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Turkish Press Review, 97-10-31Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>CONTENTS
TURKISH PRESS REVIEWDIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION,OFFICE OF PRIME MINISTER31.10.97Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning[01] GREEK AND TURKISH PMs GET READY FOR MEETING IN CRETEThe Greek and Turkish prime ministers are getting ready for their scheduled meeting at the Balkan summit they plan to attend in Crete next week, while tensions rise in Greek-Turkish relations and previously arranged military exercises approach. Slovenia and Croatia declined to attend the summit, saying they are not a part of the Balkans. The summit will be attended by Turkey, Greece, Albania, Romania, Macedonia, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia. /All papers/[02] PEACE ENTREPRENEURS ATTACKED IN THESSALONIKIA group of Turkish and Greek businessmen, including prominent Turkish business leaders, intending to celebrate Turkey's National Republic Day together in Thessaloniki were roughed up and prevented by Greek nationalist fanatics yesterday from attending a seminar where they intended to discuss how Greek-Turkish disputes could be solved without violence.The attack came as the businessmen tried to enter the conference center to attend a seminar called "Thessaloniki, Ataturk and Venizelos", one of many activities scheduled for this week by the peace-seeking citizens of the neighbouring NATO allies. A large group of Greek ultranationalists attacked the group, entered the conference center and shouted out anti-Turkish slogans. The seminar took place in another location after the businessmen were evacuated from the area under siege by the Greek fanatics. /Cumhuriyet-Milliyet/ [03] NSC'S AGENDA IS FULL OF VITAL ISSUESThe National Security Council (NSC) will meet today to discuss recent vital developments and proposed policies. Lifting of the Emergency Rule that covers the six southeastern provinces of Diyarbakir, Siirt, Tunceli, Hakkari, Van and Sirnak will be among the topics to be discussed. It is expected that the Council will discuss whether to promote the towns of Sebinkarahisar and Susehri to province status. The NSC meeting, to be chaired by President Suleyman Demirel, is expected to discuss the recent developments in the Southeast where the PKK terrorist organization has been engaging in bloody separatist war. Other criticial issues to be discussed by the NSC include the Aegean and Cyprus.[04] DEMIREL: OPENING ARMENIAN BORDER CROSSING POLITICAL ISSUEPresident Suleyman Demirel said yesterday that the opening of the "Dogu (East) Gate" between Turkey and Armenia was a political manner. Demirel said what was important was to resolve the Azerbaijani-Armenian dispute and to return the Azerbaijanis to their villages. The president made this remark while responding to a question in Kars where he went with Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz to attend ceremonies to mark the 77th anniversary of Kars' liberation.Prime Minister Yilmaz said Kars would be Turkey's gate open to the Caucasus and Central Asia. Yilmaz noted that the nation always protected peace and tranquility but not separatism. /Cumhuriyet/ [05] GROSSMAN: SITUATION IN AEGEAN AND CYPRUS IS 'TOO DANGEROUS'On Wednesday testifying before the House International Relations Committee while describing the current situation in the Aegean and Cyprus, Marc Grossman, the former US ambassador to Ankara and current Assistant Secretary of State for European and Canadian Affairs, said: "The situation in the Aegean and Cyprus is too dangerous to allow it to be untended. I look forward to continuing to being part of our effort to make progress in the relations between Turkey and Greece and pushing toward a settlement in Cyprus"."I am delighted that Ambassador Richard Holbrooke has agreed to be the President's special envoy and that Tom Miller is serving as our special coordinator for Cyprus. Along with our ambassadors in Athens, Nicosia and Ankara, they will be a powerful team to help the Secretary and me make progress in this area" Grossman added. /Sabah/ [06] STATE MINISTER CELEBI'S CONTACTSTurkish Minister of State for International Trade Isin Celebi met with Deputy Secretary of US Treasury Larry Summers, Undersecretary of Commerce Mr.Houser, Deputy US Trade Representative Ambassador Jeff Lang and Chairwoman of President Clinton's Council on Economic Advisors Janet Yellen.As a sign of concrete US interest in the Turkish Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz government's plans, Celebi quoted two developments: The US Secretary of Commerce Bill Daley will visit Turkey in January 1998; and at about same time, Turkey and the US will also sign a trade agreement to further their commerce. Celebi said he was successful in getting across his two main points: 1) The US must support Yilmaz government's three-year economic plan. 2) For the plan to succeed, Turkey must increase its exports. The state minister added that Turkey aims to increase its textile exports to the US. /Sabah-Milliyet/ [07] THE GUARDIAN: WHO IN THE WORLD KNOWS ATATURK?One of the mainstream British papers, The Guardian, had half their front page yesterday, covered with the picture of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, whom the paper said was not a very well-known figure in the world. Referring to Time magazine's "key people of the century" contest, the daily wrote cynically that Ataturk led ahead of Bob Dylon, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King. /Hurriyet/[08] YILMAZ TO OPEN INTEXPO 97Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz will open today the Second International Textile Fair Intexpo organized by the CNR and Turkish Ready-to-Wear Industrialists' Association. 200 firms from Italy, Britain, Germany and France will participate in the fair in the World Trade Center. During the fair to be held between 31 October-2 November, seminars will be held. /Hurriyet/[09] HARSH REPLY FROM RUSSIARussia gave a harsh reply to Chief of General Staff Ismail Hakki Karadayi's letter sent to NATO member countries. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesman, Valeri Nesteruskin said that the letter caused great confusion in Russia adding that some Turkish officials caused provocations by saying that Russia was a threat in the Eastern Mediterranean.Nesteruskin said that the recent attitude should not effect the Turco-Russian relations which were in a dynamic development process. /Sabah/ [10] NEW U.S. AMBASSADOR TO ANKARAThe American Senate approved the appointment of Mark Parris as an Ambassador to Ankara. It was reported that Parris would officially take over his post in the mid of November. /Sabah/[11] TANER CONTINUES HIS CONTACTS IN GERMANYState Minister responsible for economy, Gunes Taner gave a conference to Turkish and German businessmen in West Germany Land Bank in Dusseldorf. Taner discussed inflation, new investments, recent steps taken in energy, developing trade relations with Central Asia and Russia, relations with Germany, the customs union, and privatization in his speech. Taner pointed out that Turkey wanted to privatize state banks except Central Bank and Eximbank, Turkish Airlines (THY) and State Rail Roads (DDY).Regarding Cyprus, Taner said that the Cyprus problem could be solved if Turkey entered the European Union (EU). /Milliyet/ [12] DENKTAS IN WASHINGTONThe President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), who is in Washington, said that talks between the two communities on the island could only continue if TRNC is given full recognition. In a speech at the US Congress Denktas stressed that the initiation of full membership talks between the EU and the Greek Cypriot administration would force Northern Cyprus to integrate with Turkey. In a message conveyed to US President Clinton and the US Congress, Denktas warned that the EU-Greek Cyprus talks will escalate greatly tensions on the island. /Cumhuriyet/[13] GENERAL BIR WARNS RUSSIATensions in Cyprus and the deployment of Russian-made S-300 missiles on the island were top issues at a reception given by President Demirel on Wednesday evening at the Cankaya Palace on the occasion of the Republic Day. Deputy Chief of the General Staff General Cevik Bir discussed with Russian and Greek military attaches attending the reception escalating tensions on Cyprus. Bir told the Russian military attache that it was great mistake to sell S-300 missiles to the Greek Cypriot administration. "Turkey and Greece pursue their own military and political policies in the region, and a kind of balance was set up in Eastern Mediterranean. But now Russia has upset this sensitive balance by entering into the picture with its controversial missiles," Bir said. /Milliyet/[14] DEFENSE MINISTER SEZGIN IN CYPRUSNational Defense Minister will visit Northern Cyprus on November 4 together with Land Forces Commander Huseyin Kivrikoglu. In a statement, Minister Sezgin said that the Toros joint military maneuvres with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus will be held as planned. /Milliyet/[15] MOSCOW WILL NOT SELL S-300 MISSILES TO GREECEIn a move to improve strained Turco-Russian relations, Russia decided not to sell to Greece S-300 missiles. Nevertheless, Moscow has no intentions for the time being of abandoning its decision to sell these missiles to the Greek Cypriot administration. /Hurriyet/[16] VAN DEN BROEK IN ANKARAEU Commissioner for foreign affairs Hans Van Den Broek arrived yesterday in Ankara. In a statement to journalists at the airport, Van Den Broek expressed his pleasure over visiting Turkey once again. The EU Commissioner is scheduled to meet today Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz, Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, Foreign Minister Ismail Cem and Parliamentary Speaker Hikmet Cetin. Van Den Broek said that on November 27, a delegation of the Council of Europe will arrive in Turkey, and that the Turkey-EU Association Council was scheduled to convene at the end of November. /Milliyet/[17] OPERATIONS IN SOUTHEASTERN ANATOLIAAccording to a statement of the State of Emergency Governorship, operations against the PKK terrorist organization continue in Sirnak, Silopi, Mardin and Tunceli. During the last three days, 13 terrorists have been killed by the security forces. /Cumhuriyet/[18] TURKISH STOCKS CONTINUE FREE-FALLTurkish equities continued their nosedive Thursday, as the Istanbul Stock Exchange (IMKB) National-100 Index fell 9.97 percent to 2,717 points. In Thursday's morning session, the IMKB index rose 194 points to 3,014 points, but brokers questioned whether the bourse could sustain its rally as pressure for profit-taking mounted from foreign investors. Foreign investors account for nearly half of the trading on the exchange. The bourse was deluged by sell orders from foreign institutional investors and speculators seeking to reap huge profits from earlier gains.Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal newspaper examined the crisis in the stock exchanges around the world on 28 October. The newspaper announced the "Istanbul Stock Exchange", on which share prices have an annual increase of 189.3 percent, as the most profit-making stock exchange of the world. /Cumhuriyet-Milliyet-Hurriyet/ [19] POOS: "TODAY'S ANKARA GOVERNMENT MAY BE OUR LAST CHANCE"European Union (EU) Term-President Luxembourg's Foreign Minister Jacques Poos said on Tuesday that "May be, today's Ankara government is our last chance". Poos, who addressed European Parliament (EP) Foreign Relations Commission as the Term-President, responding to Greek Parliamentarian Panayotis Lambirias' question said: "Turkey will be a full member of the EU sooner or later. We have given a promise in this respect and all EU member countries confirmed this. Nobody opposed. Today's Turkish government's constructive attitude approaching EU is an opportunity. May be the last opportunity".[20] FEISSEL SUMMONED TO TRNC FOREIGN MINISTRYThe UN Secretary General's Deputy Special Envoy to Cyprus Gustave Feissel was summoned to Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) Foreign and Defense Ministry for the arrest of two Turkish Cypriot people Osman Kondoz and Mustafa Veli by Greek Cypriot police using force in the buffer zone which is under UN Peace Forces control.TRNC conveyed Feissel its views regarding this issue. Speaking after his meeting with Feissel, TRNC Foreign and Defense Minister Etkin said that TRNC's call for the return of the two Turks was conveyed to Feissel. [21] WORLD SNOWBOARDING CHAMPIONSHIPS OPEN IN ISTANBULThe world snowboarding championships opened Wednesday atop 200 tons of artificial snow, organized by Istanbul's Eminonu district municipality. The event, coinciding with the 74th anniversary of the foundation of the Turkish Republic, attracted 19 leading athletes from 17 countries in the district's historic Sultanahmet Square. The competition is being broadcast by 29 television stations in 116 countries. Before Istanbul, the championships had taken place in Tokyo, Berlin, Prague, Moscow, Valencia and Paris.END Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |