|
|
Turkish Press Review, 04-04-08
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>
e-mail :
newspot@byegm.gov.tr
<caption> <_caption>
Summary of the political and economic
news in the Turkish press this morning
08.04.2004
FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...
CONTENTS
[01] TURKEY, GREECE COMMIT TO CYPRUS REFERENDUMS
[02] TURKEY, MOROCCO VOW TO COOPERATE IN FIGHT AGAINST TERRORISM
[03] DENKTAS: “TURKISH CYPRIOTS SHOULD BE TOLD WHAT THEY STAND TO LOSE UNDER THE UN PLAN”
[04] ARINC TRAVELS TO SYRIA
[05] TALAT: “I BELIEVE THAT MOST TURKISH CYPRIOTS WILL VOTE FOR THE UN CYPRUS PLAN”
[06] VERHEUGEN: “IF THE TURKISH CYPRIOTS ACCEPT THE UN PLAN BUT GREEK CYPRIOTS DON’T, THEN GREEK CYPRUS WILL JOIN THE EU ALONE”
[07] PAPADOPOULOS CALLS ON GREEK CYPRIOTS TO VOTE AGAINST UN CYPRUS PLAN
[08] FRENCH FM: “FOR NOW, PARIS OPPOSES TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP”
[09] JOINT CHIEFS HEAD MYERS: “TURKEY IS A RELIABLE US ALLY”
[10] BABACAN: “UNEMPLOYMENT IS HIGH, BUT WE’LL REDUCE IT THROUGH INVESTMENTS”
[11] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...
[12] WOLF AT THE DOOR BY ERGUN BABAHAN (SABAH)
[01] TURKEY, GREECE COMMIT TO CYPRUS REFERENDUMS
Turkey and Greece yesterday sent commitments to the United Nations giving
their approval for April 24 referendums on Cyprus over the UN peace plan.
After presenting the final version of the plan last week, UN Secretary-
General Kofi Annan asked for written commitments from all sides on the
issue. The two sides on the island have to give commitments to hold
referendums, while the guarantor countries – Turkey, Greece and Britain –
also have to commit to the referendums and then present the plan to their
respective Parliaments for approval before the agreement is signed on April
29, just two days before Greek Cyprus’s scheduled EU accession. Speaking to
reporters, Foreign Ministry spokesman Namik Tan said that after the plan’s
approval in Parliament, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer’s approval was also
needed. /Turkiye/
[02] TURKEY, MOROCCO VOW TO COOPERATE IN FIGHT AGAINST TERRORISM
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday met with his Moroccan
counterpart Driss Jettou, who is currently paying an official visit to
Turkey. In a joint press conference, the two leaders stressed that they had
agreed to cooperate in the fight against terrorism. /Turkiye/
[03] DENKTAS: “TURKISH CYPRIOTS SHOULD BE TOLD WHAT THEY STAND TO LOSE
UNDER THE UN PLAN”
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas said
yesterday that Turkish Cypriots should be told clearly what they stand to
lose under the UN Cyprus plan, scheduled for an April 24 referendum, adding
that he was just the man to do this. Denktas further charged that the
European Union was not acting with good will on the issue. “A Cyprus
resolution is a condition for Turkey’s EU membership, but not for Greek
Cyprus’,” he said. “This proves that the EU doesn’t want Turkey to join
it.” He added that he wanted a resolution which protects the interests of
the Turkish Cypriots but that the UN plan failed to include the Turkish
side’s sine qua nons and so would not meet this test. /Cumhuriyet/
[04] ARINC TRAVELS TO SYRIA
Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc yesterday left for Damascus, Syria to pay
an official visit at the invitation of his Syrian counterpart Mahmoud Al
Abras. After meeting with Abras, Arinc said that commonalities and
friendship based on faith made up the strongest tie between Ankara and
Damascus. Stressing that that Islamic world should renew itself, Arinc said
that Turkey would not accept any threat to its neighbors. “Turkey will not
allow any territorial breakup in this region,” vowed the Parliament
speaker. /Turkiye/
[05] TALAT: “I BELIEVE THAT MOST TURKISH CYPRIOTS WILL VOTE FOR THE UN
CYPRUS PLAN”
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Talat
said yesterday that he believed most Turkish Cypriots would vote for the UN
Cyprus plan at a referendum scheduled for April 24. “Since the plan is one
which meets the needs of both sides, we can easily accept it,” he stated,
adding that he found Ankara’s stance on the matter “encouraging.” But he
lamented, “Despite the determination of the Turkish government, the TRNC
government has yet to make a decision.” The premier also said he had
welcomed the decision taken this week by Ankara’s National Security Council
(NSC) to support the plan, and reaffirmed his party’s (TRNC senior
coalition partner the Republican Turkish Party) group decision in favor of
the plan. /Cumhuriyet/
[06] VERHEUGEN: “IF THE TURKISH CYPRIOTS ACCEPT THE UN PLAN BUT GREEK
CYPRIOTS DON’T, THEN GREEK CYPRUS WILL JOIN THE EU ALONE”
Speaking at a press conference in Brussels yesterday, European Union
Commissioner for Enlargement Guenter Verheugen said that if the Turkish
Cypriots accept the UN plan in an April 24 referendum but Greek Cypriots
don’t, then Greek Cyprus would join the EU alone, representing the whole
island. The EU commissioner urged leaders from both nations to do their
best to convince their peoples to support the plan, which he called a final
historic opportunity. “The alternative to this plan is no resolution at all,
” he added. /Mi/
[07] PAPADOPOULOS CALLS ON GREEK CYPRIOTS TO VOTE AGAINST UN CYPRUS PLAN
Appearing on television yesterday, Greek Cypriot leader Tassos Papadopoulos
said that he wouldn’t accept the UN Cyprus plan at a referendum scheduled
for April 24 and called on his countrymen to do the same. He said that the
risks of saying yes to the plan outweighed the benefits of saying no,
adding that though the plan had been somewhat improved, it still fell short
of the Greek Cypriots’ needs. /Hurriyet/
[08] FRENCH FM: “FOR NOW, PARIS OPPOSES TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP”
French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier said yesterday that his government
opposed Turkey’s European Union membership “under current circumstances.”
Speaking to the French Parliament, Barnier claimed that although Ankara was
carrying out certain reforms, it had yet not implemented the criteria
necessary for becoming an EU member. “Turkey does not respect the
conditions, even if it is preparing to do so,'' he said, adding that there
was “no question'' of Turkey's joining the EU for now. Barnier became
foreign minister only last week in a Paris Cabinet reshuffle. Commenting on
the remarks, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said, “Such statements are not
official. We have things to do in line with the EU’s progress report, and
we’ll continue to do them.” /Turkiye/
[09] JOINT CHIEFS HEAD MYERS: “TURKEY IS A RELIABLE US ALLY”
US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Richard Myers said yesterday that
Turkey and the US should cooperate in all areas, not just the military, but
also in politics and trade. Speaking at a Washington banquet organized by
the American-Turkish Council, Myers stated that when bilateral cooperation
is strengthened, a common strategy and its results would prove both
effective and successful. Pointing to the importance of Turkish-US
relations, Myers said that Ankara had been a very valuable friend and ally.
The commander also underlined Turkey’s key role in NATO. /Sabah/
[10] BABACAN: “UNEMPLOYMENT IS HIGH, BUT WE’LL REDUCE IT THROUGH
INVESTMENTS”
Speaking at a press conference before flying to France yesterday, State
Minister for the Economy Ali Babacan said that the International Monetary
Fund’s Executive Board could convene nest Friday, April 16 to conclude the
seventh review of Turkey’s economic program. “When the date is set, the
Treasury Undersecretary will announce this,” he said. Asked about the
Central Bank’s (CB) recent reduction of interest rates, Babacan replied
that the CB was an independent body. Touching on last year’s banner 5.9%
growth rate announced on Monday, Babacan said that increases in
productivity had fueled this growth. “Unemployment in Turkey is high, but
even in the US it’s 9%,” stated Babacan, adding that the government would
create new jobs by increasing investments. /Hurriyet/
[11] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...
[12] WOLF AT THE DOOR BY ERGUN BABAHAN (SABAH)
Columnist Ergun Babahan comments on recent developments in Iraq. A summary
of his column is as follows:
“As Iraq drifts closer to a new war, the Unites States’ interest in Turkey
has risen. The revolt that was limited to Sunni areas has spread to the
Shiite regions. Now Iraq has become a battlefield. Turkey didn’t get stuck
in the Iraqi swamp, thanks to Parliament’s rejection of a prewar motion
which would have allowed US troops to be stationed in Turkey and Ankara to
send its soldiers to northern Iraq. However, Hurriyet columnist Ertugrul
Ozkok predicted that a democratic regime would be formed in Iraq within a
year. And according to Cengiz Candar, Baghdad was gradually becoming a
safer country. Both of these predictions have falled short.
After reducing its troops to about 100,000, the US government is having
difficulty controlling Iraq. US commanders in Iraq want more troops, but
it’s hard for the Bush administration to say yes, as it’s focused on the
fall elections. The main danger for Turkey lies at this point. Washington
could tell Ankara that would accept 10,000 Turkish troops in Iraq. It’s
already started to give signals on this. New York Times columnist William
Safire said as much. US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Richard Myers
gave a similar message, saying that our friendship has never been so
important as now. It was of course good that the dictator next door is gone,
that he has to pay for his crimes against his people. But as we look more
closely at past US military interventions, it’s clear that they didn’t
bring happiness to the people involved. This is seen clearly in Haiti and
Nicaragua. Without grasping this, the US set off on an adventure under the
guise of its fight against terrorism and ruined the region in the process.
The US is also reluctant to leave the Iraqi administration to the UN. There
is also doubt whether the UN would be willing to do so. Therefore, it would
be a historic mistake for Ankara to join in such an adventure under US
pressure. Turkey should steer clear of this swamp.”
ARCHIVE
<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="http:/_www.byegm.gov.tr_statistic/countcode.js">
</script>
|