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Turkish Press Review, 96-10-08Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>CONTENTS
TURKISH PRESS REVIEWTUESDAY OCTOBER 8, 1996Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning[01] DEMIREL IN ITALYPresident Suleyman Demirel went to Italy yesterday as the official guest of Italian President Oscar Luigi Scalfaro and held official talks. Demirel visited the Italian Parliament yesterday afternoon. He met with the Acting Speaker of the Italian Parliament and members of the Foreign Relations Commission. Regarding the human rights issue in Turkey, Demirel said: "There is no minority problem in Turkey. We have been living with Kurds for milleniums. Everyone in Turkey is a first class citizen. Terrorism constitutes an obstacle to democracy. The PKK is a separatist and terrorist organization". It was decided that Joint Economic Commission (JEC) meetings which have not been held since 1989 between Turkey and Italy would be held and at the meetings political negotiations mechanism would be initiated.Yesterday, President Demirel attended a banquet given in his honour by Italian President Scalfaro. Delivering a speech at the banquet, Demirel thanked Italy for its efforts during the realization of the Customs Union. Demirel said: "I am sure that Italy will also support Turkey's full membership to the EU". Demirel pointed out that Turco-Italian cooperation against terrorism should be strengtehened. Delivering a speech in a conference organized by the Italian Businessmen's Confederation, Demirel stated that it was the task of businessmen to promote a positive image of Turkey. Noting that the Turkish economy's development for the last 20 years was wonderful, Demirel said: "Turkey implements the CU without receiving any aid. It is strongly competitive in the world markets especially in textiles and the iron industry. Turkey has a market of 65 million". /Cumhuriyet/ [02] STRONG REACTION FROM TURKEYYesterday, a written statement issued by the Turkish Foreign Ministry gave a warning to Libyan leader Kaddafi. Later, the Foreign Ministry called Turkish Ambassador to Libya Ates Balkan to Ankara for negotiations. The statement noted that Turkish foreign policy was honourable and said: "Turkey does not need any country's suggestions or recommendations". It stated that it was unacceptable that Kaddafi made statements against realities and commonsense regarding the ethnical structure of Turkey. It added: "These statements do not promote friendship. We hope that the Libyan leader will not make such statements again".Meanwhile, in a statement to reporters, Foreign Minister Tansu Ciller said: "Kaddafi made a mistake. Turkey will never abandon her territorial integrity or her struggle against terrorism". /Sabah/ [03] ERBAKAN IN NIGERIATurkish Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan went to Nigeria yesterday. He was welcomed by Nigerian Deputy Head of State and Chief of General Staff Ola Digodia. Erbakan will stay in Nigeria for two days. /Hurriyet/[04] BRITAIN'S SPECIAL CYPRUS ENVOY VISITS ANKARASir David Hannay, special representative of the British government for Cyprus will visit Turkey on Tuesday, Turkish Foreign Ministry Deputy Spokesman Sermet Atacanli said at the weekly press conference yesterday. Atacanli indicated that the lack of dialogue between the two communities on the island could was potentially dangerous and stressed the need for talks to secure a permanent peace on the island. /Cumhuriyet/[05] DEMIREL NOTES CHILDREN'S RIGHTS DAY AND WORLD HABITAT DAYPresident Suleyman Demirel issued statements yesterday in celebration of World Children Rights Day and World Habitat Day, both organized by the UN. Referring to Children's Rights Day, Demirel said: "In Turkey, we aim to give our children all the benefits of modern civilization and to prepare them with knowledge". Noting that millions of children in the world suffer from poverty, hunger, negligence and exploitation, Demirel stressed that all nations are trying to solve these problems. He added that the Declaration of Children's Rights and the Children's Rights Convention that Turkey also signed were important steps taken towards solving those problems.Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan issued a message referring to the importance of the day in which he said: "The only way to attain world peace is to promote love and tolerance in the hearts of the children and to supply a peaceful environment". Demirel's message on the occasion of World Habitat Day noted that the last years of the 20th century had witnessed the emergence of problems arising from rapid and excessive urbanization, which affected the environment, people's security, education, health and the infrastructure. /All papers/ [06] BRITISH ADMIRAL SEEKS WAYS TO BOOST NAVAL COOPERATIONBritish Royal Navy Adm.Sir Jock Slater yesterday visited the acting Turkish Naval Forces Commander Adm.Salim Dervisoglu to seek ways to boost cooperation between the two countries. Adm.Slater said that as members of NATO, Turkey and Great Britain have close ties and his aim is to develop these relations. Adm.Dervisoglu voiced his pleasure on meeting the Royal Navy admiral adding that Turkey also attaches importance to the development of close relations. /All papers/[07] WB MISSION TO TURKEYThe head of the World Bank's (WB) Privatization Department, Hans Otto Moritz, will visit Turkey in early November. Moritz and two experts from the WB will assess the privatization process and the "Labour Force Adaption" project and submit a report of the latest developments to the WB. The WB has pledged $100 million to Turkey in structural adaptation credit. Of this total, $11 million will go to the labour force project, an effort aimed at reemploying people who will lose their jobs due to privatization and developing regions which are negatively affected by sell-offs. /Sabah/[08] AUTO OUTPUT SOARS 9 % IN JANUARY-SEPTEMBER '96Output in Turkey's automotive industry grew by 9 % during the January-September period of this year compared to the same period in 1995. The number of completed vehicles reached 237,384, according to figures from the Automotive Industrialists Association (OSD) which were published yesterday. Bus production showed the largest increase with 135 %, minibus production followed with a 59 % increase and truck output rose 57 %. Car sales increased by 7.4 % during the same period compared to last year's figures. /All papers/[09] MILITARY OPERATIONS ONGOING IN SIVASFifteen militants of the PKK terrorist organization were killed in military operations near Divrigi in the eastern province of Sivas. Wide-range operations were started in the area after PKK militants killed four soldiers and wounded 17 in Divrigi. Jets and Cobra gunships are supporting search-and-rescue teams operating on the rugged and densely forested terrain. Officials estimate a group of 45 militants to be in the area and report that the group has suffered high number of casualties.In other operations, five PKK collaborators were seized in Hafik near Sivas. The individuals claim they were coerced into collaborating with the militant group. Officials reported that they will go to court as soon as their interrogations are concluded. Meanwhile, 20 PKK militants attacked a military unit near Kemaliye in the eastern province of Erzincan. Government forces immediately returned fire, killing four militants. Two soldiers were reported wounded. In an incident in Diyarbakir city centre, two suspected Hizbollah members opened fire on three village guards, killing one and wounding the other two. /Sabah/ [10] TENSION INCREASES IN CYPRUSThe Nikiforos Exercise held within the framework of Greek-Greek Cypriot Defence Doctrine resulted in increasing the tension in Cyprus. It is reported that during the exercise attended by Greek war planes, that Turkish war planes were also flying over Cyprus.According to the Eleftorotopia Newspaper, as tension increased in Cyprus, the US intervened and requested that both Turkish and Greek war planes cease flying over Cyprus. The newspaper reported that the US administration asked that all flights should cease for six months. Greek radio stations have also broadcasted the news regarding the US initiative, however the Greek Defence Ministry did not confirm the news. Meanwhile, according to the Ta Nea Newspaper, a Turkish war vessel docked at the Kardak islets two days ago. The newspaper noted when a Greek war vessel came to the region, the Turkish vessel left. It stated that Turkey doubted that there are Greek commandoes on the islets. /Hurriyet/ END Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |