Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 17-09-20

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

CONTENTS

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS

[01] Erdogan argues that they are open to proposals which respect the rights of the Turkish Cypriots

[02] Ertugruloglu addresses ECO Ministers' Unofficial Council in New York

[03] Protest on the regulations denying entry to Cyprus to Israelis tourists

[04] More on the Malaria cases in the breakaway regime

[05] Turkey's Defence Minister: "KRG referendum will ignite a war"

[06] KRG's oil exports via Turkey 'may be halted'

[07] HDP co-chair Demirtas' case finally reaches court after eight months

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS

[01] Erdogan argues that they are open to proposals which respect the rights of the Turkish Cypriots

"We are doing and we will continue to do whatever we can in order for the natural resources discovered in the Eastern Mediterranean during the past few years, to serve peace, stability and prosperity in the region", he alleged and claimed: "We are ready to evaluate solution proposals which show respect to the Turkish Cypriots' rights".

In his speech, Erdogan referred also to Iraq's territorial integrity, the migrants' issue which started with the crisis in Syria, the so-called Islamic State and the events in Myanmar.

(I/Ts.)

[02] Ertugruloglu addresses ECO Ministers' Unofficial Council in New York

In his address, Ertugruloglu alleged that the Turkish Cypriots have become hostages of a problem for which they are not responsible. Reiterating the Turkish allegation that the Greek Cypriot side "is not ready to share" with the Turkish Cypriots, Ertugruloglu claimed that "now different solution alternatives should be considered in which the two sides on the island, with the support of the international community, will be able to establish strong neighboring relations and live in peace and stability side by side". He argued that this is very important not only for the island but also for our region's peace and stability.

Referring to the Crans Montana Conference on Cyprus, he accused the Greek Cypriots of its failure and alleged: "The above-mentioned conference evidently showed that the negotiations, which have been going on for 50 years on the basis of a bi-communal bi-zonal federation within the framework of the parameters of UNSG's Good Offices Mission, have been exhausted".

Expressing his gratitude to ECO's General Secretary Halil Ibrahim Akca [Translator's note: Akca has served as Turkish so-called ambassador in the occupied part of Nicosia] for his support to the Turkish Cypriot "people", Ertugruloglu said that the Turkish Cypriots participate in ECO's activities since 1992 and obtained the "observer status" in 2012. "As Turkish Cypriot state, we are ready to contribute to the works of the organization which will be realized within the forthcoming period", he noted.

Referring to the field of tourism, Ertugruloglu expressed the view that the occupied area of Cyprus is an ideal tourism center for "our brothers from ECO member-states". He argued: "The statistics of 2017 show that around one million tourists visited our country. There are approximately 133 vacation villages with the capacity of 22,000 beds in our country. […]"

Referring to the field of higher education, he said that this is one important sector for their economy and added: "Today there are 15 universities and nearly 90,000 students in northern Cyprus. Almost 50,000 of them come from Turkey, 14,000 are Turkish Cypriots and 26,000 are international students. Our students come from 131 countries and our teaching staff from 65 different countries, something which reflects the international character of our education. I am pleased to say that 5,500 of the students who study in our universities come from ECO member states. Many of these students come from Pakistan, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. Our primary target is to increase the number of students who will come to our universities from the ECO member states".

Ertugruloglu argued also that their "government" gives incentives to foreign investors who want to invest in the occupied area of Cyprus and noted that they were ready to brief these investors about the investing opportunities and the incentives. He added: "There are investment incentives in various fields and mainly in tourism. The incentives given in the fields of tourism, such as hotels, conference tourism, yacht tourism and the building of marinas, constitute only some of the opportunities for foreign businessmen in our country. The new developing fields, for example health tourism and the sectors of agriculture and industry, are among the attracting opportunities for the private sector and the foreign investors".

Finally, Ertugruloglu recalled that by the end of 2017 two activities of ECO will be held in the occupied area of Cyprus: "The Second Workshop on the Best Practices on the Issues of Capacity Development and Biological Diversity" (31 October-2 November 2017) and the "Fourth Ecotourism Experts' Group Meeting" (12 – 14 December 2017).

(I/Ts.)

[03] Protest on the regulations denying entry to Cyprus to Israelis tourists

It is reported that after diplomatic initiatives, the detained Israelis group was permitted to cross to the "TRNC". It was promised that the Israelis would not have any trouble during the 15-day of their national holidays, however, it is unknown what will happen after these 15 days.

Fikri Ataoglu, self-styled minister of tourism, speaking on the Turkish Cypriot private channel Diyalog TV, said that they carried a promotion campaign in Israel and they succeeded that the Israelis will travel to the "North" through the "Greek Cypriot gate" (translator's note: he means that the tourists will travel in Cyprus by using Larnaca airport and then cross to the occupied area of Cyprus). He further noted: "This event went well. We started with 20 thousand tourists, then with 40 thousand and later we were talking about 70 thousand. I assumed that the Greek Cypriots would not take it easy. After the hotels in the South started to empty, those who are involved in the tourism sector started to react against this situation".

Ataoglu further explained that in order to overcome the problem, the Israeli Embassy in Cyprus was also involved and that they are trying to see how they can solve the problem together.

Ercan Turhan , "deputy chairman of the Turkish Cypriot hotel association", criticized Greek Cypriot's stance on this issue and stressed that they will continue their efforts to bring more tourists in the "country". He further noted that a huge duty falls upon the Turkish Airlines, and proposed that Turkey and "Cyprus authorities" (translator's note: he refers to the TRNC) join their efforts in order to act so there is pressure by Israel to the Greek Cypriots to withdraw this decision.

(DPs)

[04] More on the Malaria cases in the breakaway regime

The malaria outbreaks occurred in the last week of August and were diagnosed after the three tourists returned to England in the first week of September.

The paper, citing sources, writes that the employees wanted to do this task in secrecy and that they have suspicions that the illness may had spread.

Reporting on the same issue, Turkish Cypriot Yeni Duzen newspaper (20.09.17) writes that while the "ministry of health" claims that the malaria cases "are coming to the country from abroad", there were 31 cases of malaria in five years in the breakaway regime. As the paper notes these cases are "officially registered". Most of the persons diagnosed with malaria were foreign students, mostly from Nigeria, Pakistan and India, who received treatment for the disease.

(CS)

[05] Turkey's Defence Minister: "KRG referendum will ignite a war"

"All of our security forces, Turkish Armed Forces are on duty. We are following the recent developments like always", Canikli said. He said that if a decision was to be made, if a step needed to be taken, Turkey would resolutely follow through.

On the same issue, Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Tuesday that Turkey could mediate between the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and Iraq, and also be a guarantor to ensure the protection of the rights of Erbil. "We have been asking the KRG authorities to stop this process, and if their constitutional rights are the problem, we can help them to guarantee their constitutional right. So Turkey and other countries that the KRG can name, together we can be mediators, we can even be guarantors of their rights," said Cavusoglu in an interview with Al-Monitor.

The paper reports that Turkey, preparing to severely respond to Barzani, has started to consider the options of an operation before the National Security Council meeting which will be held on Sept. 22. It has been emphasized that all kinds of options, including military measures, are on the table, with the military drills that have been conducted on the Habur border between Turkey and Iraq.

Meanwhile, the paper reports that the military drills initiated by the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) on the Habur border between Turkey and Iraq early on Monday morning, are continuing.

The drills are being conducted 3km away from the border. Many military vehicles, mainly tanks, are participating in the drills.

Military sources said that these would last until Sept. 26, a day after the planned referendum of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

[06] KRG's oil exports via Turkey 'may be halted'

"Turkey holds important power in its hands: The oil trade is conducted through its territories. At a time when oil prices are getting close to $60 per barrel, Arbil gained economic independence from Baghdad with the help of this trade," Volkan Ozdemir, head of the Institute for Energy Markets and Policies (EPPEN), told Anadolu Agency in a recent interview.

"If Turkey is against this independence, it can stop oil transfers, but this won't be easy. If stopped, the KRG will not have this economic power," he said.

Ozdemir said the oil revenue sharing deal between the central government in Baghdad and Arbil has already lost its validity. He said in the last three and a half years, Arbil has exported its oil to international markets through Turkey, independently from Baghdad's central government.

Ozdemir said the status of Kirkuk's oil fields has great potential to inflame conflict between the sides.

Recent reports on a potential gas infrastructure project agreement between the KRG and Russian state-run oil company Rosneft holds great importance for the region, Ozdemir said. He noted that the KRG is trying to garner Russia's support. "If we see it from a more general perspective, along with all the biggest energy companies like Genel Energy, Exxon, DNO and Turkish Energy Company, Rosneft is starting to gain a foothold in the KRG's energy sector," said Ozdemir.

Rosneft on Sept. 18 announced that it completed due diligence on the infrastructure of an export oil pipeline in the KRG and will shortly finalize the legally binding documents for the project under an investment agreement signed at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in June 2017.

"Despite the misleading reports from the KRG side on the gas infrastructure agreement, Rosneft's statement that the agreement has not yet been reached shows its intention to create a new acceptable balance between Arbil, Baghdad and Ankara," Ozdemir said.

[07] HDP co-chair Demirtas' case finally reaches court after eight months

The Ankara Regional Court of Appeals ruled that the Ankara 19th Criminal Court should hear the trial of Demirtas, denying the same court's request for a merger with the Ankara 2nd Criminal Court.

The HDP co-chair has been in jail in the northwestern province of Edirne since Nov. 4, 2016. TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION

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(DPs /MK)

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