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Turkish Press Review, 97-03-07Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>CONTENTS
TURKISH PRESS REVIEWMARCH 7, 1997Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning[01] TURKEY ASKS WHY EXCLUSION FROM A EUROPE IT HELPED BUILDForeign Minister Tansu Ciller assembled European ambassadors yesterday to explain why the bluntest rebuff Turkey has ever received from Europe over its European Union (EU) bid was unacceptable to Ankara. Addressing the ambassadors over a working lunch, Tansu Ciller insisted that Turkey, by the very standards that the EU itself had set, was more eligible for membership today than the countries that are now being given precedence.Ciller explained to the EU Ambassadors yesterday that Turkey was proud to have played the role it did as a staunch NATO ally in the "great victory" which resulted in the end of the Cold War to the West's advantage. Ciller pointed out that Turkey had not balked at any stage in this struggle and had even provided one of the largest troop contingents during the Korean War, in which 731 Turkish soldiers sacrificed their lives. Ciller said that Turkey was confident that if it was to be judged by the same objective criteria, held to the exact same standards, put through the identical tests as the former Warsaw Pact applicants for the EU, "it would score very high". "The facts are clear that, when measured by the EU's own criteria Turkey meets the tests for membership as applied to the other applicants" she said. This is why, Ciller said, Turkey has "a very simple and eminently reasonable request" from Europe. /All papers/ [02] ERBAKAN INVITED TO GERMANYGerman Chancellor Helmut Kohl has invited Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan to Germany for an official visit. In a letter to Erbakan, Kohl spelt out the great importance attached by Germany to Erbakan's visit. Referring to the process of political restructuring faced by the international community as a major priority issue, Kohl noted that Germany and Turkey would be assigned important roles in this process.At the same time, Kohl's Chief Adviser Bitterlich, who is visiting Turkey, delivered a warning to the Turkish government that playing the NATO card could incur EU reaction. At a recent summit in Brussels EU Christian Democrats, pioneered by Kohl, announced that Turkey was "not a candidate to be accepted into the EU". The EU left wing challenged the statement, described by Greens deputy Aelvoet as "reactionary". /Milliyet/ [03] LAW ON STATE SECURITY COURTSThe parliament has passed a draft law limiting the powers of state security courts. According to the new law, the duty of handing offences like hijacking will be transferred to ordinary civilian courts. /Zaman/[04] BELGIAN DELEGATION VISITS TURKEYA Belgian delegation headed by Deputy Prime Minister, Finance and Foreign Trade Minister Philippe Maystadt will visit Turkey between March 9-15 under the auspices of Crown Prince Philippe. The delegation of high level bureaucrats and businessmen from the economic and financial sectors will dwell mainly on prospects for improving bilateral economic cooperation. /Hurriyet/[05] INCREASE IN INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTIONIn January industrial production surged by 0.3 percent in comparison to the same month last year, the State Statistics Institute announced. Mining was the sector showing the best performance with a 7.6 percent growth rate, followed by electricity, gas and water production that has increased by 6.7 percent. Manufacturing production tumbled by 0.4 percent. /Y.Yuzyil/[06] ROMANIAN NAVAL FORCE COMMANDER IN TURKEYRomanian Naval Force Commander Admiral Gheroghe Anghelescu is visiting Turkey upon the official invitation of his Turkish counterpart Admiral Guven Erkaya. During the visit, the Romanian commander will visit the Military Naval Training School. /Cumhuriyet/[07] PKK MOVES INTO IRANAccording to US intelligence specialists, Iran is providing military training to PKK terrorists. Having lost power in northern Iraq, the separatist PKK organization is now setting up camps in Iranian territory, US intelligence services note. /Sabah/[08] GREEK FM PANGALOS: TURKEY PART OF EUROPEGreek Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos, after meeting US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright at the State Department yesterday answered questions from journalists concerning Turkey's rejection from the EU by Europoean Christian Democratic party leaders. Speaking more positively than ever before, Pangalos said: "Turkey of course belongs in Europe. If Turkey is not part of European history then Greece is not part of European history".Albright, for her part, said that Turkey and Greece, two US-ally countries, should initiate dialogue to solve their bilateral problems. Regarding the statements of European leaders following a meeting of the Christian Democrat Party leaders, US State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns said: "We believe that the door of the EU should be open for Turkey. This has been our view since the beginning". Meanwhile, Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi pointed out that Turkey's full membership in the EU was the general policy of his country and government. /Hurriyet-Cumhuriyet-Sabah/ [09] "ATATURK IS OUR LEADER"Kazakhstan Prime Minister Akejan Kajigeldin said in a statement at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport that they took Ataturk as an example as a leader. Kajigeldin added that there had been two great leaders in the history of 300 million Turkish population; one of them was the religious leader, Ahmet Yasevi and the other was statesman Kemal Ataturk. The visiting Prime Minister pointed out that Turkey's democratic develepment was very important for Kazakhstan. /Hurriyet/[10] TURKEY IN INTERNATIONAL MARKETThe International Market Bound affiliated to the Istanbul Stock Exchange, opened by exporting TurkEuro bonds, will sell American investment bonds. American Express Bank investment funds, with the total value of $87 million, will be sold within the next few days. Chairman of the Istanbul Stock Exchange, Tuncay Artun said that there had been satisfactory exchange at the international bond market last week. He added: "There have been nice and important developments in the bond market. After the funds of the American Express Bank, Euro bonds of other countries will be activated in the market." /Cumhuriyet/[11] TURKEY'S AMBASSADOR TO IRAN RETURNS TO ANKARATurkey's ambassador to Tehran, Osman Koruturk, returned to Ankara yesterday after being expelled by Iran in retaliation to a similar move against two Iranian diplomats in Turkey. The diplomatic quarrel between the two countries began last month when Iran's ambassador to Turkey allegedly spoke out against secularism during an anti-Israeli rally.On his arrival at the airport, Koruturk said that Iran had found "artificial reasons" to invoke the diplomatic principle of reciprocity. He added that the problems between the two countries should not become a crisis because for Turkey, Iran was a gate to the Far East and for Iran, Turkey was a gate to Europe. /Sabah/ [12] FORMER BULGARIAN PM OBJECTS TO GIVING MINORITY RIGHTS TO TURKSThe former Prime Minister of Bulgaria, Jan Videnov said Bulgaria must not sign the International Minority Rights agreement. Stating that Bulgaria was a united state, Videnov said: "Turks and other nationalities living in Bulgaria mustn't be given the status of being a minority". Videnov said the Movement for Rights and Freedom (HOH), an ethnic Turkish party, had wanted the rights' agreement signed and would continue pushing for it by appeal to the Constitutional Court and to which ever party comes to power in the April 9 elections. /All papers/[13] FRANCE SAYS TURKEY SHOULD BE ANCHORED TO EUROPEFollowing the declaration by the mainly Christian Democrat European People's Party (EPP) that Turkey could not be a full member of the European Union (EU), the French Foreign Ministry said yesterday that "France was in favour of Turkey being anchored to Europe". French Foreign Ministry spokesman Jacques Rummelhardt said in a routine press conference that the French government would not comment on the declaration of a political party. He said: "However, France is taking determined action in favour of anchoring Turkey to Europe".Rummelhardt, recalling that the "political agreement on customs union" was not an important step in the rapprochement between Turkey and the EU, said: "We hope that all the commitments made to Turkey on March 6, 1995, will be carried out, including the financial part". /Milliyet/ [14] MORE THAN 1,300 TURKISH KURDS SEEK REFUGEE IN IRAQMore than 1,300 Turkish Kurdish refugees who left a troubled refugee camp in northern Iraq appealed to Iraq to provide them with security and basic necessities. The men, women and children arrived in the area last week and set up a camp along a muddy village road running from Dohuk, to Mosul in northern Iraq. /All papers/[15] EUROCHAMBERS MEET IN ISTANBULA Eurochambers members' meeting opened on Wednesday in Istanbul, hosted by the Union of Chambers of Industry, Commerce and Stock Exchanges (TOBB). The symposium brings together officials from the union of chambers and industry of 17 European nations seeking to strengthen ties and cooperation between representative states. TOBB President Fuat Miras, speaking at the session's opening stated that the gathering of representatives of the Eurochambers, Black Sea Economic Cooperation member countries and the chambers of Central Asian Turkish-Speaking Republics would foster closer economic ties among the nations. Meetings will continue with a Friday conference on "Uniting for Sustainable Economic Growth", at which Foreign Minister Tansu Ciller is scheduled to speak. /Milliyet/[16] TURKEY IMPORTANT FOR BRITISH COMPANIESAn English language school, a bulk handling manufacturer and a computer software company are among the companies taking part in a British trade mission visiting Turkey on 10 March. The group is organized by the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry with the support of the United Kingdom Department of Trade and Industry. Mission leader Beth Rayney of the London Chamber says: "This is our tenth mission to Turkey, which is an important and exciting market for United Kingdom companies". Bilateral relations have reached another higher level since Turkey's entry into customs union last year. /All papers/[17] BLACK WHALE '97 MANEUVERS CONTINUE IN AEGEAN SEAWarships and submarines participating in the Turkish Navy's Black Whale '97 military exercise anchored at the Aegean port of Izmir yesterday after a series of maneuvers in the Aegean Sea. The flotilla, commanded by Rear Adm.Mustafa Ultanir, is made up of destroyers, frigates and submarines. The fleet will leave on Friday for the second part of the 10-day exercise to practice new tactics both in the Aegean and Marmara Seas. The warships will also use real ammunition during the exercise. /All papers/END Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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