Turkish Press Review, 06-09-06

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

06.09.2006

CONTENTS

would vote against the motion. /All papers/[01] KYRGYZ PRESIDENT VISITS TURKEY Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev yesterday arrived in Ankara to pay an official visit at the invitation of his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Necdet Sezer. Following a meeting with Bakiyev, Sezer said that Kyrgyzstan was enjoying the steps for stability and peace taken by the new administration led by Bakiyev since he took the reins of the country last year. Sezer stated that Turkish nation would continue to help its Kyrgyz cousins on the road to peace and development. For his park, Bakiyev said that he believed that his visit would give an impetus to further develop bilateral relations between the two sister nations. Pointing to the great potential in trade and the economy between Turkey and Kyrgyzstan, Bakiev said that they had agreed to boost bilateral ties. In addition, four agreements proposing further cooperation between the two countries were signed. /Turkiye/[02] ERDOGAN: �THE EP�S REPORT ISN�T BINDING� Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday said that the importance of a controversial new European Parliament Foreign Affairs Commission�s report shouldn�t be overblown, adding that the report wasn�t binding. After a meeting with his Albanian counterpart Sali Berisha, Erdogan told a press conference that the EP decisions weren�t binding, and added, �We�ve never admitted such a thing about the so-called Armenian genocide, our stance is clear and sharp. Expecting this to be changed is fantasy. Moreover, the EP debated this issue before and didn�t recognize any such genocide.� In related news, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Namik Tan stated that the report emphasized elements divorced from common sense and objectivity and that they were expecting this situation to be corrected in a vote in the full EP at the end of this month. Meanwhile, European Union Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn�s spokesperson Krisztina Nagy said that the report would make an important contribution to debates over Turkey after the vote in the EP�s General Assembly. EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Commission Co- Chair Joost Lagendijk and German Green Party MP Cem Ozdemir said that the EP report placed a new hurdle in front of Turkey�s EU bid. /Hurriyet- Cumhuriyet/[03] ANNAN TO MEET WITH TURKISH OFFICIALS TODAY As part of his tour of the Mideast to promote a settlement to the conflict in the region, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan late yesterday afternoon arrived in Ankara. Today Annan will meet with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, and then with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Finally Annan will be received by President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and then is set to depart from Turkey. During their talks, Annan is expected to exchange views with Turkey�s top officials on the UN forces to be deployed in Lebanon and give technical details of the force. The Iraq, Iran and Cyprus issues are also expected to be taken up during the talks with the UN chief, who is set to leave his post late this year. /Sabah/[04] ALBANIAN AIR FORCE COMMANDER VISITS ANKARA Albanian Air Force Commander Brigadier-General Astrit Jaupi yesterday arrived in Ankara to pay an official visit. Following his visit to Anitkabir, Ataturk�s mausoleum, the guest commander had talks with his Turkish counterpart Gen. Faruk Comert. Jaupi is expected to complete his contacts in Turkey and go back to his country tomorrow. /Turkiye/[05] BASER TOP CANDIDATE FOR ANTI-PKK COORDINATOR POST Among the figures being considered by the government for the post of coordinator to fight the terrorist PKK group, retired Gen. Edip Baser is reportedly the frontrunner. Baser, currently a member of the Eurasia Strategic Research Center (ASAM) Executive Board, has held important posts in the military. Meanwhile, the US� newly appointed special envoy on the issue, retired Gen. Joseph Ralston, is set to pay a visit to Ankara next week. During his two-day stay, he is expected to meet with his Turkish counterpart to lay out a road map between Ankara, Washington and Baghdad to be followed in the fight against the terrorist PKK. /Sabah/[06] GREEK CYPRIOT FM: �TURKEY SHOULD FULFILL ITS COMMITMENTS� During the visit to Greek Cyprus yesterday of Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the prime minister of European Union Term President Denmark, his Greek Cypriot counterpart George Lillikas called on Ankara to fulfill its commitments to the European Union and said, �We�ll not let Turkey proceed on its way to the EU if it doesn�t do this.� Stating that Rasmussen had warned Turkey to fulfill its commitments, Lillikas said, �Greek Cyprus� stance on this issue hasn�t changed,� adding, �We won�t permit to the opening of new chapters on Turkey�s membership negotiations. Frankly, we�re pursuing a policy which won�t let Turkey have a smooth negotiation process.� /Cumhuriyet/ [07] NEW JUDICIAL YEAR TO BEGIN A ceremony will be held at the Court of Appeals today to mark the beginning of the new judicial year. Court of Appeals Chief Justice Osman Arslan is due to make an opening speech at the ceremony. Later, Arslan and an accompanying delegation will visit Anitkabir, Ataturk�s mausoleum. /Star/

[08] IN THE NETHERLANDS, BABACAN MEETS WITH DUTCH FM State Minister for the Economy and chief European Union negotiator Ali Babacan, currently in the Netherlands to boost Turkey�s EU bid, yesterday met with Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot. During their meeting, Babacan said that Turkey would take certain steps before the EU releases its progress report on Turkey next month. /Star/ [09] CB REPORT PREDICTS FOREX�S EFFECTS ON PRICES TO CONTINUE The Central Bank yesterday released an evaluation report in the wake of August inflation figures being announced. The report predicted that the delayed effects of exchange rates on prices would continue for some time. Stressing that there could be temporary fluctuations in inflation due to seasonal effects, the report added that the prices of services could continue to fall. The CB report further stated that fuel oil prices could continue to drop. /Star/[10] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS...[00] MOTION APPROVEDBY MUSTAFA UNAL (ZAMAN) Columnist Musrafa Unal comments on yesterday�s motion on Turkey�s military contribution to the peacekeeping force in Lebanon. A summary of his column is as follows: �The motion on sending troops to Lebanon was approved, as expected. While all deputies of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) voted in favor of the motion, with some exceptions, almost all the opposition parties voted against the motion. The Parliament was split into two. Yesterday, all attention was on the Parliament. Groups opposed to the motion gathered in front of the Parliament to make deputies hear their voices. They all were against the motion. The police had to take extraordinary measures to prevent them from coming closer to Parliament. The media was also there, as with every important meeting of Parliament. The group meetings of the parties took place before the vote. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul tried to convince AKP deputies to vote in favor of the motion. The Republican People�s Party (CHP) and the True Path Party (DYP) voiced their opposition. How can we interpret the approval of the motion? Although it�s a matter of foreign policy, the motion on sending troops to Lebanon was used as fodder for domestic political politics. The debates, which should have been cool- headed with analysis of advantages and disadvantages of sending troops, were little more than slogans. Parliament reflected this situation. Yesterday�s debate before the vote was full of controversies instead of discussions of strategic policies. Let me underline that it's wrong to see the decision to send troops in black and white or as absolute right or wrong, or even to see it as patriotism or betrayal. There's no doubt that it carries risks, but it also has aspects favoring Turkish interests. This is also not the first time Turkey has sent its troops abroad. The motion was easily approved, and Turkish troops will join the peacekeeping force in Lebanon.� ARCHIVE <script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="http:/_www.byegm.gov.tr_statistic/countcode.js"> </script>

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