Cyprus PIO: Turkish Press and Other Media, 06-11-01

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From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] Statements by Hasan Ercakica on the contacts between Turkish Cypriots and the EU presidency.

[02] Statements by Soyer on the Finnish proposals.

[03] Statements by the Finnish Ambassador to Nicosia.

[04] Reactions to the Finnish proposals in Turkey and the occupied areas of Cyprus.

[05] Denktas argues that considering the settlers´ votes the Turkish Cypriots voted no in the referendum and compares the developments before the Annan Plan with what is happening now with the Finnish proposals.

[06] The head of the Turkish Cypriot Community Task Force explains the role of the EU office in occupied Cyprus.

[07] Statements by Hannes Swoboda from Ankara.

[08] Statements by the Gendarmerie commander on the fight against PKK.

[09] The National Security Council held its monthly meeting.

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] Statements by Hasan Ercakica on the contacts between Turkish Cypriots and the EU presidencyIllegal Bayrak television (31.10.06) broadcast the following:

The news of the planned meeting came today from the Presidential Spokesperson Hasan Ercakica who announced that President Mehmet Ali Talat had a telephone conversation yesterday with the EU Term President Finlands foreign minister.

The spokesman told a press conference in (occupied) Lefkosia this morning that the meeting should be seen as part of the ongoing efforts aimed at overcoming the difficulties in Turkey-EU relations created by the position of the Greek Cypriot Administration.

He said President Mehmet Ali Talat was invited to Brussels for the meeting by the Finnish Foreign Minister Tuomioja.

Meanwhile, the TRNC Foreign Minister Turgay Avc1 is flying to Helsinki for a meeting at Foreign Ministers level, expected to focus on the relations between the European Union and Turkey, from a perspective of the Cyprus issue.

The two-day meeting will take place on Sunday and Monday the 5th and 6th of November, and be attended also by the Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul.

President Talat is reported to have expressed the view during his telephone conversation with the Finnish Foreign Minister that Greece should also be represented at the Foreign Ministers meeting.

In the meantime, the European Affairs Director at the Finnish Foreign Ministry Kare Hallonen this morning had a meeting in (occupied) Lefkosia with the Presidential Undersecretary Rasit Pertev.

[02] Statements by Soyer on the Finnish proposals

Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer has said that the Turkish Cypriot Side is ready to negotiate the Finnish proposals on Cyprus.

Saying that the Turkish Cypriot Side is not rejecting the proposals Mr Soyer noted that the Turkish Cypriots have the same right of say, and the political will as much as the Greek Cypriots in determining the future of Cyprus.

Speaking at a TV program, Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer said that the Turkish Cypriot Side does not agree with the Finnish proposal which is considering it as the beginning of a new process but ready to negotiate.

Mr Soyer also stated that the Turkish Cypriot Side wants the removal of all the isolations and the opening of the Ercan (occupied Tymbou) Airport to the international flights because the Turkish Cypriot People has the rights to say, decision and will as much as the Greek Cypriot People.

Noting that the European Union is planning to create a free trade zone extending to the Middle East, Prime Minister said that this would only be possible with the membership of a Cyprus in peace and Turkeys smooth membership process.

[03] Statements by the Finnish Ambassador to Nicosia

He noted that this is not the right time for Finland to submit in writing its proposals and added that concession is needed so that the proposals may take a written form.

If we come to a point of concession between Turkey, the Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish Cypriot community, then we could put in writing these proposals, said Mr Piponen. Noting that Finland wants to proceed step by step, Mr Piponen added: We began by submitting the proposals. The discussions are conducted at political level and if there is a right time for concession, we could submit the proposals in writing.

Ambassador Piponen stressed that he fully agrees with the statement made by the European Commissioner responsible for the Enlargement, Olli Rehn who had said that there is a window of opportunity with the Finnish proposals and that in case this windows is closed years might elapse until a new opportunity appears. Mr Piponen noted that there will be no other plan than the Finnish proposals and that these are the only proposals.

He said: We want to openly point out that there are two different issues. One of them is the decision taken by the EU on 26 April 2006 regarding the Turkish Cypriots. In any case for the present we have fulfilled some things on this issue. The first is the Green Line Regulation which regulates the economy inside the island. The second is the Financial Aid Regulation which is about to be fulfilled. The last is the Direct Trade Regulation and our work on this continues. An issue separate from them is the obligations of Turkey which derive from the Supplementary Protocol of the Ankara Agreement. These are separate issues, but we are working on them in parallel. Let us, however, remind this: A progress which we will achieve on one of these issues will influence positively the other issue.

(I/Ts.)

[04] Reactions to the Finnish proposals in Turkey and the occupied areas of Cyprus

The Finnish proposals on Cyprus were not aimed at finding a solution to the Cyprus problem but aim to open Turkey´s way towards its EU membership, concluded Mr Cakici.

Meanwhile, Turkish Cypriot daily VOLKAN newspaper (01.11.06) refers to the developments regarding the Finnish proposals under the title The four-party meeting collapsed before it began. Under the title Insolence, it reports that Turkey informed Finland that it will not have President Papadopoulos as its interlocutor and that the interlocutor of President Papadopoulos is Mr Talat.

Furthermore, Turkish Cypriot daily GUNES newspaper (01.11.06) refers to the reactions of the political parties in Turkey regarding the Finnish proposals and reports that the main opposition Republican Peoples Party (CHP) opposed to the proposals. Addressing his partys group in the assembly, Mr Deniz Baykal, chairman of the CHP, stated yesterday that in case the Finnish proposals are accepted the international agreements on which the political law and sovereignty of the TRNC is based, will be annulled.

The chairman of the Motherland Party (ANAP), Erkan Mumcu said that the government officials make different statements on the Cyprus problem. He argued that the government must take a decision on the foreign policy. Either the Prime Minster should keep silent or the Minister of Foreign Affairs, he added.

Meanwhile, the deputy chairman of the True Path Party (DYP) Mr Kandemir argued that the concessions which the Turkish side makes in Cyprus are increasing. He said: It is for the first time that a Turkish official uses an expression other than the comprehensive solution and this picture is strengthening the argument that the Turkish government will make applications in the direction of the wishes of third sides on its policy for Cyprus, during a period when the conditions for Cyprus in the negotiations with the EU and the dimensions of the Greek Cypriot demands increase.

Furthermore, commenting on the developments, the editor-in-chief of KIBRIS, Basaran Duzgun (01.11.06) reminds that Mr Talat argues that he wants a solution to the Cyprus problem and that President Papadopoulos does not want this. Mr Duzgun notes that Finlands procedure is the first serious test for Talat to prove what he says. To make a bargain without being rejective, not to have a maximalistic stance and secure the continuation of the bargain and in the end to sign an agreement which will be in the interest of the Turkish Cypriots as well. Will Talat be able to achieve all these? he wonders.

Finally, Turkish daily HURRIYET (01.11.06) writes that the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah Gul warned the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs Erkki Tuomioja that the Greek Cypriots may bring him to the position they had brought Verheugen.

Mr Gul, who held a telephone conversation twice during the last week with Mr Tuomioja, on the issue of Finlands Cyprus initiative, said to the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs that Turkey appreciates Finlands good intentions, however Finland must be careful.

The paper writes that Mr Gul reminded Mr Tuomioja that Mr Papadopoulos said to Verheugen before the 24 April Referendum that the Greek Cypriots would have said yes to the Annan Plan, but they finally said no. Verheugen then was obliged to say that Papadopoulos has deceived even me. The paper goes on and writes that on the issue of the summit Mr Gul said to Mr Tuomioja that Talats interlocutor is Papadopoulos and that Greece must be included in the summit.

(I/Ts.-C/S)

[05] Denktas argues that considering the settlers´ votes the Turkish Cypriots voted no in the referendum and compares the developments before the Annan Plan with what is happening now with the Finnish proposals

Before entering into the hospital I asked: The Annan Plan is going around. Is there a written document? They said that there was not any. I was put in the hospital. The plan came up. I searched in this plan and asked. The substantial issue, they said, is to control the oil wells in the Arabian countries and in the wider area. There are radical Islamic countries here, they help the terrorists, we have to control them, the most appropriate place is Cyprus, they said.

Turkey is a NATO member country, why dont you act together? You are putting obstacles to its accession to the EU, I said. Turkey will be turned into a radical Islamic country in the future, we will be forced to control Turkey as well, they said to me behind closed doors.

It seems that at the same time the duty of silencing his father had been assigned to Serdar but he was not able to do it. The Turkish government did not want to cooperate in any case with a side that wished to make a change of policy in such a manner. And as a result of contacts it made through the mufti it approved such a change of government. All these, however, have been done and remained in the past.

Mr Denktas said that he heard that 30 million dollars had been distributed for the acceptance of the Annan Plan, that some persons became rich, that 30 % of the 65 % who said yes to the plan are people from Turkey and that 35 % of the Turkish Cypriots said no to the plan.

(I/Ts.)

[06] The head of the Turkish Cypriot Community Task Force explains the role of the EU office in occupied Cyprus

The Head of the European Union Commissions Task Force for the Turkish Cypriot Community, Mr Andrew Rasbash, has stressed that the EU Program Support Office stationed in North Cyprus since the beginning of September has only one particular job, and that is to provide technical assistance for the implementation of the Financial Aid Regulation.

Speaking in an interview with the BRT, Andrew Rasbash stated that the EU Program Support Office has no additional duties other than assisting the implementation of the financial aid for the Turkish Cypriot People.

He said that the decision-maker in the projects to be financed by the EU, which the Support Office will be working on, is the Commissions Task Force for the Turkish Cypriot side.

Speaking carefully on the continuing international isolation of the Turkish Cypriot People, Mr Rasbash described the Green Line Regulation as a positive step towards the lifting of the international isolation.

Adding that the projects on water treatment and infra-structure have the priority, he said that further technical assistance will be obtained from the experts in the EU member states while implementing them.

Answering a question on establishing direct relations with the Turkish Cypriot Side, the head of the Turkish Cypriot Community Task Force repeated that the only internationally recognized authority on the island is the Greek Cypriot Administration which he referred to as the Republic of Cyprus.

As for the Direct Trade Regulation which the Commission drafted but failed to approve, Mr Rasbash said the EU Commission believes in the usefulness of the Regulation and expressed the hope that positive developments will take place on the issue in a near future.

He said that the Support Office aims to help prepare a basis for a comprehensive settlement in Cyprus by implementing the Financial Aid Regulation and thus developing the Turkish Cypriot economy.

He added that the objective is to enable the Turkish Cypriot People to receive the advantages of the EU at a maximum level.

[07] Statements by Hannes Swoboda from Ankara

We should appeal and we will appeal that to the government and to the opposition to take into account the strong criticism in many public areas in the EU on article 301. We should insist and we will insist that article 301 is not acceptable.

Also touching on the Cyprus problem, Mr Swoboda said that the status quo in the island satisfies no one, and therefore progress has to be made in settling the Cyprus problem, and added:

"Papadopoulos-Talat meetings should not be singular, there should be regular meetings, to build trust. Bringing also Greece will complicate the situation. For us the meetings of Talat and Papadopoulos should be much more frequent.

Papadopoulos is much more flexible and eager, but not persistent to meet Talat on regular basis."

[08] Statements by the Gendarmerie commander on the fight against PKK

Speaking at the reception given by President Sezer, Gendarmerie Commander General Kosaner drew attention to the increase in the number of terrorists who have given themselves up lately. Kosaner said: "We are advising identified families to get those in the mountains to surrender themselves to the state."

Gendarmerie Commander General Isik Kosaner has disclosed that they are advising identified families to get young militants in the mountains to surrender to the state. Speaking at President Ahmet Necdet Sezer's Republic Day Reception, Kosaner said that those who were somehow deceived into joining the PKK and their families are in a very difficult situation and that the confessions of certain militants who have surrendered lately have exposed the stark reality of the conditions under which they are living in the mountains. Kosaner also said that the operations against the PKK will continue without slowing down. Commenting on Prime Minister Erdogan's remark in the wake of the PKK's ceasefire decision that "security forces would not carry out operations without reason," the Gendarmerie Commander said he does not know what the Prime Minister meant, adding, "We will continue our operations as long as armed terrorists are there. We have done it in the past, we are doing it now, and we will do it in the future. Our determination will continue until not a single terrorist remains. The only solution is this: those armed men will surrender unconditionally together with their weapons and appear in court. There is no other way."

Subtitle: We will continue until they have been disbanded

General Kosaner said that the number of terrorists surrendering themselves has increased if only slightly in recent times. Making covert references to DYP [True Path Party] leader Mehmet Agar, who has come under the spotlight owing to the soft messages he has lately been giving regarding the PKK, Kosaner said: "However, the fact that the number of those giving themselves up has increased can in no way be interpreted as meaning that the organization has disintegrated. Only when it has lost all hope will it disband definitely. To achieve that purpose, all units of the state and society should remain determined. Everybody from executives in responsible positions to political party leaders should act carefully and responsibly."

Kosaner explained that it is difficult to reach the terrorists in the mountains because they are not allowed to read newspapers and watch television. He said that for this reason they are only talking with families whose children they have determined to be in the mountains.

[09] The National Security Council held its monthly meeting

The routine meeting of the Turkish National Security Council (MGK) focused on recent developments both in Turkey and the world as well as Iran's nuclear program and developments in southern Caucasus.

Releasing a statement, MGK Secretariat-General said that recent developments both in Turkey and the world were discussed at the meeting in detail.

Members of the MGK also discussed developments about Iran's nuclear program since the United Nations Security Council's resolution dated July 31st, 2006, and highlighted importance of finding a solution to the problem through negotiation.

Recent developments in southern Caucasus were also taken up at the meeting.

/SK

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