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Turkish Press Review, 98-07-27
From: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>
27.07.98
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning
CONTENTS
[01] FORD INVESTING IN TURKEY
[02] ITALIAN PRIME MINISTER IN TURKEY
[03] GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER LASHES OUT AT TURKEY AND UNITED STATES
[04] DEMIREL MEETS WITH MORNINGSTAR
[05] A DELEGATION FROM ENERGY MINISTRY GOES TO UNITED STATES
[06] KORKUT OZAL REELECTED DEMOCRAT PARTY CHAIRMAN
[07] TURKISH FOREIGN MINSITER CEM WARNS NATO ON S-300 MISSILES
[08] LOCAL POLITICIAN ABDUCTED IN TUNCELI
[09] OPERATION IN SIVAS
[10] TL 15 BILLION FOR HASANKEYF
[11] GERMAN NEWSPAPER PRAISES TURKISH BUSINESSMEN
[12] FOREIGN INTEREST IN DOGAN HOLDING
[13] WORLD BANK UPGRADES STATUS OF ANKARA OFFICE
[14] TREASURY UNDERSECRETARIAT SEEKING LOANS
[01] FORD INVESTING IN TURKEY
President Suleyman Demirel laid yesterday the foundations for a
new Ford automobile plant in Yenikoy, Golcuk. Demirel said at the
ceremony that the Ford's investment would be a precedent for
other foreign investors. Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz said for his
part that the Ford-Otosan investment showed that protectionist
policies were no longer blocking development in Turkey.
Rahmi Koc, the chairman of Koc Holding and Ford's Turkish partner
thanked the government for the donation of the land on which the
factory will be built.
Chairman of the Executive Board of Ford-Otosan, Wayne Booker,
said at the ceremony that the the cost of construction is
expected to reach $ 550 million. The factory itself will employ
4,000 people and about 20,000 jobs will be created. He added that
the factory will also provide financial support to local schools
and charitable institutions. He added that they were happy to be
in Turkey. /Milliyet-Sabah/
[02] ITALIAN PRIME MINISTER IN TURKEY
Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi, scheduled to arrive in
Turkey today, is expected to make an attempt to contribute to
international efforts at decreasing the longstanding tension
between Turkey and Greece. Turkish Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz
and his Italian counterpart Prodi will meet in Istanbul to have
four hours of talks. A joint press conference is expected after
the meeting. It is expected that Yilmaz and Prodi will discuss
Turco-Italian economic ties, the problem of illegal immigration
from the Middle East to Europe via Italy and the increasing
tension in the Yugoslav province of Kosovo. /All papers/
[03] GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER LASHES OUT AT TURKEY AND UNITED STATES
Greek Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos, yesterday accused the
Turkish Consulate at Komotini of acting against Greek interests.
Pangalos claimed that the Turkish Consulate had worked
systemically at creating a crisis by dividing the christians and
moslems in the region. He added that the Turkish Consulate should
stay within the boundaries of its authority recognized to it or
accept the consequences of going beyond those limits. Turning on
the US Consulate in Thessaloniki, the Greek Foreign Minister
stated that American diplomats were implementing double standards
in the region and followed a hypocritical, unprincipled policy.
He then visited the muftis appointed by the Greek government to
Gumulcine (Komotini) and Iskece (Xanthi), but who are not
recognized by the Turkish minority, and declared that they would
be given official civil servant status benefiting from insurance
and pension rights. /Cumhuriyet/
[04] DEMIREL MEETS WITH MORNINGSTAR
President Suleyman Demirel yesterday met with US President
Clinton's special representative in the Caspian region Richard
Morningstar. Returning to Ankara following groundbreaking
ceremonies for the car plant Ford will build in Izmit, Demirel
received Morningstar and an accompanying delegation. The meeting
was closed to the press. /Cumhuriyet/
[05] A DELEGATION FROM ENERGY MINISTRY GOES TO UNITED STATES
A delegation led by Energy and Natural Resources Ministry
Undersecretary Yurdakul Yigitguden goes today to the US to attend
the fourth meeting of the Turkish-US Joint Energy Working Group.
The delegation will also get in touch with international
financial institutions in the US. /Cumhuriyet/
[06] KORKUT OZAL REELECTED DEMOCRAT PARTY CHAIRMAN
At the eighth congress of the Democrat Party (DP) Korkut Ozal,
who received a total of 597 valid votes was reelected Chairman.
Following the announcement of the results, Korkut Ozal gave a
brief speech thanking the party members. Commenting on the
elections to be held in April 1999, Ozal said that they were in
favour of early general elections. /Cumhuriyet/
[07] TURKISH FOREIGN MINSITER CEM WARNS NATO ON S-300 MISSILES
Greece and the Greek Cypriot Administration have jointly planned
to deploy Russian-made S-300 missiles in the Greek Cypriot south
of the island. Turkish Foreign Minister Cem has again warned NATO
about the plan which is now in its final stages. Cem noted that
the missiles were not only a threat against the Turkish Republic
of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Turkey and the Eastern Mediterranean,
but also would have a negative effect on NATO regional defences.
In a written statement yesterday Cem pointed out that information
about Turkish and NATO military operations in the region would be
presented to the Russian Federation and the Greek Cypriot
Administration both of which are not members of the organisation,
through Greece, a member of NATO. Cem added that this information
could also be given to other states in the Middle East.
/Cumhuriyet/
[08] LOCAL POLITICIAN ABDUCTED IN TUNCELI
Ultra-leftist terrorists have abducted a local politician in the
eastern Turkish province of Tunceli. Revolutionary People's
Party-Front (DHKP-C) militants kidnapped Hidir Yadigaroglu, a
local official of the Republican People's Party (CHP), on
Saturday afternoon after stopping his car at a road block outside
the village of Gulbahce. /Sabah/
[09] OPERATION IN SIVAS
Turkish security forces, carrying out operations to find the
separatists who set on fire a telephone exchange belonging to the
General Post Office in Kurukopru village in Sivas, and killed
Haydar Iyidogan the village head of Sancakkale village in the
Zara district of Sivas on July 8, 1998, have arrested 10 people
suspected of helping the PKK terrorist organization. It is
reported that operations are continuing in the region.
/Cumhuriyet/
[10] TL 15 BILLION FOR HASANKEYF
Initiatives to save Hasankeyf, Batman, which will soon be under
the waters of Ilisu Dam artificial lake, are resuming after a
seven year-interval. The Turkish Culture Ministry will put aside
appropriations worth TL 15 billion. Prof.Olus Arik, who is
responsible for excavations in the region, has congratulated
Culture Minister Istemihan Talay and noted that they will begin
excavations with a 14-member team after they receive the money.
/Cumhuriyet/
[11] GERMAN NEWSPAPER PRAISES TURKISH BUSINESSMEN
The Berliner Morgenpost newspaper, published in Berlin, has
praised Turkish businessmen pointing out that Turks working in
Berlin have contributed DM 5 billion to the German economy
through the operations of more than 5,000 companies. An article
written by Britta Peersen said that over 20,000 workers were
working in these companies. The article stated that Turkish
businessmen were active in many fields ranging from glass
manufacturing to estate agencies. It added that Turkish
entrepreneurs were very courageous and thought globally.
/Milliyet/
[12] FOREIGN INTEREST IN DOGAN HOLDING
The ninth subsidiary of the Dogan Group is also on the way to
being traded on the Istanbul Stock Exchange. 15 % shares of the
capital of Dogan Publication Holdings will be offered to the
public on 29-30 July 1998. European speculators have shown much
interest in the shares which have been available in international
markets for some time. The European issue of the Wall Street
Journal of the US said that the Dogan Publication Holdings had
offered shares worth $75 million in international markets. The
article also stated that income worth $10 million to domestic
investors was expected from the sale. /Milliyet/
[13] WORLD BANK UPGRADES STATUS OF ANKARA OFFICE
The World Bank is upgrading the status of its representative
office in Ankara by making it a regional directorate. On the
grounds of increasing economic activities in Turkey, the World
Bank is giving a central position to Turkey. The former status of
Turkey was a "country representation". Ajay Chibber, who has been
working as the Turkey director in Washington, has been appointed
as the director for the World Bank's new regional directorate in
Turkey. He will take up his new post at the end of August.
/Hurriyet/
[14] TREASURY UNDERSECRETARIAT SEEKING LOANS
Headed by Deputy Undersecretary of the Treasury, Cuneyt Sel, a
delegation is going to Japan today. The Treasury officials will
try to secure a $ 300 million loan for Turkish Eximbank,
government-run bank for export and import activities. General
Manager of Turkish Eximbank, Ahmet Kilicoglu, said the bank
needed the loan to give more support to exports. /Hurriyet/
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