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Turkish Press Review, 97-01-27Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>CONTENTS
TURKISH PRESS REVIEWJANUARY 27, 1997Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning[01] TOURISM MINISTER IN ISRAELMinister for Tourism, Bahattin Yucel is in Israel for an official visit. Just prior to his departure from Istanbul Ataturk Airport, Yucel said that he wanted to develop cooperation between Turkey and Israel in the tourism sector. He added that he would be talking with a number of ranking Israeli officials.Yucel also strongly denied that Turkey in any way, shape or form supported international drug smuggling. Answering claims from some European countries that Turkey in some way benefited from drug trafficking, Yucel stressed that Turkey was totally opposed to trade in drugs. /Cumhuriyet/ [02] CANKOREL: ARMS EXPORTS TO AFGHANISTAN SHOULD STOPTurkey's Charge d'affairs in Kabul, Bilge Cankorel, said arms exports to Afghanistan should stop, the Anatolia news agency reported. Cankorel, speaking at the Afghanistan Peace Conference in Tehran, called on the warring groups in Afghanistan to declare a cease-fire. The Taleban, who control two-thirds of the war-torn country, did not send a delegation to Tehran for the peace conference saying Iran was not neutral in the Afghan civil war. The Islamic militia accuses Iran of backing its rivals. /All papers/[03] TURKEY SLAMS DRUG CHARGES FROM THE WESTThe Foreign Ministry on Sunday reacted harshly to proliferating allegations of high-level involvement in illicit drug operations, seeing it as an orchestrated campaign to undermine Turkey's developing ties with Europe. The strongly-worded statement followed Sunday's press reports quoting British and French officials as joining in the allegations, first aired by a German judge, targeting the Turkish government. The statement said necessary representations were made in Ankara and Turkey's displeasure was made known together with a request for the speedy delivery of whatever information and evidence they claim to have.The statement said it was regrettable that some European countries ignored Turkey's constant warnings that drug smuggling was a chief source of income for separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) terrorists, and instead of banning a PKK-run TV station (MED-TV), broadcasting from their soil and financed by drug money, were directing accusations against Turkey. Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel phoned his Turkish counterpart Tansu Ciller and noted that there was nothing found to justify what a German judge earlier claimed about top Turkish officials being involved in drug trafficking. Kinkel said: "We do not want our relations with Turkey to be damaged", adding that Prime Minister Kohl also shared the same view. Kinkel apologized to Foreign Minister Ciller on behalf of the German government. /Sabah/ [04] KINKEL: SOUTHERN CYPRUS CANNOT BE ACCEPTED BY THE EUIn a statement to the Kathemerini newspaper, German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel said that negotiation for accepting Southern Cyprus into the European Union could yield positive results only after a solution to the Cyprus problem was found. "We are not willing to carry the dispute into the European Union," Kinkel stressed. /Milliyet-Hurriyet/[05] ALBRIGHT: WE WILL IMPROVE CYPRUS SITUATION IN 1997Madeleine K.Albright, US Secretary of State, during her first press conference as secretary, brought up the issue of Cyprus and signalled that it will be among the agenda items she will concentrate on during her tenure. "We are very concerned about Cyprus and the whole set of issues that go with that" Albright said.Meanwhile, the General Council of the Parliamentarian Assembly of the Council of Europe will begin to hold winter-term meetings in Strasbourg today. During the meetings to last for one week, a Cyprus report prepared by Hungarian Deputy Andras Barsony will be discussed. A resolution draft regarding this report calls upon the two leaders of Cyprus, who have not met since 1994, to begin to hold negotiations again. /Cumhuriyet/ [06] ARAFAT, LEVY TO VISIT TURKEY IN FEBRUARYAfter the Palestinian and Israeli request for Turkey to send troops to Hebron as observers, Ankara is awaiting two important visits in February, from Palestine leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Foreign Minister David Levy. During his visit to Palestine early this month, Turkish Parliament Speaker Mustafa Kalemli delivered President Suleyman Demirel's request that Arafat visit Turkey, which Arafat accepted. The Palestinian leader is expected a few days after the Ramadan holiday in mid-February. Israeli Foreign Minister David Levy, invited to Turkey by his Turkish counterpart Tansu Ciller, is also expected in Ankara next month but the date of his visit has not yet been confirmed. /Cumhuriyet/[07] THY, AKBANK AMONG TEN BIGGEST COMPANIES IN MIDDLE EASTEighty of the 500 largest companies in the Middle East are Turkish, with Turkish Airlines (THY) and Akbank ranking among the top ten. According to the list prepared by the London-based Middle East Economic Digest (MEED), based on the companies' market values, THY is in fourth place with a value of $3.2 billion and Akbank ranks tenth with $2.2 billion. Banking and finance companies made up 36 % of the biggest 500 companies on the list. Altogether 80 Turkish companies made it into the first 500. /Hurriyet-Sabah/[08] US ENERGY INVESTMENT IN TURKEYNine of the biggest US energy companies are reportedly planning to make a $5.8 billion investment in Turkey. According to Energy Ministry officials, the companies have submitted a package proposal to the Foreign Ministry via US Ambassador to Ankara Marc Grossman. The package includes proposals for the construction of natural gas, liquid natural gas and fuel oil transfer power plants. /Milliyet/[09] TURK TELEKOM TO CHALLENGE MANY RIVALS IN WORLD MARKETShares in state-owned communications giant, Turk Telekom, which has now become eligible for privatization with the recent ruling of the Constitutional Court, will be launched on the world market later this year, the Anatolia news agency reported on Sunday. According to information compiled by Anatolia from Turk Telekom activity reports and the World Bank, Turk Telekom has seven rivals in the world market this year. The first slice of Turk Telekom will be privatized in the second half of 1997.[10] TYD ISSUES A REPORTThe Turkish Tourism Investors Association (TYD) has issued a report on the EU's tourism policy prepared by both the TYD and the Turkish Research Center, based in Germany, recommending that Turkey follow developing tourism potential worldwide and implement new tourism policies. The report emphasized that policies congruent with those of the EU would greatly assist Turkey's further development and integration with Europe. Pointing out that the tourism sector is one of Turkey's international contact points, the report said that EU oriented policies could help not only to develop trade relations with the EU, but also support social and political relations. /All papers/[11] DEADLOCK IN ATRUSH CAMPThe future of the Atrush Refugee Camp in northern Iraq, home to nearly 14,000 Kurdish refugees, is still a puzzle. Foreign Ministry Spokesman Omer Akbel said yesterday that although the UN flag was still flying over the camp, the UN had stopped supplying humanitarian aid and food. Akbel said Turkey would give all the help it could to refugees from the camp who wanted to return to Turkey. UN officials said that they wanted to lower the flag, however militants of the PKK terrorist organization were not allowing this. /Cumhuriyet/[12] TURKISH NAVY SHIPS IN TRNCThree Turkish navy ships docked at a port in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Saturday in a show of strength after a row over the deployment of surface-to-air missiles on the eastern Mediterranean island. Around 5,000 Turkish Cypriots welcomed the frigate Fatih and the assault boats Gurbet and Dogan when they cruised into Famagusta harbour. A brass band played military marches on the quay side in the bright sunshine. The visit was a demonstration of solidarity by Turkey with its ethnic kin in Cyprus against Greek Cypriot plans to install Russian-made S-300 missiles on the island. Ankara has said it will use force if necessary to halt the deployment, due in about 16 months' time. /All papers/[13] ECONOMIC SUPPORT FOR TRNCState Minister Abdullah Gul said over the weekend that Turkey was not going to support the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) from a purely military standpoint. Noting the arrival of Turkish naval vessels in northern Cyprus, Gul added that Turkey was about to extend new credit facilities to the TRNC.Minister Gul said that the first ten trillion TL credit facility would be handed over at the start of this week. The money will be used for a special retirement fund and more education opportunities. /Hurriyet/ [14] IRAQ SLAMS BRITAIN AND TURKEY FOR DIPLOMATS VISITAn official Iraqi newspaper attacked Britain yesterday for sending two diplomats into Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq, saying it had breached "international norms and conventions". "What has been done by this 'delegation' represents a flagrant violation of international norms and consular dealings" said al-Thawra, newspaper of the ruling Baath party. Thawra also comdemned Turkey for allowing the diplomats to enter Iraq through its territory. /Cumhuriyet/END Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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