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Turkish Press Review, 07-11-15Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning15.11.2007CONTENTS
[01] ERDOGAN METS WITH GEORGIAN PM NOGHAIDELIAfter meeting for talks, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his visiting Georgian counterpart Zurab Noghaideli yesterday held a joint news conference in Ankara. Erdogan said there is political, economic and cultural cooperation between Turkey and Georgia, underlining the two countries’ efforts to boost this cooperation. "We discussed bilateral, regional and international issues," said Erdogan. "We are pleased that a decision was made by the Georgian Parliament to repatriate Meskhetian Turks (to Georgia from Central Asian countries), as Turkey requested," Erdogan said. "I would like to again stress that Turkey may promote projects to assist the repatriation of Meskhetian Turks and ensure rapid development of the region. We believe the Meskhetian Turks can be a new bridge of friendship and cooperation." The premier also said that they came to an agreement on two pacts, one on free trade and one to prevent double taxation. Erdogan said the Turkish-Georgian bilateral trade volume has reached some $1 billion. "A new step, the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project, was made in the wake of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan and Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum projects,” said Erdogan. “Turkey has completed its work on projects within Georgia’s borders. Work on a tender is underway on the Turkish side. We want to lay the railroad’s foundations soon. Georgia has also expressed its readiness to lay the foundations. The railroad will not only carry cargo but also passengers." Noghaideli said that much like a new Silk Road, the Kars railway would be would not just connect three countries but also play an important role in the region stretching from China to Western Europe. He added that the railway’s construction would start soon. The Georgian premier also said Georgia has long supported Turkey in its fight against terrorism and is ready to do its best to help with this. /Turkiye/[02] PM ERDOGAN REBUFFS CLAIMS CROSS-BORDER OP HAS BEGUNPrime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday rebuffed allegations that Turkey had already launched a cross-border operation into northern Iraq. “A cross-border operation isn’t at issue,” said Erdogan. “Security forces are continuing their operations within the framework of precautionary measures.” Before leaving for the Czech Republic, Erdogan told reporters, “Whatever is necessary about this issue is being done politically, diplomatically and militarily. I want you to be clear about this. Everything is moving in agreement and coordination.” /Aksam/[03] AT NATO MEETING, BUYUKANIT SPEAKS ON WAYS TO COMBAT TERRORISMChief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit yesterday told fellow NATO members about Turkey’s fight against terrorism. Speaking to the chiefs of staff of 26 NATO member countries at a regular year-end military committee meeting, Buyukanit spoke about the attacks of the terrorist PKK and ways to combat it. The representatives of the allied countries reportedly said they are ready to support Turkey. /Cumhuriyet/[04] BRITISH AMBASSADOR BAIRD: “WE APPLAUD THE TURKISH ARMY AND GOVT’S ANTI-PKK STANCE”Speaking to Milliyet, British Ambassador to Ankara Nick Baird said yesterday that the EU is working seriously to cut off the terrorist PKK’s channels of support. “We condemned the PKK’s latest attacks,” said Baird. “These attacks were truly brutal and dreadful. We applaud the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) and Turkish government’s stance on this issue.” /Milliyet/[05] US STATE DEPT: “THE PKK IS A THREAT TO ORDINARY TURKS”The terrorist PKK poses a continuing threat not only to the Turkish military, but also to ordinary Turks, said US State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey on Tuesday. “[Recent attacks show] a need for us to continue to work with the Turkish government as well as with the Iraqi government to make sure that we're all doing what we can to combat this serious problem,” he stated. “Again, I think we've had ongoing discussions with both the government of Turkey as well as the government of Iraq on this issue. It's a positive sign that there have been diplomatic exchanges between the two to try and work out some common approaches to this problem, and that's certainly a process we want to see.” /Turkiye/[06] ITO’S YALCINTAS: “INVESTORS CAN TRUST IN TURKEY”Turkey is a country people can trust for business and investments, said Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO) head Murat Yalcintas yesterday. “Turkey is a trustworthy country, as it always has been,” he told Fox Business Channel. “It’s an island of stability and confidence in the region. Our US friends can come safely to Turkey just as if they were in their own country.” Yalcintas, currently visiting the US with a delegation, also met with American businessmen and urged them to invest in Turkey. /Star/FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS... [07] WHAT DID SIMSEK TELL THE AMERICANS?BY ISMAIL KUCUKKAYA (AKSAM)Columnist Ismail Kucukkaya comments on remarks made by State Minister Mehmet Simsek and Turkey’s reform process. A summary of his column is as follows: “In Washington, which I recently visited for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit, I heard interesting things from the Americans. A US group which is close to Turkey and recently visited Ankara met with State Minister Mehmet Simsek. When terrorism and the southeast came up, Simsek said that there were certain misunderstandings which should be dispelled. Simsek added that he is a Turkish citizen of Kurdish origin who was schooled by the state and later became minister responsible for the Treasury, one of the Cabinet’s most important posts. Simsek then said thousands of Kurds have had similar successes, and added, ‘Kurds definitely aren’t a minority, but an integral, fundamental element. Please look closely at the Kurdish issue and what’s happened over the last seven years and what sort of steps have been taken. Even things no Europeans have done in their countries on similar problems have been done in Turkey. Economic welfare started to rise nationwide in recent years. While all this was happening, wasn’t terrorism supposed to fall off or end altogether?’ The Americans, some of whom see the east-southeast issue through a certain lens and are indifferent to the problem of terrorism coming from northern Iraq, confessed that they were very impressed by Simsek’s remarks. I also agree that Simsek seized the issue’s key points and took an important mission. Simsek made similar statements in Brussels to Europeans as well. When he was abroad, I told Simsek on the phone what had I heard had happened in Washington. Somewhat abashed, he said it was true and asked if it wasn’t normal to say such things. These words meant something to me, and I saw his story extending from Merrill Lynch, London, the world’s finance capital, to the Cabinet as a success of Anatolia and the republic. Actually, Simsek’s stand on the issue first got my attention at a conference about three weeks ago. He said that Turkey was ready for a cross- border operation and that our economy can handle this comfortably. Under normal conditions, the minister in charge of the Treasury would take a different stand or at least would use different words. It means that the state’s stance and national interests can be considered more important than the economic perspective. Before he became a Cabinet minister, I also had the opportunity to speak to Simsek. He placed great importance on structural reforms and said energy and social security reforms should be implemented without delay so Turkey’s growth can continue and jobs can be created. I told him that priorities were shifting and asked him if reforms were being forgotten. He told me that our positive energy had moved to the issue of terrorism, but that it was also important to remember that nothing can be done without security. ‘But in hard times, structural reforms should also be done,’ he added. ‘Otherwise, as time passes, we will be unable to implement them. In addition, delayed reforms have a higher price tag.’ As far as I could tell, certain reforms will start by year’s-end, which will pave the way for investments, encourage the private sector to launch new projects, ensure the safety of energy supplies and bring a rational pricing system. Similarly, social security reform will be implemented speedily. I hope this determination will continue.” Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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