Greece yesterday dismissed Turkish objections to Cyprus' moves to join the European Union, saying the Mediterranean island was not a "hostage" of Ankara.
"Cyprus' future entry to the European Union is defined by decisions taken by relevant EU bodies and hinges on the volition of the European Union and the Cyprus republic," said government spokesman Evangelos Venizelos. "Woe betide the European Union if Cyprus' European outlook was hostage to Turkey," Mr. Venizelos said.
His remarks were prompted by Turkey's Prime Minister Tansu Cil-ler's press interview. Ms. Ciller linked Cyprus' EU accession to efforts to resolve the island's 21-year-old dispute. "Cyprus' entry to the EU will not contribute to solution of the Cyprus dispute," Ms. Ciller was quoted saying.
The intractable problem of Cyprus has defied UN mediation since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded the northern part of the island. Turkish-Cypriots set up their own breakaway state in 1983, which, however, is recognised only by Turkey. The Ankara government maintains some 35,000 troops in the occupied area of Cyprus.
EU Foreign Ministers agreed in March, after stiff pressure from Athens, to open accession talks with Cyprus six months after completion of next year's intergovernmental review of the Maastricht Treaty.
Mr. Venizelos reiterated Greece's position on extension of its territorial waters in the Aegean, saying it is only Athens' responsibility to decide when and if this move will be made.
The main opposition conservative party later echoed Mr. Venizelos' criticism, saying Turkey was continuing to wage "groundless and disingenuous" criticism against Greece.
"Turkey should finally realise that Cyprus' accession to the European Union is a matter concerning Cyprus and the EU, a member of which Turkey is not," New Democracy spokesman Vassilis Magginas said.
"The Turkish government frequently resorts to groundless and disingenuous accusations against Greece. Its stance and behaviour has not changed, leaving it further away from Europe," he added.
In her interview, Ms. Ciller said Turkey would assume every possible measure to safeguard its rights and interests in Aegean Sea.
Mr. Venizelos' statements were prompted by Premier Ciller's interview in the Turkish newspaper "Hurriyet" yesterday.
Among other things, she said Turkey would not accept changes in the balance of power in the Aegean, but that it would be best for both countries to solve problems in their relations. "Turkey will never consent to developments which would lead to a complete restructuring in the balance of power in the Aegean, as this is provided for in the Lausanne Treaty," the Turkish premier was quoted as saying.
Ms. Ciller was referring to Greece's right, provided by the international law of the sea convention, to expand its territorial waters from six to 12 nautical miles in the Aegean.
The Turkish prime minister also urged for a solution to the problems between Greece and Turkey, saying co-operation would benefit both countries. "It would be useful if the will to solve problems between Greece and Turkey prevailed, instead of leaving those problems pending," she said. "Not just Greece and Turkey, but the whole of Europe will benefit from such a co-operation," she added.
In an interview headlined "Do not be afraid of us," Ms. Ciller went on to review issues triggering tension among the two nations. "Turkey will take all necessary measures to protect its rights and its interests," Ms. Ciller told Hurriyet, referring to Turkey's vigorous reaction to Greece's legal right to expand its territorial waters.
Turkey said expansion would be a cause of war (casus belli) between the two countries. Greece has denounced Turkish threats, saying it would make use of its right when it deemed expedient to do so.
Athens also lodged demarches with international forums over a Turkish National Assembly resolution empowering the Turkish government to take all necessary action to prevent extension of Greece's territorial waters, including military action. Greece said the resolution constituted an official threat and an insult to international law.
In previous statements on the issue, Ms. Ciller said if Greek territorial waters were expanded "Turkey will not be able to breathe." She has also accused Greece of attempting to strike against Turkey's vital interests by upsetting the balance in the Aegean.
The Greek government has repeatedly chided Turkey for its sabre-rattling, calling it an "exportation of Turkey's internal problems," as well as "inconsistent with European behaviour." Greece said it desired good relations with Turkey but faces Turkish occupation of Cyprus and aggressiveness in the Aegean.
With regard to EU-Turkey relations, Ms. Ciller said Greece in the past had been hindering Turkey's relations with the European Union. "The lifting of the Greek embargo on March 1995, concerning the EU-Turkish customs union, was the result of efforts by the French government, then president of the European Union," the Turkish prime minister said. "We want to believe that Greece will abandon its old attitude and will continue in this direction, thus opening a new page in our relations," she said.
Greece has lifted its veto paving the way for Turkey to sign a landmark customs union deal with the 15-member Western block. Greece pushed for a firmer EU commitment on opening accession talks between Cyprus and the EU. According to the agreement, accession talks will start six months after the 1996 intergovernmental conference to revise the Maastricht Treaty.
The customs deal, signed by the European Union foreign ministers and Turkey is due to come into effect on Jan. 1, but is still pending ratification by the Europarliament. The European Parliament has stood firm in its demands that Turkey make greater strides on human rights and democracy to win its cherished customs union deal with the EU.
In reference to the Cyprus problem, Ms. Ciller reiterated Ankara's position that a Cyprus EU accession prior to the finding of a political settlement between the island's Greek-Cypriot and Turkish-Cypriot communities "will not contribute to the solution of the Cyprus problem." She also added that Turkey supported the timetable of the negotiations which the Turkish Cypriot side submitted for the implementation of Trust Building Measures.
Ms. Ciller also referred to Greece's alleged support of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK). She said Turkey awaited Greece to comform with its "obligations," which provide for co-operation between the two countries against terrorism. Greece has strongly reacted against Turkey's allegations, calling them baseless.
Referring to alleged human rights violations of Greek Moslems in western Thrace, Ms. Ciller told Hurriyet that as long as the "violations (of human rights) continue, Turkey cannot make concessions regarding its struggle to European Union (for the customs union)."
Turning to the case of bogus Mufti Mehmet Emin Aga, currently serving a 23-month prison sentence, Ms. Ciller said Turkey waited for his release. Aga was given jail time for "usurping authority and contempt of court."
He unlawfully assumed the title of mufti (a Moslem religious leader) in Xanthi, in the north-eastern region of Thrace. The trial was attended by the Turkish Consul in Komotini, former independent deputy Ahmet Sadik, three Turkish deputies and a large number of Turkish reporters. Mr. Aga appealed the court's decision and was released on 500,000 drachma bail. He was jailed after refusing to pay the fine.
Under Greek law, the government has the right to choose the Moslem minority's two muftis from a list of candidates submitted by community leaders, in line with prevailing practice in most Islamic countries. A Turkish Foreign Ministry statement said his sentence "was in contradiction with modern democratic procedures and the concept of human rights."
The Industry, Energy and Technology Ministry's press bureau yesterday responded to a harsh warning by European Union Commissioner for Energy and top PASOK cadre Christos Papoutsis regarding delays in Greece's EU-funded natural gas project.
In the ministry's press statement, several rebuttal points were published: That the project began with the signing of an inter-state agreement between Greece and Russia in October 1987 and should have been completed in 1992.
- Six years later in October 1993, only 15 per cent of the project had been carried out. In addition, since June 1993, when the New Democracy government was in power, the European Investment Bank (EIB) ceased financing due to delays.
- When Costas Simitis assumed the Industry, Energy and Technology Ministry, he said his target was to achieve the importation of natural gas in two years' time, with this target called "utopian" both inside and outside Greece.
- Mr. Simitis succeeded in having Community funding of the project more than doubled to 250 billion drachmas.
- Following systematic and effective efforts, Community funds are being regularly absorbed and the above "utopian" target has become a reality, while import of natural gas in Greece will be achieved in 1995.
- The flow of average monthly Community fund disbursements for the project were 0.09 billion drachmas a month in 1990; 0.53 in 1991; 1.94 in 1992; 3.07 between January 1993 and October 1993 and 3.18 between October 1993 and February 1995. About 20 billion drachmas were disbursed in the first five months of 1995.
- EU member-state prime ministers unanimously praised Greece at the Corfu summit over the quick promotion of the project, the largest currently under way in the nation.
The press release added: "The Industry, Energy and Technology Ministry believes that Mr. Papoutsis will support Greek positions and interests wherever necessary, although this is not in his duties.
"On the occasion, it would consider his contribution positive for crucial energy issues of his competence which are either pending or being shaped at present, such as the promotion and financing of electric power linkage between Greece and Italy and support for the Greek government's efforts to make the country a cross-roads for the Euro-Iranian natural gas pipeline.
"To date, the Industry, Energy and Technology Ministry said it has held formal contacts with the relevant Commissioner for the project, Monika Wulf-Mathies, and therefore, Mr. Papoutsis' sudden involvement in the natural gas project "allows for scepticism which multiplies with the chosen tactic of press leaks".
Lastly, the ministry made public the draft law, as shaped following consultations with interested agencies, on the import, transport, trafficking and distribution of natural gas.
In a warning Wednesday, Mr. Papoutsis stressed that Greece was in danger of losing considerable funds since it had not yet adopted a draft law on the financing of projects.
Referring to the issue, Political Spring party representative Notis Martakis said: "We call on all government members to brush aside their insecurities even for a short while and work toward promoting these crucial issues for the future of the country from wherever they may be.
"Political Spring is not accustomed to commenting on intra-party problems in both PASOK and New Democracy. But what happened was unprecedented. Instead of struggling for national interests, the government is sacrificing the absorption of Community funds on the altar of its intra-party competition," he added.
Speaking to reporters yesterday, a European Commission representative said a letter addressed by Mr. Papoutsis to Mr. Simitis was a letter by the relevant Energy Commissioner to the Greek government's relevant energy minister.
The EU representative said the natural gas project was among major projects financed by the Community Support Framework, namely the structural funds, whose responsibility lay with Commissioner Monica Wulf Mathies. It was also an energy project and part of the inter-European energy network framework for which Commissioner Papoutsis was also jointly responsible.
According to the EU representative, it was only natural that Mr. Papoutsis should show interest in the project's completion, he added. Moreover, a Commission representative called on Greek authorities to promise that a legislative framework would be completed in the summer of 1995. The Commissioner's letter was addressed following a relevant report and proposal by the relevant General Energy Department (July 27, 1995).
A bill made public by the Industry Ministry yesterday initiates tax incentives for household consumers to use natural gas. More specifically, the expense of purchasing and installing household appliances using natural gas will be deducted from the taxable incomes of private persons, while special tariffs will be provided for enterprises as part of co-operation between the Public Natural Gas Enterprise (DEPA) and the Federation of Greek Industries (SEB).
The Industry Ministry has finalised settlements concerning the import, transport, trafficking and distribution of natural gas. The bill also anticipates the creation of a National Energy Committee as an independent administrative agency which will operate under the supervision of the Industry Minister, while a national energy programme will be tabled in Parliament for ratification.
According to the report attached, DEPA will be nominated as the Administrative Agency of the National Natural Gas Transport System. Its rights are defined precisely as well as its obligation for an accounting segregation of cost factors from the exercising of its activities (unbundling).
Its right is also safeguarded to charge the purchasers of its gas with a foreign currency clause since it purchases gas with a dollar clause itself and because the cost of purchasing the gas from abroad represents the biggest part of the cost of DEPA's gas at the location of delivery.
A former member of the federal Yugoslav collective presidium criticised the political leadership of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) in an interview with the magazine "Svet."
The former personal envoy of FYROM President Kiro Gligorov after the country's independence was declared, Basil Topurkovski, accused the Skopje political leadership of failing to find a solution to disputes with Greece during the past five years, resulting in what he said was a situation of uncertainty and a worsening in FYROM's international position.
Mr. Topurkovski was "obliged" to resign two years ago after accusations that, in agreement with Austrian Foreign Minister Mr. Mock, he supported the idea of a composite name for the landlocked neophyte Balkan state.
Outgoing Turkish general consul for Komotini, Hankal Oxal, visited Minister of Macedonia and Thrace Constantine Triarides yesterday, and conveyed Ankara's gratitude for the facilities and hospitality Greece provided a Turkish delegation during the funeral of former Greek Moslem deputy Ahmed Sadik.
Mr. Oxal visited Mr. Triarides on the occasion of his departure, saying he was leaving Greece feeling optimistic over the future of Greek-Turkish relations.
On his part, Mr. Triarides referred to the government's effort to develop Thrace, stressing that co-operation was absolutely essential for both nations.
The Turkish Minister to the Prime Minister's Office with responsibility of human rights issues, Algan Hatzaloglu, yesterday chaired an international meeting in Istanbul focusing on human rights violations and the great need for humanitarian aid to Bosnia.
The meeting was attended by Turkish government officials and politicians, as well as foreign ambassadors to Turkey. Mr. Hatzaloglu suggested the launching of an international campaign with the aim to re-open humanitarian aid transport routes. He also called for the convening of a court of law for the trial war crimes.
The London-based human rights watch group Amnesty International called on Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Rich yesterday to block the execution of Mumia Abu-Jamal, scheduled for Aug. 17.
Mr. Abu-Jamal was sentenced to death for the murder of a Philadelphia policeman, but Amnesty International considers that the jury verdict was influenced by prosecutors' reference to Mr. Abu-Jamal's past association with the radical 1960s-era "Black Panther" movement.
Amnesty International also claimed the death penalty in the United States is unfairly imposed based on racial criteria. According to Amnesty, while blacks make up 12 per cent of the total US population, 40 per cent of the nation's 2,870 death row inmates are black. Amnesty International is fighting for abolition of the death penalty, considering it inhuman.
The Greek section of Amnesty International called on the government, political parties, public and private institutions as well as every Greek citizen to unite their efforts for blocking Mr. Abu-Jamal's execution.
Dimitris Papadimoulis, a member of the political secretariat of the Coalition of the Left and Progress (Synaspismos) party yesterday contacted the American Embassy in Athens concerning the execution.