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Turkish Press Review, 04-11-11Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr><LINK href="http://www.byegm.gov.tr_yayinlarimiz_chr_pics_css/tpr.css" rel=STYLESHEET type=text/css> e-mail : newspot@byegm.gov.tr <caption> <_caption> Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning11.11.2004SEZER, ERDOGAN SPEAK ON THE ENDURING IMPORTANCE OF ATATURK ERDOGAN MEETS WITH IRAQI FOREIGN MINISTER GUL: “GREEK FIGHTER JETS HARASSED TURKISH F-16s OVER THE AEGEAN” SLOVAKIAN FM DUE IN ANKARA TODAY KRETSCHMER: “TURKEY IS MAKING RAPID PROGRESS TOWARDS EU MEMBERSHIP” LAGENDIJK: “ANKARA’S TALKS SHOULD AIM AT FULL EU MEMBERSHIP” KOHL: “TURKEY HAS NO CHANCE OF GETTING INTO THE EU” TRNC’S TALAT DECIDES AGAINST FORMING NEW GOVT UNAKITAN MEETS WITH WB’S KATSU TO DISCUSS RECENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS FROM THE COLUMNS … FROM THE COLUMNS … FROM THE COLUMNS IS THERE ANY HOPE? BY TURKER ALKAN (RADIKAL)CONTENTS
[01] SEZER, ERDOGAN SPEAK ON THE ENDURING IMPORTANCE OF ATATURKThe passing of Turkish Republic Mustafa Kemal Ataturk 66 years ago was commemorated yesterday throughout the country and at Turkey’s foreign missions abroad. In Ankara, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended a Turkish Language Institute conference on Ataturk. Addressing the gathering, Erdogan said that Ataturk had no need to depend on a particular doctrine or ideology. “The basis of his world view was rationalism,” said Erdogan. For his part, Sezer praised the Treaty of Lausanne, which was forged under Ataturk’s watch, saying that it was the only pact from that period which still remains in effect. Sezer stressed that the single-state structure was indispensable for the unity of the nation. Also present at the conference were Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc, Constitutional Court Chief Justice Mustafa Bumin, Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok, and National Security Council (NSC) Secretary-General Yigit Alpogan. /Aksam/[02] ERDOGAN MEETS WITH IRAQI FOREIGN MINISTERPrime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday met with visiting Iraqi Foreign Minister Vail Abdullatif. During their talks, Abdullatif briefed Erdogan on the ongoing military offensive in Fallujah, adding that the operation was intended to end the threat of terrorism to the Iraqi people, bring stability, and lay the groundwork for the country’s upcoming elections. Erdogan urged the coalition forces and Iraqi interim government to take care of civilians in the region. Condemning the recent terrorist attacks and killings of Turkish citizens in Iraq, Erdogan said that those slain had been helping the country’s reconstruction. He asked the Iraqi government to take all necessary measures to protect civilians in Iraq. /Turkiye/[03] GUL: “GREEK FIGHTER JETS HARASSED TURKISH F-16s OVER THE AEGEAN”Turkish F-16s were harassed over the Aegean earlier this week by Greek fighter jets, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said yesterday. Gul stated the Turkish F-16s were flying as part of NATO exercises and that Turkey had immediately notified NATO’s AWACS plane in the area about the harassment. He added that Ankara was trying to develop its relations with Athens in all respects and sincerely hopes that disagreements over the Aegean will be resolved in a peaceful manner. /Turkiye/[04] SLOVAKIAN FM DUE IN ANKARA TODAYSlovakian Foreign Minister Eduard Kukan is due to arrive in Ankara today for an official visit. Kukan is expected to meet with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul to discuss a number of issues, including bilateral relations, Turkey’s European Union membership bid and regional and international issues. Tomorrow Kukan is to meet separately with Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc and President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. /Cumhuriyet/[05] KRETSCHMER: “TURKEY IS MAKING RAPID PROGRESS TOWARDS EU MEMBERSHIP”European Commission Representative in Turkey Hansjoerg Kretschmer said yesterday that Ankara was making rapid progress towards its European Union membership. During a visit to Hakkari Governor Erdogan Gurbuz, Kretschmer said that the EU Commission was closely watching Turkey’s progress, adding that there were still a number of criteria which needed to be implemented. /Cumhuriyet/[06] LAGENDIJK: “ANKARA’S TALKS SHOULD AIM AT FULL EU MEMBERSHIP”Turkey’s eventual membership in the European Union will be a blow to both terrorist Osama bin Laden and theories of a “clash of civilizations,” said Joost Lagendijk, co-chair of the Turkey-EU Joint Parliamentary Committee, at a panel yesterday in Washington organized by the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) and Germany’s Heinrich Boll Foundation. “When Turkey joins the EU, those who say a bridge cannot be built between Islam and the West will be proven wrong,” Lagendijk told the panel entitled “Turkey in the European Union: Consequences for Europe.” Lagendijk urged the EU to give Turkey a date for accession talks at its summit next month. He also emphasized that when Ankara’s negotiations begin, the focus should be on full membership, rebuffing calls for a “special partnership.” /Star/[07] KOHL: “TURKEY HAS NO CHANCE OF GETTING INTO THE EU”Turkey has no chance of joining the European Union, claimed former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl yesterday. Speaking on German television, Kohl alleged that EU leaders were deceiving Ankara with promises of membership. “Even these leaders know that Turkey’s accession talks will last for 10 or 15 years and they won’t be in power then,” added Kohl. “I favor a special partnership with Turkey, because this is the most rational way.” /Hurriyet/[08] TRNC’S TALAT DECIDES AGAINST FORMING NEW GOVTAfter being appointed this week by Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas to form a new government, Republican Turkish Party (CTP) leader and Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Talat has reportedly decided against trying to do so. During talks among CTP members, the party agreed that new initiatives would be fruitless, and that instead early elections were needed. Talat is expected to return his mandate to Denktas without waiting the customary period, two weeks. Under the TRNC’s Constitution, early elections can be called by either the Parliament or the president. /Turkiye/[09] UNAKITAN MEETS WITH WB’S KATSU TO DISCUSS RECENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTSFinance Minister Kemal Unakitan yesterday met in Ankara with Shigeo Katsu, the World Bank’s vice president for Europe and Central Asia, to discuss recent economic developments. Speaking before their meeting, Unakitan said that a Council of State decision was needed for the privatization of state oil company TUPRAS, adding that the Privatization Administration (OIB) would do what the decision requires. Katsu said that he tried to visit Turkey each year in order to see the country’s progress firsthand. /Aksam/[10] FROM THE COLUMNS … FROM THE COLUMNS … FROM THE COLUMNS[11] IS THERE ANY HOPE? BY TURKER ALKAN (RADIKAL)Columnist Turker Alkan comments on international politics. A summary of his column is as follows:“States want to be powerful. Maybe this desire comes from the wild nature of international politics. For example, look at the situation in Iraq. Generally, citizens want a strong and great Turkey. Former President Suleyman Demirel said 10 years ago that the Turkish world stretches over an area from the Adriatic Sea to the Great Wall of China. However, once Russian President Vladimir Putin said that being a superpower is not important and that Russia has no desire to be one. Actually, Russia could become a superpower again but it might have learned that doing so is too expensive. I liked this statement and thought that Putin was acting like a statesman. I wonder why not even a single statesman has said, ‘We must become a country which produces the best poets, philosophers and writers.’ No one tries to do this. They don’t try to make a nation of happy people. Everybody wants a country boasting the strongest army, large territory, a big population and the greatest wealth, and their policies reflect this. Of course it’s very difficult to become a superpower. However, countries like Turkey say, ‘At least, let’s become a regional superpower’ and invest huge sums of money into their armies and weapons. US political campaigns cost nearly $400 billion, but $300 billion would be enough to meet many poor countries’ housing, clean water and electricity needs. If we spent money for civil rather than military purposes, maybe one of the chief causes of war would end. We need to break the cycle of hopelessness, poverty and war. Towards this end, leaders with good vision are needed. Europe could have comprehended the meaning of peace after two terrible wars. The EU experience shows that it’s possible to solve problems through peaceful means and also demonstrated the limits of foreign policy conducted through economic and military threats. However, the EU hasn’t quit politics yet. More importantly, US President George W. Bush’s recent election victory shows that for the foreseeable future, a world order not dependent upon brute force is just a dream. Even if there are biological factors, I think that social causes determine human aggression. In other words, if we can act reasonably, there’s no need for despair.” ARCHIVE <script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="http:/_www.byegm.gov.tr_statistic/countcode.js"> </script> Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |