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TRKNWS-L Turkish Press Review (January 5, 1996)From: TRKNWS-L@formant.bu.edu (trh@aimnet.com)Turkish News DirectoryCONTENTS[01] SOFTENING LEADERS BRING COALITION IN SIGHT[02] WASHINGTON EASING UP ON CYPRUS[03] TURKEY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN RUSSIA[04] SYRIA STIRRING IT UP[05] ATHENS NOTE TO ANKARA[06] EUROPALIA PLANNED FOR 1997[07] DENKTAS: "REAL DESTINY OF CYPRUS IS AS TWO EQUAL REPUBLICS"[08] TURKISH ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION AROUSES INTEREST[09] EXPORTS INCREASE BY 22 %[10] RED CRESCENT SUCCESSFUL IN 1995[11] RECORD IN TOURISMTURKISH PRESS REVIEWFRIDAY JANUARY 5, 1996Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning[01] SOFTENING LEADERS BRING COALITION IN SIGHTMotherland Party (ANAP) Chairman Mesut Yilmaz said yesterday that Prime Minister Tansu Ciller's recent statements to Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Chairman Alparslan Turkes had increased his optimism over efforts to put together a secularist coalition government. Yilmaz, who met with Turkes at ANAP headquarters, said Turkes had conveyed his impressions regarding his meeting with Ciller on Wednesday. He said Ciller's stance and statements during her meeting with Turkes showed that efforts to overcome the governmental crisis were making progress.Turkes made a short statement after the meeting, saying he and Yilmaz had exchanged views on domestic politics and Turkey's relations with neighbouring countries. In reply to a question, Turkes said he had not acted as an intermediary and that he had just paid a courtesy visit to Yilmaz. /All papers/
[02] WASHINGTON EASING UP ON CYPRUSReports from Washington say that the US administration is easing up on its policy of high pressure against Turkey to solve the decades old Cyprus problem.The US and the European Union (EU) are involved in resolving the Cyprus issue. For months the US has tried to force the issue but neither Northern Cyprus or Turkey has yielded on basic issues. Other matters are also involved: top US negotiator Richard Holbrooke will be retiring soon and wants to go out in a blaze of glory by adding Cyprus to his success in Bosnia. However, Cyprus is not responding so it is felt that slow progress is better than none at all as a result of pleasing the whims of individuals. As one official in the Turkish Foreign Ministry said yesterday "It is wrong to compare Cyprus to Bosnia. The Cyprus question is a matter involving only Cyprus, Turkey and Greece. There is no need for other countries to interfere." /Milliyet/
[03] TURKEY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN RUSSIAThe German daily, Die Welt, has described Turkey as a "more important than Russia".In the newspaper article it was stressed that Turkey was the only Islamic secular country which was a bridge both economically and politically between the East and the West. The article, in which Turkey and Russia was compared, reported that both economically and politically Turkey was much more stable than Russia and the former East Block countries which have applied to the European Union for full membership. It was pointed out also that US President Bill Clinton was not against Turkey because of the Turkish attitude towards the Kurdish issue, and the US accepted Turkey as America's most important strategic partner in the Middle East, the Balkans and Caucasia. The present most important problem in Turkey was the economy crises. However, Turkey was better of than Russia, Romania, Bulgaria and other countries which also had applied to the European Union for full membership despite economic difficulties and other issues, stressed the article. /Hurriyet/
[04] SYRIA STIRRING IT UPThe Syrian government has been in touch with the main foreign delegations in Damascus to inform them about the latest developments in the "water issue" -and complain about Turkey.In a note sent to the Ambassadors of the US, France, Italy, Germany, Belgium and Austria, Syria has complained about Turkey's water distribution policy as it involves Syria, and by so doing is fanning the flames of dispute. /Milliyet/
[05] ATHENS NOTE TO ANKARALast week, Athens sent a diplomatic note to Ankara related to the incident involving the total crash of a Turkish Air Forces F-4 Phantom fighter plane. Greece asserted that the Turkish war plane had infringed upon the Greek air space, claiming that Greek air space extended to 10 miles in the Aegean, despite the fact that officially it is only six miles. According to information received, Turkey rejected the diplomatic note, dated 29 December 1995, which was sent to the Turkish Foreign Ministery via the Greek Embassy in Ankara. Deputy Chief of General Staff Major General Erol Ozkasnak, yesterday said that despite every effort, Lieutenant Altug Karaburun's body had not been found and the search has been dropped. /Cumhuriyet/
[06] EUROPALIA PLANNED FOR 1997According to Europalia-Turkey coordinator Bulent Eczacibasi, the much advertised festival will take place somewhere between September and December next year.The Belgian government has finally agreed that the prestigious festival should go ahead despite recent concern about meeting financial targets. Turkey is enthusiastic about the festival because it will feature Turkey and provide opportunities for massive promotion of all things Turkish. /Cumhuriyet/
[07] DENKTAS: "REAL DESTINY OF CYPRUS IS AS TWO EQUAL REPUBLICS"The weapons bought by Greek Cyprus could not change the destiny of Cyprus, and its real destiny was the coexistence of two sovereign and equal republics in the island, Rauf Denktas, President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) said yesterday. Denktas said in a press release that the reality of the existence of two equal, separate and sovereign republics on the island should be accepted.Denktas was reacting to a statement by Greek Cypriot leader Glafkos Klerides, who said Greek Cypriots would fight, if necessary, to get back their lands. Klerides also said that his people did not want to live again through a bloody period like that of 1974. In his response, Denktas pointed out that in 1974 Greek Cyprus had suffered heavily from internal strife during the coup against Archbishop Makarios, in which 3,000 Greek Cypriots were killed by other Greek Cypriots. He emphasized that if Turkey had not intervened in Cyprus, 10,000 more Greek Cypriots, including Klerides, could have died. /All papers/
[08] TURKISH ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION AROUSES INTERESTThe "Control of Dangerous Wastes" regulation, which was prepared and put into force by the Environment Ministry, is being used as a "model regulation" by Brazil, Pakistan and Senegal, the Anatolia news agency reported yesterday. Ministry officials said that Turkey had developed the regulation in accordance with the 1994 Basel agreement concerning the international control of dangerous wastes. The regulation was presented at a techinal group meeting at Basel in December 1995. Representatives of developing countries who participated in the meeting showed great interest in the Turkish regulation, and were taking it as model.
[09] EXPORTS INCREASE BY 22 %Turkish exports in 1995 amounted to $22.4 billion, increasing by 22 % compared with the previous year. Exports were $18.5 billion in 1994. According to exporters' unions figures, 30 % of last year's exports was ready-wear exports which increased by 49 %. /Milliyet/
[10] RED CRESCENT SUCCESSFUL IN 1995The Turkish Red Crescent (Kizilay), which was awarded the "International Ataturk Peace Prize" in 1995, provided help in 47 disasters in this country, distributing tents, medicine and food aid to disaster victims, the Anatolia news agency reported yesterday. Chairman Kemal Demir said that the Red Crescent sent equipment and aid to Dinar after the October 1 earthquake, and that 53 Red Crescent staff are still working in that region. The Red Crescent sent aid to 66 countries in the last five years, at a cost of $200 million. The aid sent to Bosnia-Herzegovina was delivered to the relevant organizations in place, as determined by the Foreign Ministry. The organization also organized the collection of 321,557 units of blood at 22 centres and 15 mobile collection stations.
[11] RECORD IN TOURISMLast year was a 'golden year' for the tourism sector. According to the Tourism Ministry data for the eleven months of 1995, 7.6 million tourists came to Turkey. It is expected that this figure will exceed 8 million when the December figure is included. It is reported that $4 billion was earned from the tourism sector in the first nine months of 1995. It is expected that this figure will surpass $5 billion when the last three months of 1995 are included. Germany (1.7 million tourists) tops the list while the CIS (1.3 million) ranked second and Iranians (337 thousand) third, Israelis (297,825) fourth and the US (285,511) came fifth. /Hurriyet/
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