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Turkish Press Review, 97-08-27
From: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>
CONTENTS
[01] ITALIAN SUPPORT FOR TURKEY
[02] RUSSIAN FM PRIMAKOV TO VISIT TURKEY
[03] EREZ MEETS WITH FOREIGN TRADE MINISTERS
[04] TURKISH WORLD MEETING IN IZMIR
[05] US INTERESTED IN DEVELOPMENTS IN TURKEY
[06] US SENATOR IN ANKARA
[07] PUK DENIES ANY COOPERATION WITH PKK
[08] ELPELEG: TURKEY AND ISRAEL WILL ENGAGE IN JOINT EXERCISES
[09] GOVERNMENT TO GIVE BOSNIA $10 MILLION
[10] BILICAN: WE WILL PREVENT PKK BASES IN BLACK SEA
[11] FIRST 15 PRC OF TURK TELEKOM TO BE SOLD BY JANUARY '98
[12] $7 BILLION GRANT FROM BOSCH TO TEMA
[13] ANTIQUES THIEVES ARRESTED
[14] PEACE TRAIN TO COME BY PLANE
[15] IRAQ ACCUSES TURKEY
[16] TURCO-FRENCH CO-PRODUCTION
[17] HYUNDAI STARTS PRODUCTION IN TURKEY IN SEPTEMBER
[18] VICTORY WEEK CELEBRATIONS
[19] MISSILE TENSIONS IN CYPRUS
TURKISH PRESS REVIEW
DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION,OFFICE OF PRIME MINISTER
27.08.97
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this
morning
[01] ITALIAN SUPPORT FOR TURKEY
Foreign Minister Ismail Cem, on an official visit to Rome, had a
meeting yesterday with his Italian counterpart Lamberto Dini. During
the meeting, Dini voiced support for Turkey's drive for integration
with Europe. He described Turkey as an "European Country", and
stressed that a speedy economic development was being witnessed here.
Commenting on the Cyprus problem, Dini criticized a recent EU
statement that Southern Cyprus could be accepted into the Union,
stressing that the Greek Cypriots did not represent the whole
population on the island. /Milliyet/
[02] RUSSIAN FM PRIMAKOV TO VISIT TURKEY
Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeni Primakov is scheduled to arrive in
Turkey in October. The visit plays a special importance because for
the first time after the disintegration of the former Soviet Union, a
top level Russian official is to pay an official visit to Turkey.
/Cumhuriyet/
[03] EREZ MEETS WITH FOREIGN TRADE MINISTERS
Industry and Trade Minister Yalim Erez announced yesterday that there
has been a big increase in the number of countries participating in
Izmir's 66th International Fair (IEF), adding that this is
representative of the international importance of the fair. Erez, who
met with the trade ministers of Italy, Vietnam, Macedonia, Yugoslavia,
Croatia and Kuwait, in Turkey for the IEF, said that these countries
count on trade with Turkey and they are interested in making
investments. "The Italian minister especially wants to develop
economic relations between Turkey and Italy. He said that they will
continue to support Turkey in its dealings with the European Council
and Customs Union". /All papers/
[04] TURKISH WORLD MEETING IN IZMIR
The first Turkish World Economics Congress and the Fourth Turkish
Peoples Assembly convened in Izmir yesterday with the participation of
300 delegates. The aim of the initiatives is to improve economic and
cultural cooperation between the Turkish communities. In his opening
speech, State Minister Ahad Andican said that rendering services to
the brotherly Turkish republics was perceived as a "sacred service" by
Turkish officials. Izmir Mayor Burhan Ozfatura also delivered a
speech, stressing that for centuries Turks have been a symbol of
tolerance. /All papers/
[05] US INTERESTED IN DEVELOPMENTS IN TURKEY
Officials from the US Embassy in Ankara have started meetings with
representatives of the Motherland Party (ANAP), senior partner of the
coalition government. The US administration is especially interested
in the date of the next general election in Turkey, in religious
education after the education reform, and in Turkey's relations with
the EU and the Turkish republics. Randy Calinos, an official from the
US Embassy in Ankara and responsible for political affairs, has
visited ANAP Deputy-Chairman Yasar Okuyan to take in hand these
issues. /Hurriyet/
[06] US SENATOR IN ANKARA
Richard Lugar, a prominent US Senator, arrived yesterday in Ankara for
a two-day visit. Lugar's programme includes meetings with top-level
Turkish officials. Yesterday he had contacts with Deputy Prime
Minister Bulent Ecevit and Deputy Chief of the General Staff General
Cevik Bir. Today he is expected to come together with Defence
Minister Ismet Sezgin, Foreign Minister Ismail Cem, Prime Minister
Mesut Yilmaz, and President Suleyman Demirel. /Hurriyet/
[07] PUK DENIES ANY COOPERATION WITH PKK
Releasing a statement yesterday, the Ankara office of the Celal
Talabani-led Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), denied news reports
about any cooperation between themselves and the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK). It was pointed out in the statement that the
PUK was honoring the cease-fire in the region. "PKK-KDP clashes
continue deep inside Dehouk province, far away from the PUK-KDP front
lines. Therefore, the KDP's allegations of PUK support for the PKK
are groundless" said the statement. /All papers/
[08] ELPELEG: TURKEY AND ISRAEL WILL ENGAGE IN JOINT EXERCISES
The Israeli Ambassador to Ankara, Zvi Elpeleg, repeated that the joint
naval maneuvers between Israel and Turkey will take place as planned.
In affirming that the maneuvers will definitely take place, Elpeleg,
who is at the end of his term of office in Turkey, agreed with Turkish
officials that a date has yet to be set for the joint exercises.
"Turkey and Israel are two sovereign nations and they have called on
other countries to participate in the exercise" Elpeleg told
reporters. He also said that Turkey could play an active role in the
Middle East peace process. /All papers/
[09] GOVERNMENT TO GIVE BOSNIA $10 MILLION
The Cabinet, at its Tuesday meeting, decided to immediately release
$10 million of the $20 million sum which Turkey, in the past, promised
to give Bosnia-Herzegovina as a grant. Deputy Prime Minister Bulent
Ecevit had demanded that the pledge be fulfilled, said government
spokesman, Sukru Sina Gurel. At a press conference which Ecevit held
after the meeting, he said: "We pledged aid to our Bosnian brothers.
As a first step, there will be a $10 million grant. $1 million of
this will be used to repair the historic Mostar bridge".
Gurel also announced that the State Waterworks (DSI) has been
authorized to go ahead with a project, in which Turkey will supply
drinking water to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). The
Cabinet decided that the project must be completed by the end of this
year. Loading and unloading facilities will be built on both Turkey's
and northern Cyprus' coasts. The water will be transported in "baloon
containers" to be towed by tugboats. After the water is unloaded,
these containers will simply be folded up for the return trip.
/Hurriyet-Sabah/
[10] BILICAN: WE WILL PREVENT PKK BASES IN BLACK SEA
General Director of Police Forces, Necati Bilican, said yesterday that
they have taken the necessary measures to prevent the separatist
Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) from establishing bases in the Black
Sea region of Turkey. Meeting with the Republic of Moldavia's chief
of police for the Gagauz region, Bilican said that they would
cooperate with Gagauz Turks in Moldavia, in the field of security.
Emphasizing that Turkey has been struggling against terrorism since
1984, Bilican said that they have increased their efforts by setting
up bilateral contacts with related states, in order to prevent the PKK
from receiving outside support. "We have organized groups in the
Black Sea region which have had special training in combatting
terrorism" said Bilican. /Cumhuriyet-Sabah/
[11] FIRST 15 PRC OF TURK TELEKOM TO BE SOLD BY JANUARY '98
The Turkish government hopes to have sold the first 15 percent of the
Turk Telekom telecommunications company by the end of January next
year, privatization officials said yesterday. Head of the
Privatization Administration said Goldman Sachs, advisors in the
$3.5-billion sell off, were due to present an evaluation report in
mid-November after which the choice of a consortium for the sale would
come on the agenda. /Sabah/
[12] $7 BILLION GRANT FROM BOSCH TO TEMA
A $7 billion grant collected following a campaign jointly organized by
Bosch, a leading institution in the durable goods sector, and TEMA, a
non-governmental organization to combat erosion, has been presented to
TEMA Chairman Hayrettin Karaca by Bosch General Director in Turkey,
Ronald Gurunberg. /Sabah/
[13] ANTIQUES THIEVES ARRESTED
During an operation carried out in Istanbul, 38 golden coins and two
tiles belonging to the Ottoman Empire have been seized. Two people
regarding the incident have been taken into custody. /Sabah/
[14] PEACE TRAIN TO COME BY PLANE
Passangers of the "Musa Anter Peace Train" cancelled following
initiatives taken by the Turkish Foreign Ministry, will arrive in
Istanbul by plane. They will go to Diyarbakir on 1 September by bus.
Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Sermet Atacanli said that the
passangers, who would go to Diyarbakir by bus, would not encounter any
difficulty. Atacanli said: "Just so long as none of the passangers
have been deported from Turkey, or prohibited to enter Turkey, there
will be no obstacles". /Sabah/
[15] IRAQ ACCUSES TURKEY
The Iraqi Administration has accused Turkey of continuing its
operations in northern Iraq. Iraqi Foreign Minister Muhammed Said
el-Sahaf has sent a letter to United Nations (UN) Secretary-General
Kofi Hannan claiming that Turkey is continuing its military operations
in northern Iraq. He added that this contradicts Turkey's statements
that Turkey respected the territorial integrity and sovereignty of
Iraq. The letter stressed that Turkey's policy would be harmful to
the stability and peace of the region. /Cumhuriyet/
[16] TURCO-FRENCH CO-PRODUCTION
ADR Productions based in Paris, has started its "Ataturk Documentary"
project led by Jocelyene Saab. Representatives of the company said
that they aimed to prepare a documentary based on 'documentary films'
and that they had officially suggested to the 'Turkish Cinema and
Audiovisual Culture Foundation' (TURSAK) that it should act as Turkish
partner in the project. The project which will be realised by
ADR-TURSAK co-production, will be supported by the French TV channels
'France 3' and 'ARTE'. /Cumhuriyet/
[17] HYUNDAI STARTS PRODUCTION IN TURKEY IN SEPTEMBER
The Hyundai Assan Izmit Automobile Plant, constructed by Hyundai Motor
Company, will be go into production on 20 September. The annual
capacity of the factory will be 120,000 automobiles. /Cumhuriyet/
[18] VICTORY WEEK CELEBRATIONS
Victory Week has started with celebrations of the 75th anniversary of
the "Great Attack" in Afyon. Ceremonies have also been held to
celebrate the 926th anniversary of the Malazgirt Victory. National
Education Minister Mehmet Ulugbay and Commander of the Afyon Garrison,
Colonel Riza Bulbul, gave speeches at the opening of the ceremonies.
/Hurriyet/
[19] MISSILE TENSIONS IN CYPRUS
As hopes of reaching a peaceful solution to the Cyprus issue fade,
tensions on the problem-plagued island mount again because of the
reluctance of the Greek Cypriots to step back from their decision to
deploy Russian-made S-300 missiles on their territory. Observers fear
that tensions on the island could escalate to a hot confrontation.
Richard Holbrooke, Special Cyprus Representative of US President Bill
Clinton, is planning to send his assistant Tom Miller to Cyprus in
September. /Hurriyet/ END
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