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Turkish Press Review, 96-07-08Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>CONTENTS
TURKISH PRESS REVIEWMONDAY JULY 8, 1996Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning[01] TEST DAY FOR RP-DYP COALITIONPrime Minister Necmettin Erbakan and the coalition government of the Welfare Party (RP) and the True Path Party (DYP) will face its first major test in Parliament today when the legislature convenes for a vote of confidence in the new government. The alliance between pro-Islamic Welfare Party (RP) leader Erbakan, and Ciller's DYP has 285 deputies on paper, nine more than needed to guarantee victory in the vote. /All papers/[02] BALKAN NATIONS VOW CLOSER TIESBalkan countries, winding up a two-day conference aimed at boosting cooperation, pledged yesterday to become better neighbours. Ministers hailed the gathering as the symbolic start of a new era for the troubled Balkan peninsula and unanimously approved a "Sofia Declaration" that calls for a strengthening of economic and security ties.Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Onur Oymen called for cooperation against terrorism in his speech at the meeting. He said that Turkey was suffering from terrorism and the Balkan countries should take the measures necessary to cope with terrorism. "The Balkans are the common home of different ethnic groups. We have to consider human affairs as a whole in the Balkans. For that reason cooperation in the fields of culture and social affairs is vital" Oymen said. He pointed out that the Balkan countries are a bridge between Turkey and Europe, thus cooperation among the Balkan countries is very important for Turkey. He said that Macedonia's absence at the meeting was a great loss. Macedonia refused to take part due to a long-running dispute with Greece over its name. Carl Bildt, the international community's High Representative for Bosnia, said building cooperation between the countries of the region would have a positive impact on the peace process within Bosnia. Delegates said they hoped Macedonia would agree to attend next year's pan-Balkan foreign ministers' meeting in Athens. Ministers of Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Turkey and rump Yugoslavia attended the meeting. Croatia, Slovenia, Italy and Hungary sent observers. The Contact Group countries for ex-Yugoslavia -the US, Russia, Germany, Britain and France- were also represented. /Cumhuriyet/ [03] TURKEY-IRAN COMMON SECURITY COMMISSION MEETSThe Turco-Iranian High Security Commission will meet on July 8-12 in Tehran. According to a written statement from the Interior Ministry, the two countries will discuss the fight against terrorism, illegal border crossings and other recent developments. The Turkish delegation will be headed by Interior Ministry Undersecretary Erol Cakir and will be composed of officials from the Foreign Ministry, the Prime Ministry and the Gendarmerie. This will be the third meeting of the High Security Commission. /All papers/[04] GERMAN MP URGES TOUGH MEASURES AGAINST PKKThomas Kosanday, a Christian Democrat Party (CDU) MP and head of the Turco-German Parliamentarian group, urged officials to take tough measures against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) activities in Germany. "No one should be allowed to provoke turmoil in Germany and discomfort people living in Germany" Kosanday, speaking at a conference entitled "The Contribution of German Citizens of Turkish Origin to CDU" said.Kosanday explained that terrorist attacks against Turkish targets are much lower in CDU regions when compared to those states controlled by the Social Democrats or the Greens. "German policy aims to serve every individual living in Germany. Thus, such matters as free market economy, domestic security, development and investments also concern Turkish residents. No one can ignore the 2 million Turks living in Germany. The CDU is open to every German citizen with Turkish origin who wants to be involved in politics" Kosanday said. /All papers/ [05] US CYPRUS ENVOY POTPONES VISIT TO TURKEYRichard Beattie, US President Bill Clinton's special representative for Cyprus, has postponed his visit to Ankara until July 17. He was expected on Sunday. Beattie's visit would have been the fourth in the last two weeks related to to the problem. /All papers/[06] MODDY'S ASSESSES THE CURRENT STATE OF THE TURKISH ECONOMYIn its latest assessment of the Turkish economy, a leading international rating agency, Moody's, said that in the medium-term Turkey offered various kinds of potential gain thanks to its geopolitical location. The agency is expected to disclose its latest "rating" for Turkey by the end of the current month.In its March 1996 report, the agency told its subscribers that Turkey had strong linguistic, ethnic and historic ties with the Turkish-speaking republics of Central Asia, and that since the collapse of the Soviet Union it had considerable influence on these countries. This puts Turkey in a potentially highly advantageous position. Turkey's trade with these countries flourishes with each passing day. Turkey has a high population growth rate. The rapid increase in the young population will help expand industry -due to wages remaining at relatively low levels- especially in manufacturing, will boost domestic demand and thus develop the country's economic potential and will render the Turkish economy more competitive economically in the international arena. /All papers/ [07] SYRIA AND IRAQ CALL ON TURKEY TO DISCUSS EUPHRATES' WATERSIraq and Syria accused Turkey for the continuation of the water problem at meetings they held in Baghdad on Saturday. They also invited Turkey to another meeting between the three countries to discuss the water question. The head of the Syrian delegation, Muhammed al-Rifa'i, told Agence France Presse that Iraq and Syria would bring the problem to international and Arab platforms and would warn foreign companies who participate in the construction of dams on the Euphrates.Al-Rifa'i accused Turkey of polluting the Euphrates and rejecting repeated Syrian overtures for a solution to the problem, which he described as "a matter of life or death" to his country. "We are keen to establish good relations with Turkey. The hurdle is the water issue. If this issue is solved, nothing will bar normalized relations" Rifa'i said. Rifa'i is heading a delegation of technicians for talks with Iraqi counterparts to coordinate their stand toward Turkey on the sharing of waters from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, both of which originate in Turkey. Rifa'i said that Iraq and Syria ended the talks on Saturday with a plea to their upstream neighbour to agree on the basis of international law. /Cumhuriyet-Hurriyet/ [08] TURKISH TRADE MISSION HEADS FOR IRAQTurkish businessmen and trade, energy and oil officials went to Iraq yesterday for an official visit to seek a share of Baghdad's expected food and medicine imports under a yet-to-be approved UN plan. In May, Iraq and the UN agreed to allow Baghdad to export oil worth $2 billion over six months to pay for much-needed food and medicine and some of the UN's Gulf crisis-related operations. The Turkish mission, which is chaired by Foreign Trade Underecretary Nejat Eren, will seek new business deals in Baghdad. The delegation will meet Iraqi officials during the one-week visit to prepare steps for a joint economic commission to observe trade between the two neighbours. Iraq was Turkey's third-largest trade partner before the UN embargo was imposed in 1990 following Baghdad's invasion of Kuwait. /Hurriyet/[09] SEVEN PKK TERRORISTS KILLEDDuring security forces operations against PKK separatists after a terrorist attack in Kemah, Erzincan, seven terrorists were killed and two others were arrested. Officials note that during the operations food, ammunition and documents were confiscated, and add that the operation is continuing. Three other PKK terrorists were killed in Lice, Diyarbakir. /Sabah/[10] STATISTICS CONGRESS CONVENES IN ISTANBULThe 51st Statistics Congress will be held on August 18-27 in Istanbul. State Statistics Institute Director Siddik Ensari said that 2,000 statistians from 178 counties would participate in the congress, and added that the congress in its importance could be compared to the Habitat Conference held last month. /Milliyet/[11] PKK CONFERENCE IN GERMANYEuropean parliamentarians have come together in Bonn for a "Peace Conference" promoting PKK separatist goals. During the conference, the deputies accused Turkey of bloodshed and pleaded for international legal action against Turkey. Cease-fire demands were put forward once more, Turkey was asked to accept dialog with the PKK organization and autonomy for Kurds living in Turkey was demanded. The establishment of an international pressure group against Turkey was proposed, and some delegates even called for the organization of an International Peace Conference chaired by South African President Nelson Mandela. Germany was asked to lift bans against the PKK organization, and steps for re-starting MED-TV broadcasts were discussed.It was noted that three German scientists visited PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan on May 26-27. The speeches of these scientists during the conference reflected PKK demands. These facts lead many observers to the conclusion that the conference was organized according to PKK demands. /Cumhuriyet/ [12] EGYPT TRUSTS TURKEYPolitical advisor to Egyptian President Husnu Mubarek, Usame El Baz, in a briefing in Cairo yesterday, said that the cooperation accord for military training signed between Turkey and Israel did not suggest closer military contacts between those two countries, and added that the Egyptian government was sure that Turkey would be sensitive on the issue. Nevertheless, El Baz called on Turkey to reconsider the agreement.[13] TRAVELING FAIR IN THE BLACK SEATurkey, seeking to improve its commercial relations with the Black Sea countries, is planning to establish a fair a ro-ro cargo vessel promoting Turkish export potential, tourism facilities, transportation, banking and contracting. The floating fair will be held on November 1-23. The vessel will visit various ports in Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey. /Sabah/END Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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