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Turkish Press Review, 07-02-23
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
23.02.2007
CONTENTS
[01] NSC TO CONVENE TODAY
[02] ERDOGAN: "WITH ITS RECENT GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT, TURKEY IS BEING CALLED A COUNTRY OF OPPORTUNITY"
[03] HIGH ANTI-TERROR COUNCIL GATHERS IN ANKARA
[04] GUL: "MEETING WITH TALABANI OR BARZANI WOULDN'T MEAN RECOGNIZING AN INDEPENDENT STATE"
[05] DUTCH QUEEN TO VISIT TURKEY
[06] PACE HEAD: "THE MEETING BETWEEN YONLUER AND CHRYSOSTOMOS IS A STERLING EXAMPLE OF INTERFAITH DIALOGUE"
[07] EFFORTS ON THE RIGHT
[01] NSC TO CONVENE TODAY
The National Security Council (NSC) is due to convene today under the
chairmanship of President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. The terrorist PKK and
northern Iraq are expected to top the meeting. During the gathering, Chief
of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit is expected to provide video evidence
of his recent assertions in Washington that the Iraqi border is under the
control of the PKK. /Milliyet/
[02] ERDOGAN: "WITH ITS RECENT GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT, TURKEY IS BEING
CALLED A COUNTRY OF OPPORTUNITY"
Speaking at a conference entitled "Turkey: Country of Opportunities" in
Istanbul yesterday, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that with its
growth and development in recent years, Turkey has started to be hailed as
a country of opportunity. Stressing that the government had succeeded in
strengthening the rule of law with growth, development, democracy,
political confidence and stability, Erdogan added that the West appreciated
these accomplishments. Erdogan stated that when his party came to power in
fall 2002 inflation was about 30%, and had been high for nearly three
decades, but now it has fallen to single digits. "In 2002 exports stood at
$36 billion, but now they total $85 billion," added Erdogan. In related
news, Erdogan is due to travel to Saudi Arabia today to attend the Eighth
Jeddah Economic Forum. During his short stay in the country, Erdogan is
also expected to meet with Saudi King Abdullah. /Turkiye-Sabah/
[03] HIGH ANTI-TERROR COUNCIL GATHERS IN ANKARA
The High Anti-Terror Council chaired by Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul
gathered yesterday. In attendance at the nearly three-hour meeting were
Justice Minister Cemil Cicek, Interior Minister Abdulkadir Aksu, Defense
Minister Vecdi Gonul, Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan, Gendarmerie
Commander Gen. Isik Kosaner, Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Ergin
Saygun, National Security Council (NSC) Undersecretary Yigit Alpogan, Prime
Ministry Undersecretary Omer Dincer, Turkish Intelligence Agency
Undersecretary Emre Taner and retired Gen. Edip Baser, Turkey's special
anti-terror envoy. "Current efforts to fight terrorism and future
activities towards this end were discussed during the meeting," said a
statement released afterwards. "Within this context, work especially on
protecting our borders and preventing illegal traffic and the measures to
be taken were discussed." /Turkiye/
[04] GUL: "MEETING WITH TALABANI OR BARZANI WOULDN'T MEAN RECOGNIZING AN
INDEPENDENT STATE"
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul yesterday said that if Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan becomes president this May this will not present any
problems to either Turkey or the ruling Justice and Development Party
(AKP). Speaking to Kanal 7, Gul said that his recent talks with US Vice
President Dick Cheney had been very fruitful. Regarding the possibility of
meeting with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani and Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic
Party (KDP) leader Massoud Barzani, Gul said, "If we can reach a solution
on such meetings, Erdogan is ready to meet anyone. Meeting with Talabani or
Barzani wouldn't mean recognizing or approving an independent state. But
these issues could be discussed." /Hurriyet/
[05] DUTCH QUEEN TO VISIT TURKEY
Dutch Queen Beatrix is due to arrive in Ankara next Tuesday upon the
invitation of President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. During her stay in Turkey,
Queen Beatrix is also expected to visit Istanbul and Kayseri. She will be
accompanied by Dutch Prince Willem Alexander and her daughter-in-law
Maxima. Beatrix will be the first Dutch queen to visit Turkey. During her
four-day stay, Beatrix will meet with Turkish officials to discuss a number
of issues, including Turkey's European Union bid, bilateral ties, tourism,
and dialogue between cultures and civilizations. /Star/
[06] PACE HEAD: "THE MEETING BETWEEN YONLUER AND CHRYSOSTOMOS IS A STERLING
EXAMPLE OF INTERFAITH DIALOGUE"
Ahmet Yonluer, the head of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus'
Religious Affairs Directorate, and Greek Cypriot Archbishop Chrysostomos II
yesterday met at the Ledra Palas Hotel at a gathering hosted by
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Chair Rene van der
Linden. At the meeting, the two resolved to act together to encourage
respect for places of worship of both Islam and Christianity. In a
statement, Linden said that the historic meeting of the two religious
figures was a sterling example of intercultural and interfaith dialogue,
which is a priority of his presidency. /Star/
FROM THE COLUMNS�FROM THE COLUMNS�FROM THE COLUMNS�
[07] EFFORTS ON THE RIGHT
Columnist Mustafa Balbay comments on the situation of right-wing and left-
wing parties before this year's general and presidential elections. A
summary of his column is as follows:
"Generally, Turkey's political left wing is emotional, and the right is
pragmatic. Today, let's talk about efforts on the right. There have been
many new efforts and quests for alliances, but most of the ones which
started late last year are over now. But now the prospect of the right
making a breakthrough outside the Justice and Development Party (AKP)
before the general and presidential elections is stronger. Many of these
efforts and parties overlap. Their common thought is this: �It would be
difficult or impossible for us to intervene in May's presidential election.
Let's think about what will happen next.'
As in the recent past, the first name which comes to mind when the �right's
search' is mentioned is former President Suleyman Demirel. It seems that
Demirel's umbrella is wide. A broad section, from supporters of the True
Path Party (DYP) to the Motherland Party (ANAVATAN), sometimes visits
Demirel. Demirel spent the last year pushing for early general elections
last fall. Now his plan can be understood: �Firstly, let's see the May
presidential elections�' If Demirel is saying this, it means he has
calculated who he can work with. The DYP couldn't solve its problem getting
over the 10 percent election threshold to make it into Parliament. ANAVATAN
has put the threshold aside and wants to be taken seriously. Former
deputies of the two parties think they can only make progress through a
common movement.' Meanwhile, former ANAVATAN leader and Prime Minister
Mesut Yilmaz has a serious ambition behind his calm appearance. Yilmaz also
might join attempts to unify in the months to come and look for ways to be
elected as independent deputy from Rize.
While the left has been losing ground since the 1983 elections, the right
has been expanding. There are also more radical movements drawing courage
from this. I wrote about the situation of the DYP and ANAVATAN. The
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) thinks that it won't have any problem with
the 10 percent threshold. While the AKP is the number one party on the
right, the bottom dwellers are rising: the Felicity Party (SP), the Grand
Unity Party (BBP), and others. If we look at polls, neither the SP nor the
BBP can pass the threshold. But what if they were to join forces? In the
past, realistic domestic solidarity between rightist parties yielded
success. It seems the SP and BBP may try this. Maybe some in Parliament
will be offended by the AKP following May's presidential election. If they
move closer to this partnership, the right might get into Parliament under
four different banners. Let me say this for the benefit of the left."
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