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Turkish Press Review, 07-10-24
From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>
Summary of the political and economic
news in the Turkish press this morning
24.10.2007
FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
CONTENTS
[01] GUL URGES PUBLIC TO BE WARY OF PROVOCATIONS
[02] RICE EXPECTED TO VISIT GUL AHEAD OF IRAQ SUMMIT
[03] PARTIES IN PARLIAMENT SPAR OVER TERRORISM
[04] ANKARA URGES IRAQI PRESIDENT TALABANI TO COOPERATE IN FIGHT AGAINST PKK
[05] IN BRITAIN, ERDOGAN AGAIN SOUNDS WARNING ON CROSS-BORDER OP
[06] NSC TO DISCUSS CROSS-BORDER OPERATION
[07] EU AMBASSADORS WARN DTP AGAINST TERRORIST TIES
[08] TIME TO ACT RESPONSIBLY
[01] GUL URGES PUBLIC TO BE WARY OF PROVOCATIONS
President Abdullah Gul said yesterday that Turkey has both the ability and
the determination to effectively fight terrorism. In a written statement,
Gul called on people not to weaken the country’s unity and friendly
public atmosphere during their justified protests against terrorism.
Stressing that the whole nation mourns the scores of soldiers killed by
recent PKK terrorist attacks, Gul urged people to act with common sense and
to be wary of provocations. /Turkiye/
[02] RICE EXPECTED TO VISIT GUL AHEAD OF IRAQ SUMMIT
Ahead of a summit on Iraq scheduled for Nov. 2-3, US Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice is expected to first travel to Ankara to meet with
President Abdullah Gul. The summit in Istanbul is set to bring together UN
Security Council member states, G-8 countries and Iraq’s neighbors to
discuss the situation in Iraq. Rice will represent the US at the summit. In
her visit to Ankara beforehand, Rice and Gul are expected to discuss
bilateral relations and the PKK issue. /Turkiye/
[03] PARTIES IN PARLIAMENT SPAR OVER TERRORISM
In Parliament yesterday, deputies from opposition parties criticized the
ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) stance against PKK
terrorism. Taking the floor, main opposition Republican People’s Party
(CHP) Deputy Onur Oymen said that over the last seven years, Turkey has
lost 12 times more people than the total death toll of the Sept. 11, 2001
attacks in the US. The Nationalist Movement Party’s (MHP) Mehmet Sandir
said that the government was responsible for the grievous losses. “The
true danger is when the nation loses its faith in the government’s fight
against terrorism,” said Sandir. He also claimed that the PKK is no
longer being led by the convicted terrorist head imprisoned on Imrali
island, but by Iraqi Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani. Speaking for the
government, Deputy Premier Cemil Cicek said that the government was doing
its best to combat the problem, which has gone on for 25 years, adding that
all institutions share a common understanding of the issue. /Hurriyet/
[04] ANKARA URGES IRAQI PRESIDENT TALABANI TO COOPERATE IN FIGHT AGAINST
PKK
Foreign Minister Ali Babacan yesterday traveled to Baghdad to meet with top
Iraqi officials. During his meetings with both President Jalal Talabani and
Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, he gave them a list of measures Turkey is
strongly urging the Iraqi government to take against the terrorist PKK.
Speaking to reporters, Babacan pointed to Turkey’s friendly relations
with Iraq, saying he didn’t want the PKK issue to damage these ties. For
his part, Zebari said that they would work together with the Turkish
government and that they didn’t want any instability in their country.
Asked whether Ankara was planning any cease-fire with the terrorist group,
Babacan said, “Cease-fire is a term which is used between two countries
or regular armies and not with a terror organization. The problem we are
facing here is a problem of terrorism.” In related news, Iraqi Premier
Nouri Al Maliki also said yesterday that the PKK’s offices in Iraq would
be closed and the group would not be allowed to carry out activities on
Iraqi soil. “The PKK is a terrorist group,” he said. “We’ll try to
limit their activities, which threaten both Iraq and Turkey.” /Milliyet/
[05] IN BRITAIN, ERDOGAN AGAIN SOUNDS WARNING ON CROSS-BORDER OP
Prime Minister Erdogan, paying an official visit to London, yesterday met
with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. During their meeting, the two
leaders signed a Turkey-Britain strategic partnership document meant to
facilitate Turkey’s EU membership, the fight against terrorism, and
ending the isolation of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).
Speaking to reporters, Erdogan warned that Turkey could exercise its option
for an incursion into northern Iraq at any time, adding that such an
operation would only target the terrorist PKK. The premier also complained
that in the 14 months of its existence, a trilateral anti-terror mechanism
set up by the US, Turkey and Iraq had yielded no results. “Unfortunately,
there are some countries in Europe which extend financial support and abet
the terrorist organization," said Erdogan. In addition, Erdogan met with
his Israeli counterpart Ehud Olmert, and they spoke about bilateral
relations and the Middle East peace process. /Star/
Tens of thousands of Turks yesterday took to the streets in 11 cities at
the funerals of 12 soldiers who were killed by PKK terrorists on Sunday in
the southeastern province of Hakkari. Carrying Turkish flags and chanting
anti-PKK slogans, the crowd condemned the PKK’s acts of violence. Besides
the soldiers’ relatives, local and military officials, parliamentarians
and representatives of non-governmental organizations gathered throughout
the country to pay their last respects to the fallen soldiers. /Aksam/
[06] NSC TO DISCUSS CROSS-BORDER OPERATION
The National Security Council (NSC) will convene today in Ankara. President
Abdullah Gul will preside over the meeting, which will be held at the
Cankaya Presidential Palace. A possible joint operation with the US against
the PKK and a possible unilateral cross-border operation into northern Iraq
are expected to dominate the gathering. Possible sanctions against northern
Iraq, including cutting electricity, closing or slowing crossings through
the Habur border gate, and curbing food and construction material exports
to the region, will also be discussed. /Star/
[07] EU AMBASSADORS WARN DTP AGAINST TERRORIST TIES
At a two-hour working luncheon in Ankara yesterday, ambassadors of European
Union member states to Turkey invited Democratic Society Party (DTP) leader
Ahmet Turk and Deputies Fatma Kurtalan and Akin Birdal to discuss the
terrorism issue. Calling on the party not to repeat its past mistakes, the
diplomats reportedly urged the DTP to keep its distance from the PKK
terrorist group and to act in earnest to help promote peace in the country.
/Cumhuriyet/
FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…
[08] TIME TO ACT RESPONSIBLY
BY MEHMET Y. YILMAZ (HURRIYET)
Columnist Mehmet Y. Yilmaz comments on the government ban on radio and
television broadcasts about the recent terrorist attack. A summary of his
column is as follows:
“The government decided yesterday to ban all radio and television
broadcasts about the recent terrorist attack in Hakkari. A Supreme Board of
Radio and Television (RTUK) statement said the ban is meant to maintain the
morale of security forces and prevent broadcasts which hurt the public’s
moral values. Obviously, in a democracy, it’s not right to ban radio and
TV broadcasts without a court order. But while we defend media freedom,
radio and TV stations should also show restraint. The rush to air
unconfirmed reports, a provocative style which has raised public tension,
and pseudo-experts’ outlandish interpretations have all been rampant. We
should always keep in mind that we’re going through a tough time and that
provoking and agitating people is the last thing anyone should do now.
Turkey isn’t facing this problem for the first time. We’ve been living
with these terrorist attacks for nearly 20 years. We have never surrendered
to terrorism, and we won’t now. We should be more careful than ever to
avoid creating an atmosphere ripe for provocateurs who are ready to exploit
this and commit irrevocable actions.
In this country, many people spend most of their time at coffeehouses.
There are many unemployed people, and so these coffeehouses produce
‘coffeehouse philosophers.’ These philosophers claim to know everything,
from the economy to the military, from engineering to football, medicine,
architecture, etc. They have an opinion on each and every issue and as they
speak convincingly, people at surrounding tables nod their heads in
approval. Actually, they are like columnists, just like us. Maybe a reason
for the large number of columnists at our newspapers is the meeting of this
oral coffeehouse culture with our written culture. The situation we’re
facing now presents unique opportunities for these kinds of people. Now I
wonder how many people are making strategic analyses and discussing
military plans, just like our TV and radio stations and newspapers. Of
course, these philosophers aren’t criminals. But let me warn the people
who listen to those coffeehouse conversations: Please don’t believe
everything these chatterboxes say!”
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