over the approval of a "draft law" regarding privatizations

The issues occurred during the discussion of the so-called law at the "assembly". The "law" was "approved with the votes" of the "deputies" of the UBP and the Republican Turkish Party (CTP). The DP "deputies" did not "vote" in favor of the "law" and withdrew from the "assembly" according to the paper.

Serdar Denktas, leader of DP and "deputy prime minister and minister of finance" said that the "law" is not in accordance to the financial policy that the breakaway regime must follow in order to overcome its financial issues. He also warned that if the "law" was approved problems would occur in 2017 with the "financial protocol" signed between Turkey and the breakaway regime. He also said that in this case Turkey will not be able or willing to offer financial support to the "government".

On his part, the so-called prime minister Huseyin Ozgurgun, stated that he signed the "financial protocol" and he will be the one to implement it. He also said that in case the breakaway regime will not be able to overcome its financial issues, he will resign from his "position". Referring to the political crisis and the disagreement occurred between the two parties of the "coalition government", he stated that if needed, elections can take place.

(CS)

[04] Ertugruloglu met with Erdogan

According to information acquired by "presidential sources", Ertugruloglu was accompanied by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. The meeting was closed to the press. No statements were made before or after it.

Meanwhile, Ertugruloglu will also meet with Cavusoglu, with Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Responsible for Cyprus affairs Tugrul Turkes and the Undersecretary of Turkey's Foreign Minister Mustafa Lakatamyali.

Ertugruloglu is expected to return to the occupied area of Cyprus today after completing his "contacts".

(AK)

[05] Second part of survey reveals that Diyalog is the most read Turkish Cypriot paper

According to the paper, the most read Turkish Cypriot newspaper is Diyalog with 38,7%, followed by Kibris with 32,40%, Havadis with 18,20, Afrika 12,90%, Yeni Duzen 10,10%, Halkin Sesi 7,10%, Haberal Kibris 4,80%, Kibris Postasi 3,78%, Gunes 3,14%, Vatan 2,50%, Detay 1,94% Hakikat 1,75%, DEmokrat Bakis 1,66%, Volkan 1,85%, Star Kibris 1,75%, Yeni Bakis 1,2% and Ortam 0,46%. In addition, 13,20% of the persons asked stated that it does not read any newspaper.

The most trusted and popular television station is illegal Bayrak with 55,1%, followed by Diyalog TV with 40,7%. The most watched program is the "Good morning Cyprus" (Gunaydin Kibris) by Serhat Incirli broadcast by Kibris TV with 16,3%. The mots read columnist is Resat Akar from Diyalog with 16,4%, followed by Serhat Incirli with 13,6%.

(CS)

[06] Occupied Lefka area became the "6th district" of the breakaway regime

According to the paper, the occupied Lefka area fulfilled all the conditions for becoming a "district". Lefka has a population of 20.000 people, 18 villages and a "university", called "Lefka university".

In statements during the meeting of the "assembly", so-called deputy prime minister and minister of finance, Serdar Denktas, underlined the importance of this "decision" and pointed out that this would pave the way for the further development of occupied Lefka.

(?)

(AK)

[07] Erdogan: "US-led coalition failed to keep its promises; Turkey will liberate Al-Bab"

"Even though the U.S.-led coalition has failed to keep its promises [pledging air support] in our operation to liberate Al-Bab, we will rid the city of Daesh terrorists, no matter what," Erdogan said.

Touching upon the upcoming Astana summit, he said that Saudi Arabia and Qatar should also be invited. "We will not welcome a decision to invite terrorist organizations to the summit," he added.

Referring to the importance of Al-Bab both geographically and strategically, he said: "We will not take a step back from our decision to liberate Al-Bab, that's impossible."

Al-Bab is the hot spot in northern Syria. PYD terrorists have set up two so-called "cantons" in the area; Afrin in the west and Manbij in the east. Al-Bab is just in the middle of both areas and is also under Daesh control. If Turkey succeeds to liberate the city from Daesh terrorists, both the PYD's plans to connect both pockets and Daesh's preparations to move northward will collapse.

Meanwhile, President Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin recently agreed on peace talks to be held between Syrian moderate opposition representatives and the Assad regime in Astana, Kazakhstan.

(?)

[08] Turkey's Simsek: "EU is a key anchor and Turkey should not lose it"

Simsek added that if Turkey can maintain its progress on the road to EU integration, it will succeed in overcoming many problems and reducing risks to a minimum."I am not pessimistic about the EU membership process. Even during these difficult days, we see a number of key positive developments regarding this process. The EU is a key anchor for Turkey. We will not lose it, although we have some disagreements from time to time. I do not see any disintegration [of ties] with the West. This, of course, does not mean we should ignore the Middle East, which would be a wrong strategy", Simsek said in a press conference.

He also strongly refuted several claims about the country's preparation for capital controls. "This has never been the case. We are a key constituent of the global economy. Turkey is in need of a considerable fund inflow and we can overcome such obstacles only as long as we obey global economic norms. We can overcome these problems by maintaining our EU integration process so as to keep our risk premium at a minimum. During a time when protectionism is on the rise, Turkey wants to modernize its Customs Union deal with the EU so as to include services, agriculture and public procurement acquisitions in the deal. The country is also trying to sign free trade deals with Gulf countries as well. We never consider any move incompliant with market norms," added Simsek.

He also noted that some recent problems with the EU should be seen like "disagreements between family members."

"Although bilateral ties with the EU are not as good as desired, there is no signal of disengagement, he said.

"The EU agreed to widen the scope of the Customs Union agreement with Turkey recently. This is very important," Simsek also said.

(?)

[09] First 3 articles of amendment package approved by Constitutional Committee

The clause stating that "independent" courts may exercise judicial power on behalf of the Turkish people will be changed to "independent and impartial" courts. Also, the third article in the amendment, which will enable Turkish citizens aged over 18 to sit in Parliament as Deputies, was approved yesterday in the commission.

Article 75 of the current Constitution regarding the "establishment of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey" will also be amended by increasing the number of Deputies from 550 to 600.

Parliament is expected to begin discussing the proposed articles in early January, after the Constitutional Committee finishes their work on the 21-article amendment package.

According to current practices, the Constitutional amendment must pass through a second stage in the General Assembly, in which lawmakers will vote on each article and then vote for the package as a whole.

Each of these voting stages requires a minimum of 330 parliamentary votes, in the second stage.

Currently, the AK Party holds 316 seats in Parliament and needs the opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) ? which has 39 seats ? to support the proposals and take the constitutional amendments to a referendum within 60 days. The referendum is expected to take place next spring.

(?)

[10] HDP Deputy asked for Charter talks to be suspended until arrested MPs released

"It is against the Constitution to conduct these negotiations on these terms. It is against the Constitution to conduct these meetings without releasing our [Parliamentarian] friends. For this reason, we demand that the negotiations be stopped," Sancar said.

Noting that 12 HDP lawmakers, including the co-leaders of the party, are currently imprisoned on terror allegations, Sancar said that the HDP should not be prevented from participating in the crucial talks. "Preventing this group [HDP] from participating in the Constitutional works is against Article 80 and 83 of the current Constitution, but more importantly, against the basic principle which states that the sovereignty belongs to the nation," Sancar said.

"Our co-leaders and lawmakers' imprisonment also makes the talks in the general assembly against the Constitution. The next step is a referendum. If these arrests continue, the referendum will be contrary to the Constitution and universal principles," Sancar added.

He also argued that the discussions were being held without duly informing society. "In such an environment, it is not possible for us to make a liberal and democratic Constitution. This proposal will completely remove Turkey from its existing limited and defective democracy ? A one-man administration will result in a typically authoritarian pattern," Sancar said. TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION

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(AK/AM)

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