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Turkish Press Review, 97-04-07
From: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>
CONTENTS
[01] ISRAELI FM VISITS TURKEY
[02] GREEK CYPRIOT BORDER ASSAULTS CONTINUE
[03] DEMIREL BACK FROM SLOVENIA VISIT
[04] TURKISH PARLIAMENT SPEAKER VISITS GREECE
[05] GERMAN POLICE ARRESTS TURK OVER ARSON CASE
[06] SYRIA HELPING THE PKK
[07] IMF CALLS FOR POLITICAL CREDIBILITY
[08] TURKEY AMONG TOP DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
[09] CILLER: STRUCTURAL CHANGES IN THE OFFING
[10] TURKEY-IRAN GAS PIPELINE PROJECT
[11] MONEY LAUNDERING IN TURKEY DISCUSSED AT THE OECD
[12] BULGARIAN FM VISITS TURKEY
[13] "TURKEY AND SLOVAKIA SHOULS SET UP JOINT VENTURES"
[14] TURKEY BUYS NEW COMBAT VEHICLES
[15] STUDENTS SWEAT IN UNIVERSITY ENTRANCE EXAMS
[16] NO END TO WINTER
[17] TURKEY NEEDS AIDS EDUCATION
[18] THY FLYING TO CHINA
[19] TURKISH NATIONALIST LEADER DIES
TURKISH PRESS REVIEW
MONDAY, APRIL 7, 1997
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this
morning.
[01] ISRAELI FM VISITS TURKEY
Israeli Foreign Minister David Levy will brief Turkish leaders about
the snags encountered in the Middle Esat peace process and push for
the implementation of a free trade agreement in two days of talks here
starting on Tuesday. Levy's visit will be the first high-level trip
to Turkey from Israel by a top official since both countries formed
new governments last summer.
Levy will hold talks with Turkish ministers and officials on
investments and joint ventures in both countries. He is scheduled to
be received by President Suleyman Demirel and his programme includes
meetings with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Tansu Ciller
and State Ministers Ayfer Yilmaz and Ufuk Soylemez. /Cumhuriyet/
[02] GREEK CYPRIOT BORDER ASSAULTS CONTINUE
Border tension on the divided island of Cyprus escalated as gunshots
from the Greek Cyprýot side were fired at a guard post on the Turkish
side of the island on Saturday near the Turkish Cypriot village of
Duzce, the Anatolia news agency reported. The assault which was also
confirmed by the UN peace keeping force on the island, took place
about 150 km north of the British base zone. Nobody was hurt or
injured. The Turkish side issued a verbal protest about the incident
to the UN force and announced that a written protest will also be
sent.
[03] DEMIREL BACK FROM SLOVENIA VISIT
President Demirel ended his two-day visit to Slovenia late on Friday
and returned to Turkey. Turkey and Slovenia signed a civil aviation
agreement. At a press conference, Demirel said that during the
meetings with his Slovenian counterpart they exchanged views on the
Balkans and Albania. "We have emphasized our determination to
cooperate. We have also discussed integration with the EU and the
expansion of NATO," Demirel noted. /All papers/
[04] TURKISH PARLIAMENT SPEAKER VISITS GREECE
Turkish Parliament Speaker Mustafa Kalemli visited Athens on Friday
upon the official invitation of his Greek counterpart Apostolos
Kaklamanis. Kalemli participated in other meetings with Parliament
speakers of countries which signed the Barcelona Declaration in
November 1995, establishing a Euro-Mediterranean partnership whose
main function is to distribute funds to Mediterranean countries.
Turkey cannot benefit from the funds because of Greek vetos.
/Milliyet/
[05] GERMAN POLICE ARRESTS TURK OVER ARSON CASE
The German Ambasador to Ankara Hans-Joachim Vergau confirmed on Friday
reports that the arson attack in the German town of Krefeld was
actually the work of a Turkish citizen. Earlier Friday, German police
detained the suspect, the father and husband of the victims.
Refraining from making further comments on the investigation in
Germany, Vergau dismissed any connection between the allegedly
racially motivated incidents and the remarks of the Christian
Democrats, who ruled out Turkey's EU membership. /All papers/
[06] SYRIA HELPING THE PKK
According to Turkish secret service reports, the Syrian Intelligence
Services are supporting the PKK terrorist organization by providing
trained agents and logistical support. Details of Syrian involvement
in PKK terror are contained in a dossier presented to the National
Security Council that includes information from officials in the Hatay
region of Turkey down by the border with Syria. /Hurriyet/
[07] IMF CALLS FOR POLITICAL CREDIBILITY
State Minister Ufuk Soylemez, who met with an International Monetary
Fund (IMF) delegation over the weekend, will present a programme of
Extended Financial Funds(EFF) to IMF Committee Meeting he will chair
at the end of this month.
Martin Hardy who headed the delegation meeting with Soylemez said that
they were in favour of a medium term program but could not depend on
the political will necessary for its implementation. Hardy called for
"political guarantees" for the agreement./Cumhuriyet/
[08] TURKEY AMONG TOP DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
A World Bank report on the developing countries has lots of good
things to say about Turkey. Reporting on developments last year, the
World Bank says in its report that Turkey has made big steps forward
in areas like environmental protection, health and industrial
productivity.
The report notes that infant mortality has dropped and that more equal
distribution of wealth has led to an improvement in the quality of
life for more people. Population growth has been lowered and people
are leading healthier lives. /Hurriyet/
[09] CILLER: STRUCTURAL CHANGES IN THE OFFING
Turkey is carrying out sweeping structural changes that will make it
one of the world's most powerful economies in the 21st century, Deputy
Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Tansu Ciller declared on Saturday.
Speaking at a press conference in Istanbul on the third anniversary of
the April 5 stability programme, Ciller touched upon structural
changes that included customs union with the EU, and stressed:
"Turkey has revived the Ottoman power, not by tanks and guns, but by
economic competition, democracy and respect for human rights." /All
papers/
[10] TURKEY-IRAN GAS PIPELINE PROJECT
On April 15, state minister Abdullah Gul will share in a ceremony to
mark the start of the construction of a new overland natural gas
pipeline between Iran and Turkey.
Gul will go to Dogubeyazit on the border with Iran to bring to
completion a twenty year old project that it is hoped will help to end
Turkey's energy problems. /Sabah/
[11] MONEY LAUNDERING IN TURKEY DISCUSSED AT THE OECD
Steps undertaken by the Turkish government against money laundering
will be discussed by the Financial Action Task Force on Money
Laundering, a coordination body formed by the Organization of Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD) to combat illegal money
transactions, the Anatolian agency reported on Sunday. The meeting
scheduled to be held in Rome on June 17-18, is critical because the
Financial Action Task Force has previously criticized Turkey for not
passing the necessary legislation against money laundering. Since the
last meeting of the OECD group, Turkey has enacted a law against money
laundering and has formed a commission to investigate financial
crimes.
[12] BULGARIAN FM VISITS TURKEY
Delegations led by Bulgarian Foreign Minister Stoyan Stalev and
Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Onur Oymen discussed the
enlargement of NATO and the EU during bilateral talks in Istanbul on
Friday. "We appreaciate Turkey's support for Bulgaria's membership in
NATO and the EU," Stalev told reporters after the meeting. Oymen
later expressed his belief that the two countries will take their
place in the organization of Europe. /All papers/
[13] "TURKEY AND SLOVAKIA SHOULS SET UP JOINT VENTURES"
Slovakia and Turkey should establish joint ventures and cooperate in
education, visiting Slovak Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar said on
Friday. "We want to develop ties in science and encourage joint
investment," the Anatolia news agency reported Meciar as declaring in
an address to students and teachers at Istanbul's Bosphorus
University. Meciar proposed faculty and student exchanges between
Bratislava Economics University ýn Slovakia and Bosphorus University
in Turkey.
[14] TURKEY BUYS NEW COMBAT VEHICLES
The Defence Ministry will buy $3.3. millions worth of 10
newly-designed armed combat vehicles for the Land Forces and the
Gendarmery. Turkish combat vehicle producers FMB-Nurol and Otokar
signed an agreement on Friday with the Defence Ministry for the sale
of the vehicles. /All papers/
[15] STUDENTS SWEAT IN UNIVERSITY ENTRANCE EXAMS
The Student Selection Examination took place on Sunday at 134
different centers in Turkey as well as in Nicosia, the Anatolia news
agency reported. A total of 1,398,580 students took the exam this
year in 72,604 exam halls. The candidates need to obtain 120 points
on the first exam in order to take the second part of the exam, the
Student Placement Examination, scheduled for June 22.
[16] NO END TO WINTER
Heavy snow which started on Sunday paralyzed life in big cities, while
cheering up hotel owners in skiing resorts. The snow did not block
the traffic and quickly melted in the cities. Hotel owners in major
skiing resorts expressed their joy at being able to provide skiers
with excellent conditions for the upcoming Feast of Sacrifice holiday.
"We have received many reservations for the holiday. We are already
100 percent full," they said. The bad weather looks set to continue.
/All papers/
[17] TURKEY NEEDS AIDS EDUCATION
The issue of teaching Turkey's young people about AIDS ýs a hot topic
at the Third National AIDS Congress that started on Friday at
Hacettepe University. Parliament Speaker Mustafa Kalemli, in his
speech at the opening ceremony, said that AIDS education should be
included in school programmes. President Demirel also gave a speech
at the congress and urged measures for combatting AIDS in Turkey, the
Anatolia news agency reported.
[18] THY FLYING TO CHINA
Turkey's national air carrier THY will soon be flying to Peking in
China. Flights will be twice a week from Istanbul and officials note
that the flights reflect the changing balance in the region as Hong
Kong is handed over to China. /Sabah/
[19] TURKISH NATIONALIST LEADER DIES
Thousands of supporters of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP)
mourned on Saturday the death of their leader Alparslan Turkes.
Funeral services for Turkes will be held in Ankara on Tuesday, the MHP
announced. Turkes, 80, died after his heart stopped beating on the
way to the Bayindir Hospital where doctors desperately tried to revive
him, hospital officials said on Saturday. President Demirel in a
message of condolence on Saturday said Turkes death was a "great loss
to the political life of Turkey." /All papers/
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