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Turkish Press Review, 02-01-16

Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>

<LINK href="http://www.byegm.gov.tr_yayinlarimiz_chr_pics_css/tpr.css" rel=STYLESHEET type=text/css> <map name="FPMap1"> <_map> Press &amp; Information Turkish Press Turkish Press Review &gt;&gt; Foreign Press Guide Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning

16.01.2002


CONTENTS

  • [01] ECEVIT HAS IMPORTANT MEETINGS ON US VISIT
  • [02] WOLFENSOHN: "DON'T GIVE UP ON YOUR PROGRAM"
  • [03] BAHCELI: "TURKISH-US COOPERATION MUST BE IMPROVED"
  • [04] DERVIS SPEAKS ON TURKISH AND ARGENTINEAN ECONOMIES
  • [05] TURKISH MILITARY DELEGATION TO GO TO AFGHANISTAN THIS WEEK
  • [06] WASHINGTON TIMES: "TURKEY SHOULD BE REWARDED"
  • [07] LORD WALLACE'S CYPRUS REPORT
  • [08] DOSTUM TO ARRIVE IN ANKARA
  • [09] NEW CYPRUS TALKS PROCESS BEGINS TODAY
  • [10] KOHLER: "IMF WILL CONTINUE TO SUPPORT TURKEY"
  • [11] CHHIBBER BRIEFED ON DOWNSIZING OF STATE
  • [12] IRISH PARLIAMENTARIAN BECOMES EP HEAD
  • [13] ACCORD CALLS FOR TURKISH-RUSSIAN OFFICER EXCHANGES
  • [14] MOODY'S UP GRADES TURKEY'S OUTLOOK TO STABLE
  • [15] US TRAVEL AGENTS TO VISIT ISTANBUL
  • [16] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...
  • [17] THE FIRST IMPRESSIONS FROM WASHINGTON BY ERGUN BABAHAN
  • [18] THE OTHER SUMMIT BY SAMI KOHEN (MILLIYET)

  • [01] ECEVIT HAS IMPORTANT MEETINGS ON US VISIT

    Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit had a busy schedule on the first day of his US visit. Yesterday, Ecevit first received World Bank President James Wolfensohn at the Blair House which is near Washington's White House grounds. After the 40-minute meeting, Wolfensohn told reporters that talks between the two had been very fruitful. Then Ecevit and his accompanying delegation met with US Vice President Dick Cheney at the White House. At the meeting's outset, Cheney said that the US administration heartily welcomed the Turkish premier's US visit and also supported the Turkish government. Pointing to the importance of Turkish-US strategic relations, Cheney said that the US administration admired Turkey's role in NATO. Concerning Afghanistan, Cheney said they appreciated Turkey's decision to send troops to Afghanistan. Ecevit replied that Turkey was ready to help Afghanistan to reconstruct itself and to establish a modern army. Ecevit stated that in addition to the strategic cooperation between Turkey and the US, economic relations should also be developed. Cheney said that the US supported the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline project, and he was briefed on the pipeline and other energy projects by Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Zeki Cakan. The Cyprus issue was also taken up during the meeting. Additionally, Cheney stated that the agreement between Turkey, the US and Great Britain concerning the European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP) was very sound and important and that they had conveyed this to Greece. After the meeting with Cheney, Ecevit received members of the American- Turkish Council (ATC), and then US Assistant Secretary of State Marc Grossman, a former US ambassador to Turkey and IMF Chairman Horst Kohler. As part of Ecevit's meetings today, he will meet with US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Acting Secretary of State Richard Armitage and finally US President George W. Bush. US Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill is also expected to be received by Ecevit at the Blair House today. Meanwhile, Rahsan Ecevit, wife of Bulent Ecevit, and US first lady Laura Bush will meet together at a tea party in the morning. /All Papers/

    [02] WOLFENSOHN: "DON'T GIVE UP ON YOUR PROGRAM"

    Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit had his first meeting yesterday on his current United States visit by holding talks with World Bank President James Wolfensohn. Also present at the gathering were Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem, State Minister for the Economy Kemal Dervis, State Minister Tunca Toskay, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Zeki Cakan, Treasury Undersecretary Faik Oztrak, Central Bank President Sureyya Serdengecti, Undersecretary for Foreign Trade Kursad Tuzmen and Turkey's US Ambassador Faruk Logoglu. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Wolfensohn said "We give full support to the current economic program that is being applied by Turkey and we believe that Turkey should continue its program without making any concessions." The meeting was a very constructive one, Wolfensohn added. He said that the Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan pipeline project has also been discussed and declared, "This is an important project, and the World Bank should support it." /Hürriyet/

    [03] BAHCELI: "TURKISH-US COOPERATION MUST BE IMPROVED"

    In a speech yesterday at the group meeting of his party the Nationalist Action Party (MHP), Deputy Prime Minister Devlet Bahceli offered his views of Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit's current visit to the US. Stating that Ecevit's visit was of great importance to both countries, Bahceli said that Turkey and the US had been faithful allies for years. "We believe that Ecevit's visit to the US is very important to improve our bilateral cooperation against terrorism," said Bahceli. "Furthermore, I believe that Ecevit's visit will pave way to new opportunities to improve our commercial and economic ties." /Cumhuriyet/

    [04] DERVIS SPEAKS ON TURKISH AND ARGENTINEAN ECONOMIES

    State Minister for the Economy Kemal Dervis said yesterday Turkey had been successful in its economic policies but regretfully added that Argentina had not been. Dervis, who is currently in the US as part of Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit's visit to that country, spoke about recent developments in Turkey and Argentina during a Washington conference on "Fighting World Poverty" held by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. "We have achieved much in addition to our successful implementation of fiscal policies in Turkey, but Argentina unfortunately fell short," he said. "The lesson to be taken from Turkey and Argentina's situations is that the stable foreign exchange currency systems can fail in countries whose banking sectors are weak and who do not pursue successful fiscal policies." /Milliyet/

    [05] TURKISH MILITARY DELEGATION TO GO TO AFGHANISTAN THIS WEEK

    Last week, Turkey announced that it would send 261 soldiers to the International Security and Assitance Force (ISAF), which is being established within the context of Operation Enduring Freedom, carried out by the US in Afghanistan. New plans call for a 12-person military delegation from Turkey to go to Afghanistan on Friday from Etimesgut Military Airport. The Office of the General Staff had previously announced that the delegation would be in Afghanistan on Jan. 15-22. A colonel will command the delegation, which consists of six members of the land forces and six forces of the air forces, and coordinate their efforts. The delegation will travel to the capital Kabul first, with the air force personnel going to nearby Bagram Airport. There they will coordinate flights and ground services. The land forces contingent will carry out their duties at the ISAF's headquarters. /Aksam/

    [06] WASHINGTON TIMES: "TURKEY SHOULD BE REWARDED"

    In an opinion piece published in US daily the Washington Times yesterday, a public interest lawyer argued that Turkey's firm and unwavering support for the US on the foreign policy stage made it incumbent that the US make an equal demonstration of support. "Turkey has set the gold standard for cooperating with the United States in its pivotal foreign policy gambits, including our war against the Taleban, al-Qaeda, and terrorism generally," wrote Bruce Fein. "It should be rewarded accordingly." Fein, general counsel for the Center for Law and Accountability, a US public interest group, recalled that Turkey had been a longtime and faithful ally of the United States from its early entry into NATO underlining that its sympathies with the United States are enduring and deep. "Moreover, Turkey is the sole example in the history of Islam that supports a secular and strengthening democratic dispensation and covets Western free market and human rights ideals," said the piece. "To reward Turkey would encourage other Middle Eastern and Asian nations to enlist more eagerly in our counter-terrorism ranks and to shed their trappings of autocracy for more democratic garb." Fein also enumerated a number of measures that might be taken by the Bush administration to support Turkey. Among those measures are relaxing tariff barriers and quotas for Turkish exports, voicing unequivocal support for Turkey's admission to the EU and announcing financial support for the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline. /Cumhuriyet/

    [07] LORD WALLACE'S CYPRUS REPORT

    British Economy Professor Lord William Wallace presented a Cyprus report to the press yesterday at the Office of the Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen Association (TUSIAD) in Brussels. In his report, Lord Wallace evaluated the recent meetings between Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas and Greek Cypriot leader Glafcos Clerides as representing a "historic opportunity." He called on Turkey and Greece as well as Greek and Turkish Cypriots not to miss this opportunity, which is unlikely to be offered again. Remarking that Greek Cypriots seemed likely to join the European Union in four years whether a permanent solution is reached on the island or not, Lord Wallace said that such a development would be a tragedy for both nations on Cyprus. The report listed a number of problems which are likely to emerge if the EU admits Greek Cypriots without a permanent solution being reached. Lord Wallace argued that relations among Turkey, Greece, the EU and the two nations on Cyprus would face a serious crisis if the Greek Cypriots join the Union. He added that since Cyprus was a problem in the EU's enlargement process, the Union had to play a more active and productive role in negotiations over the island. /Cumhuriyet/

    [08] DOSTUM TO ARRIVE IN ANKARA

    Uzbek Gen. Rashid Dostum, the deputy defense minister in the new Afghan interim government Uzbek general Rasid Dostum will travel to Ankara today. Following an opening ceremony for the Uzbek Consulate General in Mezar-i Sherif, Dostum will travel to Turkey through Uzbekistan. Dostum will visit his family living in Ankara, and he is additionally expected to hold official meetings with Turkish authorities. /Turkiye/

    [09] NEW CYPRUS TALKS PROCESS BEGINS TODAY

    Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President and Greek Cyriot leader Glafcos Clerides will begin to direct talks today at 10:00 a.m. with a view to reaching a lasting settlement on the Cyprus issue. The meetings are expected to continue until a result is obtained. The Turkish and Greek sides will attend the meetings with delegations of four each and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Cyprus Special Envoy Alvaro de Soto as an observer. This new period got its start following Denktas and Clerides' face-to-face meeting last month -the first such meeting in four years, where the two leaders decided to begin direct talks on Jan. 16. /All Papers/

    [10] KOHLER: "IMF WILL CONTINUE TO SUPPORT TURKEY"

    After meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit in Washington yesterday, International Monetary Fund (IMF) President Horst Kohler gave positive signals concerning $14 billion in additional IMF financing for the country. "Turkey has shown a very good performance, its inflation is falling, and now it is time for growth," he said. Kohler added that Turkey had made significant progress under its economic program and the IMF looks forward to supporting Turkey's continued efforts under a new standby agreement. The IMF Executive board is due to discuss the agreement and the additional financing later this month. /Sabah/

    [11] CHHIBBER BRIEFED ON DOWNSIZING OF STATE

    World Bank Turkey Representative Ajay Chhibber met yesterday with State Minister Mehmet Kececiler and representatives from the Finance Ministry. He asked Kececiler questions on the current situation concerning downsizing the state structure and decreasing the number of public employees. /Cumhuriyet/

    [12] IRISH PARLIAMENTARIAN BECOMES EP HEAD

    The European Parliament (EP) has elected its new chairman. With Nicole Fontaine's term of duty as EP chairman at an end, Liberal Group member Irish parliamentarian Patrick Cox yesterday won the election to fill that post. Cox's candidacy was favored by Ankara as a welcome change. Whereas Fontaine had asserted that Turkey is far from EU membership and had praised the possible EU membership for Greek Cyprus, Cox has issued warm messages to Ankara as well as constructive criticisms. Another point in Cox's favor in Ankara's eyes is that he has met with both sides in Cyprus and has said that the EU should lend its ear to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) as well. /Milliyet/

    [13] ACCORD CALLS FOR TURKISH-RUSSIAN OFFICER EXCHANGES

    Turkish Chief of General Staff Gen. Huseyin Kivrikoglu and his Russian counterpart Gen. Anatoliy Kvashnin yesterday signed a Military Cooperation Agreement on behalf of their respective countries. Under this agreement, Turkey and Russia are to participate in exchanges of officers for training. Ankara and Moscow will also cooperate in military defense projects. Additionally, this agreement calls on Russia not to allow any terrorist organizations on their soil to act against Turkey. /Hürriyet/

    [14] MOODY'S UP GRADES TURKEY'S OUTLOOK TO STABLE

    International credit rating agency Moody's yesterday announced that Turkey's outlook had been raised to stable. The agency says that the likelihood of ratings downgrades for the country has diminished for the next year because of improved refinancing and pricing prospects for domestic as well as external debt. The agency also reiterated that additional efforts to lower inflation and interest rates were crucial to regain momentum for growth and to ensure the sustainability of the public debt dynamic. /All Papers/

    [15] US TRAVEL AGENTS TO VISIT ISTANBUL

    A delegation from the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) will come to Istanbul today to lay the groundwork for this year's ASTA World Convention to be held in that city. The Turkish Association of Travel Agencies (TURSAB) announced yesterday that following ASTA's decision to hold their meeting in Istanbul, a seven-person committee from that group would visit Turkey in order to make preparations. The delegation will leave Istanbul on Jan. 20 and before its departure, it will attend a performance of the "Sultans of the Dance." /Aksam/

    [16] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...

    [17] THE FIRST IMPRESSIONS FROM WASHINGTON BY ERGUN BABAHAN

    (AKSAM)

    Columnist Ergun Babahan writes on Prime Minister Ecevit's talks in Washington. A summary of his column is as follows:

    "Ecevit has probably held the most important meeting of his life with World Bank Chairman James Wolfenson. It was important as it covered one of the projects to which Ecevit has attached great importance all through his political life. Prime Minister Ecevit began his talks in Washington yesterday. He has a busy schedule as if to silence all speculations about his ailing health. In his program, there was also a meeting with Vice President Dick Cheney. During the meeting which four of our government ministers also attended, Cheney praised Ecevit due to the efforts of the Turkish government and reiterated US support for the Baku-Ceyhan project. Cheney said that they supported this project both from an economic and strategic viewpoint. Both sides agreed on the signing of the project. The prime minister stressed that during his visit to the US he would try to erase the mistaken and unfair prejudices against Islam seen recently in the international community. As the prime minister is preparing to discuss a wide spectrum of issues ranging from the economy to the Middle East, American public opinion is preoccupied with the Enron scandal. The collapse of energy giant Enron which claimed far greater profits than the actual figures bore out has deeply affected the US. The campaign contributions this company made candidate Bush during the 2000 elections has deepened the impact of the event. Enron's bankruptcy hurt the US badly. However, no one is trying to cover up the incident. Both the Congress and judicial authorities are taking action to uncover all aspects of the situation, including any connection to President Bush. Even though the US president has stated that he had no connection to the incident, he also hasn't accused anyone of pressuring prosecutors. Against this background, Prime Minister Ecevit will try to to boost Turkey's share of US the economic and political support. However, the Enron incident shows that it is not only economic aid that we should carry back from the US. We have to learn transparency and control open to the public and the need to investigate all claims of corruption in order to get an accounting of the people's money. These are all indispensable parts of the American culture. If don't want to come to the brink of collapse again, we have to accept these values as basic in our lives. Regarding the Middle East, Turkey's only objection concerns the foundation of a Kurdish state. Foreign Minister Ismail Cem has underlined the issue once again. Cem said that the Middle East will be taken up as a whole during the discussions. These are the impressions of our first day in Washington."

    [18] THE OTHER SUMMIT BY SAMI KOHEN (MILLIYET)

    Columnist Sami Kohen writes on two summits held in two capitals thousands of miles apart from each other. A summary of his column is as follows:

    "Today, in two capitals thousands of miles apart from each other, two important summits are being held which are of great importance to Turkey. The first summit will be between Prime Minister Ecevit and US President Bush. The second will be held by Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders Clerides and Denktas in Lefkosha. It is an interesting coincidence that both summits take place on the same day. Cyprus is not one of the top priority issues on the agenda of Ecevit's US talks. Most probably, President Bush will bring up the Cyprus issue during their talks, expressing his pleasure over the resumption of bilateral negotiations and calling on Turkey to help in the search for a solution. If an accord had not been reached to resume face-to-face talks during the Denktas-Clerides meeting on Dec. 4, the meeting in Washington might not have taken place in such a positive atmosphere. Will this negotiation process lead to a concrete result? It is very hard to guess at this point. However, it can be said that they have the chance to proceed on and even succeed. Both leaders know that this is their last chance and if they are not successful, unpleasant incidents may occur. Both sides are aware that 'intransigence is not a good solution.' But this is not enough. Both sides also have to exert great efforts for a serious agreement without trampling on their basic interests. It is hard but not impossible. Both sides have to take care not to destroy the air of optimism or lose the momentum gained. There are two ways to ensure this. The first is to declare a 'speech moratorium' and act accordingly. The second is to take steps towards building confidence rather than shaking it. Non-governmental organizations may help in this point, as in the rapprochement between Turkey and Greece. At the moment it is foreseen that three meetings per week will be held in Lefkosha. The leaders had agreed before that they would not leave the negotiation table until they come to an accord. We hope that this will be so."

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