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Turkish Press Review, 06-07-13

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

<LINK href="http://www.byegm.gov.tr_yayinlarimiz_chr_pics_css/tpr.css" rel=STYLESHEET type=text/css> <style type="text_css"> <!-- .baslik { margin-right:0cm; margin-left:0cm; margin-top:1cm; font-size:12.0pt; color:#000099; text-align: justify; } --> <_style> e-mail : newspot@byegm.gov.tr <caption> <_caption> Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning

13.07.2006

FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS

CONTENTS

  • [01] BTC PIPELINE PROJECT TO OFFICIALLY OPEN TODAY
  • [02] AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT ALIYEV: “WE SHOULD BOOST COOPERATION”
  • [03] ERDOGAN: “WE’RE MAKING EFFORTS TO EASE TENSION IN THE MIDEAST”
  • [04] IN WAKE OF DINK VERDICT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION URGES LEGAL CHANGES
  • [05] EC REPRESENTATIVE KRETSCHMER: “OPENING PORTS DOESN'T MEAN RECOGNITION”
  • [06] US PRAISES TRIPARTITE MEETINGS HELD ON CYPRUS
  • [07] YOUNG EUROPEAN BUSINESS LEADERS TO MEET IN ISTANBUL
  • [08] FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS
  • [09] STRATEGIC FORESIGHT BY SOLI OZEL (SABAH)

  • [01] BTC PIPELINE PROJECT TO OFFICIALLY OPEN TODAY

    Leaders from Turkey, Azerbaijan and Georgia will gather at the Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, Turkey today to formally inaugurate the Baku- Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline project designed to carry the oil riches of the Caspian Sea to the West. The project, hailed as the “Silk Road of the New Century,” with a capacity of 50 million metric tons a year, is expected to become the main export route for the oil resources of the Caspian Sea. The head of today’s ceremony, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, last night hosted a dinner for some 650 senior guests from around the world visiting Turkey to attend the opening of the BTC, including Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, as well as Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok were also present at the gathering. /Turkiye-Sabah/

    [02] AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT ALIYEV: “WE SHOULD BOOST COOPERATION”

    Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev yesterday praised the excellent state of Turkish-Azerbaijani relations, adding that they want to strengthen this cooperation. Speaking at a ceremony where he received Ekovitrin Magazine's "Eurasian Politician of the Year" award, Aliyev said that he wanted relations between the two countries to develop more and hailed today’s opening of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline as a momentous historical event. Stating that Turkey and Azerbaijan are “one nation, two states,” Aliyev added, “This is reality. At the same time, this is our policy. Turkish-Azerbaijani relations are at the highest level. We want to increase this cooperation. Our unity is our future.” /Hurriyet/

    [03] ERDOGAN: “WE’RE MAKING EFFORTS TO EASE TENSION IN THE MIDEAST”

    Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday visited Malatya to attend his Justice and Development Party (AKP) provincial congress and attend a number of opening ceremonies. Speaking to fellow party members, Erdogan said that Turkey could not be silent to the developments in the Mideast, adding that they were trying to find a settlement to the violence in the region through peaceful means. He also called on media to act responsibly on the Mideast issue. /Turkiye/

    [04] IN WAKE OF DINK VERDICT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION URGES LEGAL CHANGES

    The European Union Commission yesterday expressed disapproval of an appeals court upholding the conviction of journalist Hrant Dink for "insulting Turkishness." EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn yesterday made a statement calling on Ankara to change all articles of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) which restrict freedom of expression. “That verdict is the first final one by Turkey’s top judicial level about the interpretation of TCK Article 301," he said. "In this sense, it establishes a binding case law that will set the trend for lower courts to follow when applying Article 301 in the future.” /Hurriyet/

    [05] EC REPRESENTATIVE KRETSCHMER: “OPENING PORTS DOESN'T MEAN RECOGNITION”

    Hansjoerg Kretschmer, the outgoing head of the European Commission Representation to Turkey, stated yesterday that Turkey opening its ports to Greek Cypriots is the European Union’s priority but that it doesn’t mean recognizing Greek Cyprus. Speaking at a press conference in Ankara, Kretschmer expressed disappointment in the sharp decline in polls of Turkish public support for EU membership, adding that the reasons for this should be explored. The European Commission representative maintained that though a lot of attention was being focused on predictions of an upcoming "train crash" between Turkey and the EU, and that certain delays may occur, he didn’t believe that Turkey’s EU process would be interrupted. Kretschmer’s tenure in Ankara is soon set to end. /Cumhuriyet/

    [06] US PRAISES TRIPARTITE MEETINGS HELD ON CYPRUS

    Washington has hailed the result of last weekend’s meetings between United Nations Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Mehmet Ali Talat and Greek Cypriot leader Tassos Papadopoulos. At a press conference Tuesday, US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said, “We welcome the result of the meetings between Gambari, Papadopoulos and Talat,” adding, “We look forward to the start of talks by the end of the month, as agreed by the leaders, on both everyday and substantive issues. It was to be hoped that the contacts would lead to the opening of comprehensive negotiations.” The US is prepared to assist the UN and the two sides in this important effort and will continue to encourage the parties to remain flexible and engaged, McCormack said. /Milliyet/

    [07] YOUNG EUROPEAN BUSINESS LEADERS TO MEET IN ISTANBUL

    The Confederation of the European Young Businessmen Associations (YES), representing some 40,000 people from 14 countries, will meet in Istanbul tomorrow. During the two-day gathering, some 50 businesspeople will be briefed on Turkey’s investment opportunities. State Minister for the Economy and chief EU talks negotiator Ali Babacan is expected to tell these leaders about Turkey’s economic progress and its efforts towards European Union membership. /Sabah/

    [08] FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS

    [09] STRATEGIC FORESIGHT BY SOLI OZEL (SABAH)

    Columnist Soli Ozel comments on the new Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline and Turkey’s importance in the region. A summary of his column is as follows:

    “Writing a decade ago in the journal Foreign Policy, then US diplomat Richard Holbrooke predicted that Turkey would be the front country in the post-Cold War era. At that time, despite the massacres in Bosnia and Rwanda, none of the conflicts were as great as the Cold War. Then two different conflicts emerged and their fronts were shaped. One of them was the international fight against terrorism that emerged following the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. This terrorism causes conflict and confusion in Muslim societies, and Turkey’s character as a secular, democratic, capitalist and Muslim country in the Western alliance raised its profile. Almost everything which is considered terrible according to public polls raised Turkey’s importance. The fact that since late 2002 the country has been governed by a party with Islamic roots which applies certain Western- oriented policies contributed to this fact. In short, Turkey’s secularization since the Ottoman Empire, the reforms which were implemented for modernization, and the level of economic and political improvement that it has reached have gradually come to the foreground. The second conflict involves the issue of access to energy resources. While the demand for energy rises along with prices, security in reaching and transporting energy resources has become a top concern. In this respect, both the Middle East, which has two-thirds of the world’s oil resources, and the region surrounding the Caspian and Central Asia have gained importance. Turkey has had a high profile due to its central geographical location, political stability, relations of alliance, and political and social structure in this new conflict as well.

    The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline will greatly contribute to Turkey’s place in world politics in terms of this new conflict. The BTC was completed despite the resistance of oil companies as well as Russia and certain other countries. This strategic project dates back nearly 14 years. The project was first raised by late Azerbaijani President Abulfez Elchibey, evaluated by late Turkish President Turgut Ozal in the strategic restructuring of the new era, and former Turkish President Suleyman Demirel and the governments in charge since then have safeguarded this project. In addition, the US administrations provided vital support. Articles by Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ozdem Sanberk and Pars Kutay in Zaman daily tell the story of the BTC in detail. According to them, the BTC project comes from a system of integrated political thought and is no isolated project, but rather a pillar of a multidimensional, long-term and comprehensive strategy. It was foreseen not as an alternative to our country’s full European Union membership bid, but as a move which would make it easier for us to reach that goal by filling our sails with the wind that we get from Eurasia. When the BTC is supported with the Samsun-Ceyhan pipeline and oil and gas pipelines, the role played by Turkey in the European-Eurasian integration will be further strengthened. But while protecting these goals, we cannot continue the current confusion over Turkey’s role in the world system.”

    ARCHIVE

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