Anadolu Agency: News in English, 98-06-07

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From: The Anadolu Agency Home Page at <http://www.anadoluajansi.gov.tr/>

07 JUNE 1998

CONTENTS

[01] TERRORIST ATTACK IN MAZGIRT - TERRORISTS OPEN FIRE ON A CAR, KILLING THREE SOLDIERS AND ONE CHILD

[02] STATE MINISTER IN BERLIN

[03] AZERI MINISTRY OF NATIONAL SECURITY: ''NEWS CLAIMING THAT PKK TERRORISTS HAVE SETTLED IN BAKU ARE BASELESS''

[04] REVOLT OF AZERBAIJANI PASSANGERS ABOARD AN UKRANIAN SHIP - 530 AZERBAIJANI PASSANGERS OPEN ''S.O.S'' BANNER AND SEND ''SAVE US'' MESSAGE

[05] IMF DELEGATION CONTACT'S IN ISTANBUL - FISCHER, THE DEPUTY CHAIRMAN OF IMF MEETS ECONOMY OFFICIALS

[06] STATE MINISTER SAHIN IN BAKU ''SETTING UP ECONOMIC RELATIONS WITH ARMENIA IS OUT OF QUESTION UNTIL THE NAGORNA KARABAKH PROBLEM IS SOLVED''

[07] UNCHR: ''IRAQ ACCEPTED TO TAKE 4800 PEOPLE WHO TOOK SHELTER IN ATRUSH CAMP TO ITS OWN REGION''

[08] CUSTOMS UNION - AUSTRIAN PEOPLE'S PARTY WINKS AT ANKARA

[09] FISCHER, DEPUTY CHAIRMAN OF IMF LEAVES TURKEY: ''POSITIVE DEVELOPMENTS SEEN IN THE TURKISH ECONOMY ARE ENCOURAGING''

[10] SEAWOLF-98 NAVAL EXERCISE CONTINUES

[01] TERRORIST ATTACK IN MAZGIRT - TERRORISTS OPEN FIRE ON A CAR, KILLING THREE SOLDIERS AND ONE CHILD

Security officials told the A.A. correspondent that separatist terrorists opened running fire on a car carrying three soldiers and one child during their picnicking excursion to a forested land near Darikent on Saturday evening.

Officials said three soldiers, Faruk Durmus, Hakan Olcer and Cavit Tamturk, were shot dead in that salvo and that a child, Suleyman Tamturk, the son of Cavit Tamturk also died in that terrorist attack.

Officials said an immediate and large-scale operation was staged against the separatist terrorist organization and the investigation was underway.

[02] STATE MINISTER IN BERLIN

Addressing a statement to A.A correspondent before his departure at Esenboga Airport, Gurel stated that he aims to explain the view of Turkey about the future, its attitude regarding the European Union (EU) and Cyprus question during the conference.

Noting that he will hold special meetings with participants, Gurel pointed out that a radical change in Turkish foreign policy is out of question.

''In fact EU knows exactly why Turkey takes up its relations within a specific framework after the Luxembourg Summit. There is no change in our attitude. A new EU summit will be held on June 15 in Cardiff and we'll see then whether they have revised their attitude towards us or not. Till then, we are resolved to limit our political relations with them,'' said Gurel.

''EU should give up bringing forward artificial political conditions,'' said Gurel, recalling that full membership of Turkey to EU is foreseen as a right in the Association Agreement signed between Turkey and EU.

Stressing that neither Turkey nor Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) can not take a step backward regarding the Cyprus question, Gurel said that ''all the concerned sides in Cyprus should accept the reality of the Cyprus question and our relations with EU are not connected with the Cyprus question.''

Scientists and politicians participate in the conference from Europe, the US and Turkey, which will last on Tuesday.

[03] AZERI MINISTRY OF NATIONAL SECURITY: ''NEWS CLAIMING THAT PKK TERRORISTS HAVE SETTLED IN BAKU ARE BASELESS''

The ministry stated that several groups composed of Kirkuk Turks entered illegally to Azerbaijan via Iran due to recent developments in Northern Iraq and these groups aim to acquire the status of refugee in order to settle in European countries by the mediation of United Nations (UN) Office in Baku.

The statement stressed that the Ministry has not received any information saying that these groups have connection with the separatist terrorist organization.

Noting that the views of the separatist terrorist organization are not supported in Azerbaijan, the statement said that the news claming that ''Ronayi Kurdish Cultural Center'' in the country has connection with the separatist terrorist organization are baseless.

''The Ministry is well informed about the activities of the PKK. We have the power to prevent any provocation against Azerbaijan,'' added the statement.

[04] REVOLT OF AZERBAIJANI PASSANGERS ABOARD AN UKRANIAN SHIP - 530 AZERBAIJANI PASSANGERS OPEN ''S.O.S'' BANNER AND SEND ''SAVE US'' MESSAGE

The Azerbaijani passangers, who were on the ship's stern, began sending distress signals when a Turkish patrol boat approached the ship to carry out a health inspection.

The passengers held up ''S.O.S.'' signs and tossed a message to the patrol boat in a banner reading: ''Save us. We are in danger.''

A woman passanger threw a tin can to the sea including a letter written in Azerbaijani language.

The letter says: ''We are in danger on this Taras Shevchenko. The children and the elderly are in danger. The women and children are being held hostage. They are taking us back to the Odessa Seaport from the Pireaus Seaport while we were travelling to 12 seaports in seven countries. They did not state the reason. Please, inform the Azerbaijani, Ukranian, Russian and German Consulates on this occasion. There are 530 passangers on board.''

Meanwhile, the maritime authorities asked the captain of the Ukranian ship to stop but he refused by saying that everything was calm and that the ship would pass the Marmara Sea in transit.

Later, the ship arrived in the Bosphorus straits and casted anchor offshore Ahirkapi.

The captain sent a message to the Maritime authorities saying that the ship would ''supply provisions.''

Meanwhile, it was reported that the passangers on board were in good health. A five-member health-team got on board and carried out health inspection. They told the reporters that the passangers were in good health.

They said the problem on the ship stemmed from a commercial dispute.

[05] IMF DELEGATION CONTACT'S IN ISTANBUL - FISCHER, THE DEPUTY CHAIRMAN OF IMF MEETS ECONOMY OFFICIALS

Michael Deppler, the IMF Director to Europe, who came to Istanbul the same day, met representatives of private and public sector and economy officials and they took up the existing situation of Turkish economy and the government's economic policies.

Stanley Fischer later participated in the meeting together with Gunes Taner, the State Minister.

Fischer attended to a dinner hosted by Fuat Miras, the Chairman of the Union of Turkish Chambers and Stock Exchange (TOBB) the same evening.

Responding to questions of journalists before the dinner, Refik Baydur, the Chairman of the Turkish Confederation of Employers' Unions (TISK) said that ''I do not believe that the proposals brought by IMF will be useful for Turkey. First of all we should stand on our own feet. I do not think that increasing the retirement age to 55 and then to 68 will solve questions in the field of social security in Turkey.''

Muharrem Kayhan, the Chairman of the Association of the Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen (TUSIAD) said that they have complains about the delay in structural reforms.

Fischer said in his part that they took up all the economic programme pursued by the government and the contacts were all positive.

[06] STATE MINISTER SAHIN IN BAKU ''SETTING UP ECONOMIC RELATIONS WITH ARMENIA IS OUT OF QUESTION UNTIL THE NAGORNA KARABAKH PROBLEM IS SOLVED''

State Minister Sahin and Namik Kemal Zeybek, deputy from the True Path Party (DYP), who arrived in Azerbaijani capital of Baku on Saturday to attend a ceremony which will be held upon the celebration of the 1000th publication of the Turkish Zaman newspaper in that country, were received by Murtuz Aleskerov, the Speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament.

State Minister Refaiddin Sahin said in the meeting that they were in favor of the solution of the problem between Azerbaijan and Armenia upon the guidelines specified with the statement issued at the Lisbon Summit of the Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Parliament Speaker Murtuz Aleskerov briefed Sahin and Zeybek on the decision of the Azerbaijani Parliament related to the Draft Law on the so- called Genocide on Armenians approved by the French Parliament and said that the Turkish Parliament should take more resolved steps concerning the issue.

Sahin and Zeybek later met with Kadri Ecvet Tezcan, the Turkish Ambassador to Baku and with the executive board members of the Association of Turkish Businessmen and Industrialists in Azerbaijan.

[07] UNCHR: ''IRAQ ACCEPTED TO TAKE 4800 PEOPLE WHO TOOK SHELTER IN ATRUSH CAMP TO ITS OWN REGION''

Metin Corabatır, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Spokesman to Ankara said that ''the Iraqi government accepted to take 4800 people to the inner parts of Iraq, who are coming from Turkey. They have been located four kilometers away from Mahmur town.''

Noting that UNHCR considers this as a positive step, Corabatır stated that they continue to hold contacts with the Iraqi government in order to provide aid to these people.

Corabatır recalled that approximately 10,000 people who went from Turkey to Northern Iraq in 1994 were located in Atrush camp by UNHCR, adding that 1200 of these Turkish people returned to Turkey when the camp was closed, they were located to places near their villages and they did not have any important security problem.

Pointing out that 2000 of these people dispersed to various cities and towns in Northern Iraq, Corabatır stated that the crowdest group left for inner parts of Iraq and asked the Iraqi government to accept them. Corabatır stressed that the Iraqi government did not want to accept them in the beginning, adding that these people lived in difficult conditions.

The UNHCR Spokesman said that the Iraqi government took them under its control last month.

[08] CUSTOMS UNION - AUSTRIAN PEOPLE'S PARTY WINKS AT ANKARA

The symposium on ''EU 1998: Problems Awaiting Austrian Term Presidency'', which was organized by the Austrian Foreign Ministry started at the historical Stift Gottweig Monastery in Austria.

Addressing the symposium, Andreas Khol, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Group of the Austrian People's Party (OVP), said that ''Turkey's membership perspective should be clearly presented.''

''I would like Yannos Kranidiotis, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Greece, to attend this symposium and to say to him that the EU did not fulfil its responsibilities towards Turkey,'' he said.

Pointing out that Turkey is the only country with which the EU had signed Customs Union agreement even though she is not a full member, Khol expressed his sorrow over the lack of the required improvement in that agreement.

''I hope we can give a new shape to the Turkish-EU relations during our Term Presidency and with this long-term point of view,'' Khol added.

[09] FISCHER, DEPUTY CHAIRMAN OF IMF LEAVES TURKEY: ''POSITIVE DEVELOPMENTS SEEN IN THE TURKISH ECONOMY ARE ENCOURAGING''

Prime Minister Mesut Yılmaz received Fischer on Sunday morning.

Addressing a press briefing at Ataturk Airport before his departure, Fischer said that the developments seen in the Turkish economy are encouraging, adding that the decreasing process of the inflation rate will also continue in 1999.

Noting that he read the draft report of Martin Hardy, the IMF Director of Turkey Desk about Turkey before coming to this country, Fischer said that ''IMF and Turkey exchange views about the economic programme pursued by Turkey. The draft law on the social security and tax law should be adopted by the parliament as soon as possible.''

''We see that the inflation will further decrease in the coming six months and in 1999,'' said Fischer, noting that IMF will extend the necessary support to Turkey concerning her struggle with the inflation and strengthening her financial structure.

Noting that 1999 is a very important year for Turkey, Fischer said that signing stand-by agreement with Turkey is out of question.

''A country should have financial problems to sign a stand-by agreement with IMF, but Turkey has high foreign exchange reserves. In that respect financial assistance is out of question. We work on a draft agreement with Turkey,'' said Fischer.

Responding to a question asking the effects of an elections in 1999, Fischer said ''Prime Minister Yılmaz told me that he will not pursue a populist policy and the economic policies which are pursued today will continue. The inflation rate will not be negatively effected, if the 1999 budget is not based on strong and populist expenditures.''

Fischer added that the IMF delegation will visit Turkey and meet Turkish officials soon.

[10] SEAWOLF-98 NAVAL EXERCISE CONTINUES

The tension-period activities between the ''Blue'' and ''Brown Forces'' are continuing today, while the clash-period activities have started to be performed early on Sunday.

The same day, several battle tactics will also be exercised within the content of clash-period activities between the Blue and Brown Forces.

Bangladeshi and Pakistani military officials participate in the naval exercise as observers.

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