Browse through our General Nodes on Cyprus Read the Convention Relating to the Regime of the Straits (24 July 1923) Read the Convention Relating to the Regime of the Straits (24 July 1923)
HR-Net - Hellenic Resources Network Compact version
Today's Suggestion
Read The "Macedonian Question" (by Maria Nystazopoulou-Pelekidou)
HomeAbout HR-NetNewsWeb SitesDocumentsOnline HelpUsage InformationContact us
Sunday, 22 December 2024
 
News
  Latest News (All)
     From Greece
     From Cyprus
     From Europe
     From Balkans
     From Turkey
     From USA
  Announcements
  World Press
  News Archives
Web Sites
  Hosted
  Mirrored
  Interesting Nodes
Documents
  Special Topics
  Treaties, Conventions
  Constitutions
  U.S. Agencies
  Cyprus Problem
  Other
Services
  Personal NewsPaper
  Greek Fonts
  Tools
  F.A.Q.
 

Turkish Press Review, 01-10-01

Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>

Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning

01.10.2001


CONTENTS

  • [01] NEW LEGISLATIVE YEAR TO BEGIN
  • [02] CEM VISITS WORLD TRADE CENTER RUBBLE
  • [03] ECEVIT SPEAKS ON CNN TURK
  • [04] ANKARA IS CONTENT WITH UN RESOLUTION
  • [05] TASAR IN JAPAN
  • [06] TURKISH SHIP SINKS
  • [07] DERVIS TRAVELS TO THE US
  • [08] EU JUSTICE AND INTERIOR MINISTERS MEET
  • [09] NEW ANTI-TERRORISM CODE FOR TURKISH STRAITS
  • [10] IDEF 2001 ENDS
  • [11] STATE MINISTER GUREL MET RUMANIAN FM
  • [12] ASELSAN COOPERATES WITH DEFENSE INDUSTRY UNDERSECRETARIAT (SSM)
  • [13] GREEK PRIME MINISTER SIMITIS URGES COOPERATION WITH TURKEY IN THE AREAS OF NATURAL GAS AND ELECTRICITY
  • [14] TURKEY: THE SAFEST COUNTRY
  • [15] ANTALYA GOLDEN ORANGE FILM FESTIVAL BEGINS TODAY
  • [16] METU FOLKLORE FESTIVAL TO BEGIN
  • [17] FROM THE COLUMNS....FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS
  • [18] A FIGHT OF THE INSTINCT AND THE INTELLECT BY SEMIH IDIZ (TURKISH NEWS)

  • [01] NEW LEGISLATIVE YEAR TO BEGIN

    The Turkish Grand National Assembly (TGNA) which has been working since Sep. 17 on Constitutional amendments will start its 21st legislative year officially today. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer is expected to address the Parliament. Speaker Omer Izgi will host a reception on the occasion of the opening of the new legislative year. On the other hand, the Parliament will hold the second round meetings for the debates on the Constitutional amendment package tomorrow. /All Papers/

    [02] CEM VISITS WORLD TRADE CENTER RUBBLE

    Minister of Foreign Affairs Ismail Cem visited the wreckage of the World Trade Center, which had been destroyed in the Sep. 11 attack. Speaking during his emotional visit which lasted for more than two hours, Cem stated that the event was a real catastrophe and he felt deep sorrow. Meeting with New York Mayor Rudolf Giuliani, Cewm conveyed the condelences of the Turkish people and the Turkish government. Informing reporters about his meeting with the U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, Cem said that he had told Annan that he was not optimistic since a solution had already been presented by the EU to the Greek Cypriots. "So, why would they seek for a solution through the UN?" Cem said that it was the Turkish side who was really looking for a solution for the Cyprus problem. Cem, who had completed his contacts in the US, will discuss ways to struggle against terrorism with the German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer in Berlin on Monday. /Turkish Daily News/

    [03] ECEVIT SPEAKS ON CNN TURK

    Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit spoke on CNN Turk yesterday. Upon a question reminding Ecevit of TUSIAD's (Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen Association) criticism towards the government arguing that it should withdraw and that new elections should be held, Ecevit stated that TUSIAD was not justified in its claims. Ecevit said that the economy was going well until September 11th incident and that all the industrialists had been aware of this fact. Stating that certain changes would certainly be made in the economic program, Ecevit said, "The world has changed. It's not possible for us to remain the same." He stated that the efficient use of domestic resources along with foreign ones, stable fiscal policies and a breath of relief for the manufacturing industry would all speed up Turkey's economic recovery. He said that he viewed such criticisms as wrong and unfair taking the fact into consideration that the current government inherited lots of problems from the previous ones. When the criticism arguing that Turkey remained passive in the aftermath of September 11th was recalled, Ecevit said, "This criticism is totally unjust. The US retaliation has not been determined clearly yet. That's why we have not been approached for any other request than that of the allowance of the lift off and landing of planes. We'll cooperate with the US as much as our conditions allow." /All Papers/

    [04] ANKARA IS CONTENT WITH UN RESOLUTION

    Turkey has stated that she was content with the UN Security Council resolution on combating terrorism. "What we highly hope is the complete implementation of this resolution with a determination and without discriminating no matter where and how the terrorist activities are carried out." said a statement by the Foreign Ministry. The statement said that Turkey was open to all kinds of platforms and cooperation against terrorism. The resolution foresees eradicating the financial resources of terrorism, preventing terrorist activities including the preparation period, forming close cooperation between UN members, not providing terrorists with the opportunity of being a refugee and so on. /Cumhuriyet/

    [05] TASAR IN JAPAN

    Minister of Tourism Mustafa Tasar is continuing his contacts in Japan. Tasar opened a exhibition of Japanese painter Yoshio Toyomasu entitled, "Views from Turkey" in the Tokyo Turkish Mosque. He is expected to meet with Japanese Minister of Landl, Infrastructure and Transport Chikage Oogi and representatives from Japanese tourism agencies today. /Turkiye/

    [06] TURKISH SHIP SINKS

    The ship Kaptan Yasar, transporting minerals sank yesterday in the Black Sea off the Romania coast. 10 Turkish crew members in life crafts were rescued by Romanian rescue boats. /Turkiye/

    [07] DERVIS TRAVELS TO THE US

    Minister of State Responsible for Economy Kemal Dervis arrived in the US to hold a series of meetings with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and authorities from American administration. Dervis will meet with the US Secretary of Treasury Paul O'Neil and IMF Deputy First Chairman Anne Krueger and then will organize a press conference in Washington. He is expecteed to meet with IMF Chairman Horst Kohler and IMF Deputy Chairman for Europe Johannes Linn tomorrow. He is also scheduled to come together with Turkish-American Business Council members and World Bank Chairman James Wolfensohn on Wednesday. Following Dervis and his accompanying delegation's meetings with IMF authorities in Washington, the additional intent letter is to be given to the IMF: Normally, the $ 3-billion fourth loan slice is expected to be extended to Turkey in the mid -October following its approval by the IMF Executive Board. /Turkiye/

    [08] EU JUSTICE AND INTERIOR MINISTERS MEET

    Justice Minister Hikmet Sami Turk on Friday condemned all terrorist attacks, and mentioned the experience of Turkey on the issue. Turk also stressed the importance of cooperation in the fight against terrorism. Addressing a meeting in which the justice and interior ministers of EU countries and the 13 candidate countries attended, Turk said Turkey supported the plans and the decisions of the EU council regarding the fight against terrorism. Turk also gave information about judicial reforms and measures that Turkey had undertaken to combat human smuggling and illegal immigration. Turk also met Guenther Verhuegen, the EU Commissioner for enlargement, Belgian Justice Minister Marc Verwilghen and Belgian Interior Minister Antoine Duquesne. /Turkish News/

    [09] NEW ANTI-TERRORISM CODE FOR TURKISH STRAITS

    The Maritime Undersecretariat has sent a circular to related institutions saying that to avert the possibility of a terrorist attack on the Turkish Straits, they should take all necessary measures and be on alert. According to the circular, all aircraft seeking to hold air displays over the Straits must obtain permission from the Undersecretariat In the possibility of an armed assault against ships carrying dangerous cargo, some security perimeters will be set up along the coast of the Straits. All seaside buildings, facilities, docks, marinas, oil refineries and harbors will take their own measures against terrorist attacks. /Turkish News/

    [10] IDEF 2001 ENDS

    IDEF 2001 5th International Defense Industry, Aviation and Maritime Fair ended yesterday. The high-level participation in the fair was limited due to the September 11th incident. However, it was stated that people's interest in the fair was quite high, especially in the electronic security equipments. /Sabah/

    [11] STATE MINISTER GUREL MET RUMANIAN FM

    Sukru Sina Gurel held contacts with Romanian Foreign Minister Mircea Geona during a trip to Romania. Increasing efforts to heighten cooperation among the two countries made up an important part of our talks said Gurel, who added that he believed there was great potential for such a development. Gurel is expected to meet Turkish representatives and businessmen, with the aim of "gaining first hand knowledge of the problems of 1500 Turks living in Romania." /Turkish Daily News/

    [12] ASELSAN COOPERATES WITH DEFENSE INDUSTRY UNDERSECRETARIAT (SSM)

    ASELSAN signed a Stinger (KMS) Project agreement with the SSM during IDEF 2001. The agreement, which consists of selling KMS systems to the SSM was signed by SSM Deputy Undersecretary Unal Tamgac and ASELSAN Deputy Chairman of Board, Oltan Evren. The KMS systems have been designed by Turkish engineers and are said to have important technical and tactical characteristics - which distinguish them from their foreign counterparts. KMS systems compose a major part of low altitude air defense and can be operated day or night, in bad weather and in cases of mobile air targets. /Turkish Daily News/

    [13] GREEK PRIME MINISTER SIMITIS URGES COOPERATION WITH TURKEY IN THE AREAS OF NATURAL GAS AND ELECTRICITY

    Greek Prime Minister Kostas Simitis spoke at the opening ceremony of a natural gas plant in Komotini (Gumulcine), which he said he believed natural gas and electricity connections among Greece and Turkey would provide positive steps . The Prime Minister voiced further plans, saying a natural gas connection between the two countries could be extended to Italy in the future. Stating that power plants constructed in various parts of the country had led Greece to become an energy center in the region, Smitis added that the success of the project would contribute to the transfer of energy among countries. /Turkish Daily News/

    [14] TURKEY: THE SAFEST COUNTRY

    Turkey has become one of the favorite places for European tour operators. According to them, she is the safest country to travel to. Tour Operators Association General secretary and Oger Tours Consultant Huseyin Baraner stated that one of the world's biggest tour operators, who participated in the congress called "Tourism in the Future" held in Germany , had called Turkey the safest country in the world. "From now on, Turkey is an indispensable country for those tour operators. They have decided to increase the number of their investments in Turkey," Baraner said. /Turkish News/

    [15] ANTALYA GOLDEN ORANGE FILM FESTIVAL BEGINS TODAY

    The 38th Golden Orange Film Festival will begin today in Antalya. 250 artists from movie industry will attend the festival where 11 movies will contest. Additionally, an exhibition named "Golden Orange Open Air Museum" will be opened within the scope of the festival. /Sabah/

    [16] METU FOLKLORE FESTIVAL TO BEGIN

    The Fifth Inter Universities Folklore Festival organized by the Middle East Technical University (METU) will begin on October 18. The festival will last three days and various universities will participate in it. /Turkiye/

    [17] FROM THE COLUMNS....FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS

    [18] A FIGHT OF THE INSTINCT AND THE INTELLECT BY SEMIH IDIZ (TURKISH NEWS)

    Columnist Semih Idiz comments on Samuel Huntington's book the 'Clash of Civilizations'. A summary of his column is as follows:

    "The September 11 attack on the United States has highligted the 'Clash of Civilazitions' thesis in a way that the author of this thesis, Samuel Huntington could never have imagined. He is, of course, denying that he ever foresaw a polarization between the Islamic and Christian worlds, and saying that he predicted a much broader based division. The 'clash of civilizations' we are witnessing today is indeed between Islam and Christianity whether we like it or not. Officials in the West are denying this vehemently and reacting angrily to such suggestions- as they did last week to Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi over his totally uncalled for remarks about the superiority of Christianity. But this does not change the undercurrent among the Christian masses in the West who, even if they do not say so openly because it would be politically incorrect, nevertheless feel in their heart of hearts that there is a 'never the twain shall meet' situation between Christians and Muslims. It is of course, also true that many Muslims see Christians as 'Godless infidels'. For many educated person who believes in the universality of human nature, all of this is highly questionable. The fact that certain views are prevalent among ignorant Christian and Muslim masses does not make these views any truer or absolute in any way. For Turkey- a totally unique Islamic country as is becoming more apparent with every passing day- the 'Clash of Civilizations' issue was put in its proper place nearly 80 years ago with the adoption of secularism and the total separation of religion and the state. The key here is that religion is a totally personal matter between man and God and not a means to run a society.Turkey's adoption of secularism has not however, meant that the issue has been laid to rest. Quite to the contrary, the resurgence of political Islam in the 1990s, as well as the advent of Islamic terrorism and its many examples in this country, go to show that the system has to remain vigilant against attempts to hijack the state for the sake of imposing religious agenda. This attempted imposition is not restricted to Islam or Turkey. It was only recently that such an advanced European country as Ireland accepted divorce or contraception. The 'clash of Civilizations' is not really between religions, even though it appears to be so, but between imposing religiosity and a secular system that has respect for all its citizens regardless of whether they are religious or not or what their personal beliefs may be."


    Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
    Back to Top
    Copyright © 1995-2023 HR-Net (Hellenic Resources Network). An HRI Project.
    All Rights Reserved.

    HTML by the HR-Net Group / Hellenic Resources Institute, Inc.
    trkpr2html v1.02a run on Friday, 14 December 2001 - 13:10:35 UTC