TANTAN'S VISIT TO TEHRAN BY OZGEN ACAR
(CUMHURIYET)
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ismail Cem, received
the European Union's (EU) Special Representative to the Middle East
Peace Process, Miguel Moratinos. Cem made an explanation during the
meeting and said, "The EU is closely interested in the problem of
the Middle East. This region affects not only Turkey and Europe, but
also a broader geography. Ways to contribute to the peace process are
the common concern of the EU and Turkey. We are very sensitive about
this issue. We are among the few countries, which have the confidence
of both of the parties. Turkey has made positive contributions to the
EU's policy concerning the Middle East but this contribution should be
much more. The report, prepared by the Fact-finding Commission was
delivered to both parties. I believe some of the findings will be
helpful for us as well. Turkey and the EU should further cooperate
concerning the issue." Meanwhile, Moratinos said the process in
the Middle East was very sensitive and that Turkey, which has the
confidence of both of the parties, was playing a very important role
in this process. /Turkiye/
Macedonian President Boris Traykovski postponed his
visit to Turkey which was expected to take place today. Traykovski
phoned President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and stated since the recent
conditions in Macedonia were very critical and might cause a war, he
could not leave his country for the time being. Meanwhile, Sezer said
that Turkey was following the developments with great concern and
supported a peaceful solution respectful for Macedonia's territorial
unity. While Sezer brought the attacks against Muslim Macedonians of
Turkish and Albanian descent onto the agenda, Traykovski said they
took all necessary measures to prevent possible attacks. /Cumhuriyet/
State Minister for the economy, Kemal Dervis,
attended the meeting, which brings together the leaders of the
coalition parties. Democratic Left Party (DSP) leader and Prime
Minister Bulent Ecevit, Nationalist Action Party (MHP) leader, State
Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister Devlet Bahceli, Motherland
Party (ANAP) leader, State Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister
Mesut Yilmaz, and the State Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister
Husamettin Ozkan and the State Minister Kemal Dervis attended the
meeting at the Prime Ministry, which lasted for an hour. An
explanation concerning the meeting has not been made. /Turkiye/
Noting that reforms geared to increasing
transparency and productivity in public administration had upgraded
New Zealand's welfare level, former minister Maurice McTigue said,
"No matter how bad the condition of a country, there is hope to
increase the welfare level through reforms." Mctigue, who will be
the guest speaker at the symposium "Development of Public
Administration" organized by the Turkey Quality Association due
to take place in Ankara on May 10, attended a preliminary meeting in
Istanbul. Recalling that openness, productivity and transparency were
necessary in public administration, McTigue says, "Public
institutions should first of all watch for the public benefit in
whatever they do, and should give up projects which are neither for
the public welfare nor productive." Reminding that the reduction
of unemployment should also have priority , McTigue commented that the
Turkish economy could develop through public reforms. /Turkish Daily
News/
The Greek Council of State has ruled that the Greek
government does have the legal right to appoint Muftis to Western
Thrace. The ruling came after former member of parliament for Iskece
(Xanthi) Ahmet Faikoglu appealed to the Greek Council of State
claiming the Greek government had no right to appoint Muftis for
Iskece. The Athens News Agency reported that the Council of State had
found Faikoglu's justifications "groundless" and that the
Greek government was allowed within the Constitution to make such
appointments. /Turkish Daily News/
Minister of the Interior, Sadettin Tantan, made an
explanation about his visit to Iran and said, "Joint initiatives
should be carried out in the struggle to prevent the cross-border
crimes. This is the aim of our visit to Iran." While answering
the question of a journalist if he was going to Iran due to the
reasons concerning security, Tantan said, "Turkey and Iran are
powerful states in the region. Our mutual relations are continuing for
the solution of the security problems in line with the good
neighbourly relations between the two countries. We are developing
common methods with the neighboring countries for the struggle against
crimes and acts threatening Turkey. We desire to develop our relations
with Iran within the framework of this working method." /Turkiye/
Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic Party (IKDP) leader
Mesut Barzani, currently in Ankara to maintain contacts, said it was
necessary to exchange views with the Turkish officials. Barzani
arrived Esenboga Airport where he was welcomed by the General Director
of the Ministry of Foreign Foreign Affairs' Middle East Department,
Ambassador Turkekul Kurttekin, Motherland Party (ANAP) deputy of
Diyarbakir, Hasim Hasimi, defunct Democratic Mass Party (DKP) leader
Serafettin Elci, the former Justice Party (AP) deputy Giyasettin Emre
and IKDP representative to Ankara, Sefin Dizayi. Barzani said he had
come to Ankara upon the invitation of the Turkish government and that
he would visit Prime Minister, Bulent Ecevit, and the Minister of
Foreign Affairs, Ismail Cem. He added, "I am hopeful that this
visit will be successful as the previous ones." /Turkiye/
Chairman of the European Court of Human Rights
(ECHR), Luzius Wildhaber, visited Turkish Minister of Justice, Hikmet
Sami Turk. Following the meeting attended by the Turkish judge at the
ECHR, Riza Turmen, and other ECHR judges, Turk made an explanation to
the journalists and said he had given information about the situation
of the prisons in Turkey and the current hunger strikes. He added,
"I also gave information on the amendments to the 16th Article of
the Anti-terror law, the draft laws on the agenda of the Turkish Grand
National Assembly (TGNA) and the draft law initatives concerning human
rights." Turk added that the meeting was effective."
Meanwhile, Wildhaber said he hoped the hunger strikes would end as
soon as possible. /Turkiye/
European Socialists and Social Democrat Parties
Congress began yesterday in Berlin, Germany. Delivering the opening
speech of the congress, German Prime Minister Gerhard Schroder said
Europe was seen as the symbol of peace and freedom in the world and
added European countries should maintain their loyalty to democracy
and human rights. Republican People's Party (CHP) Deputy Chairman Inal
Batu and Central Executive Council members, Yakup Kepenek and Ali Riza
Gulcicek are in Berlin to attend the congress. /Cumhuriyet/
It was decided to translate Prime Minister Bulent
Ecevit's poems into Spanish upon the proposal of the Spanish Prime
Minister Jose Maria Aznar. Aznar is expected to visit Turkey in
September to open the Istanbul branch of the Cervantes Institute which
aims at promoting Spanish language and culture. /Hurriyet/
Leader of the True Path Party (DYP) Tansu Ciller
will meet with the US Secretary responsible for Economic Affairs, Alan
Larson, and leader of the Jewish community in Washington today. She is
expected to meet with President's Special Assistant Dan Freid on May 9
and former President George Bush on May 15. /Sabah/
'Disaster Management Training agreement was signed
between the Strategy Center of the Ministry of the Interior and
Disaster Management Center of Istanbul Technical University (ITU).
Minister of the Interior, Sadettin Tantan, made a speech at the
signing ceremony at ITU Suleyman Demirel Cultural Center and said,
"Although the risk of natural disaster is high in Turkey, this
issue had not been seriously taken into consideration before."
/Turkiye/
54th Turkey Geology Assembly, was held in Ankara by
the Chamber of Turkish Geology Engineers. State Minister Edip Safter
Gaydali made a speech at the opening of the Assembly at the
Directorate General of Mineral Research and Exploration Institute's
(MTA) Cultural Site and said, "The data obtained through the
surveys carried out jointly by the Scientific and Technical Research
Council of Turkey (TUBITAK), Istanbul Technical University and Ankara
University in the Marmara and Aegean Seas on the MTA'S research vessel
called Seismic-1, was evaluated. As part of efforts concerning
earthquakes, various projects are underway particularly in Istanbul
and its surroundings." /Turkiye/
The Bill on Banking Law, prepared by the Banking
Regulation and Supervision Board to ease seizing the assets of the
people who caused the bankruptcy of certain banks, was presented to
the Office of the Speaker of the Parliament yesterday. The Commission
consisting of State Ministers Recep Onal, Yuksel Yalova and Faruk Bal
completed their works on the bill after the Council of Ministers
meeting yesterday. /Cumhuriyet/
Chairman of the International Monetary Fund (IMF),
Horst Kohler, recalled his support for Turkey's new economic program
and said, "I am sure Turkey will be able to overcome this
storm." Kohler participated in a meeting titled 'Improving
Stability and Welfare in the Globalizing World' in Washington,
attended by the countries in the American continent, and evaluated the
world economies and the economic situation in Turkey and Argentina.
Kohler said, "I am sure Turkey and Argentina will be able to
overcome this crisis. Both of these countries attached great
importance to the solution of their problems and adopted the methods
of the market. State Minister Dervis also pointed out that it will be
of the utmost importance to improve the banking sector, which is one
of the basic reasons of the problems in Turkey. These approaches
deserve a strong support. The IMF is ready to help the countries,
which are willing to adopt proper policies." /Turkiye/
The Delta Eco-Management Week will be held in Gebze
from May 7-11, the Chamber of Environmental Engineers (CEE) reported
yesterday. This forum on environmental management in companies is
organized by the CEE, the TUBITAK-Marmara Research Center, CEMASA
(Spain), and Sustainable Business Associates (SBA, Switzerland).
Eco-Management Week will provide Turkish managers with the opportunity
to learn more about the environmental impact of industrial activities,
and will show them that an environmental commitment can result in a
win-win situation for their company. Eco-Management Week is supported
by the European Commission. /Turkish News/
The Bank for International Settlements-BIS said it
was the German banks which extended credits to Turkey the most in the
financial crisis period. In the September-November period the amount
of the credits which German banks gave to Turkey reached $13.1
billion. /Hurriyet/
Garanti Bank was elected as the 'best bank' by the
'Best Domestic Banks-Roll of Honour 2001' evaluation made by the
'Emerging Markets Investor' magazine, which is published monthly in
New York. Garanti Bank stated that the magazine's April 2001 issue
stated that Garanti Bank was elected as the best bank by the analysts
in spite of the current economic crisis in Turkey. Meanwhile, General
Director of Garanti Bank, Ergun Ozen, said, "The high liquidity
and its firm and active structure provided the bank with a perfect
performance." /Turkiye/
The third Baghdad Turkish Export Fair opened
yesterday with the participation of Iraqi Trade Minister Muhammed
Mehdi Salih and Turkey's Foreign Trade Undersecretary Kursat Tuzmen.
At least 157 Turkish firms are taking part in the fair including those
working in textile, cosmetic, furniture, food, plastic products and
automotive. The fair will end on May 11. /Turkish Daily News/
International Rotary Club Chairman Frank J. Devlyn
arrived in Turkey yesterday. Visiting Istanbul Governor Erol Cakir and
House of the Virgin Mary in Selcuk, Devlyn said, "We support
State Minister Kemal Dervis and new economic program." /Sabah/
German economy magazine, 'Manager', wrote that
there was a great boom in Turkish tourism. The magazine published an
interview made with the Chairman of the Executive Board of Oger Tours,
Vural Oger, one of the leading tour operators of the tourism sector.
'Manager' stated that not only Turkish tourism, but also Oger Tours
was in a process of great development. The six pages article in the
'Manager' also wrote that Oger Tours was carrying out 80% of its
business volume with Turkey and that it was the leader in the Turkish
market. /Turkiye/
The foreign tourist rush to Turkey is continuing.
52,000 tourists visited Antalya in the last three days. Antalya
Governor Ertugrul Dokuzoglu said "Antalya became a well-known
touristic city with its history, nature, sun and sea." Tourism
authorities in Antalya are expecting $7 million in tourism revenues
this year. /Sabah/
"Istanbul International Graphic Design
Days" will take place between May 7-11. Graphic designers from
France, Japan, Switzerland, Greece, Russia and Germany will attend the
organization. Additionally, Turkish designer Izzetin Calislar will
organize a workshop. /Cumhuriyet/
Columnist Ozgen Acar writes on Tantan's visit to
Tehran. A summary of his column is as follows: "Minister of the
Interior Sadettin Tantan will begin his talks in Tehran on security
issues today. The visit of the Minister comes at an interesting time.
Deputy Undersecretary Rasih Ozbek signed a 'minutes of accord' last
week in Tehran prior to the visit of the Interior Minister. Among the
issues taken up in the accord were the prevention of smuggling and
creating an atmosphere of mutual trust. In addition, the withdrawal of
support given by the Iranian administration for Hizbullah and PKK
terrorist organisations, and not giving shelter to People's Mujahideen
Organisation by the Turkish authorities, facilitating the procedures
for Iranian pilgrims at the border gates were also mentioned in the
document. Tantan will meet with the Iranian President, the Speaker of
the Parliament, members of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Commissions
and Security Council Secretary in an atmosphere prepared by Ozbek. On
June 8 Presidential Election will be held in Iran. The election
process takes place in stages. First, the candidates for the President
are eliminated by the National Guards. In the previous election, the
candidacy of only four, including that of the present President
Mohammed Hathemi was accepted among a hundred candidates. Some of the
817 candidates who have put up their candidacies until Sunday, the
deadline for application, will be eliminated until May 11. The names
of the final candidates will be announced on 12 May. If Hathemi is
elected, certain significant steps such as opening up to the world,
democratization in the country are expected to be taken. However, what
is more important is that the time limit for economic sanctions
implemented by the US will be up in August. Reportedly, Dick Cheney
who became the US Vice President while he was heading a pro-Iranian
lobby is expected to make some important changes in the policy
followed towards Iran. Washington implements two kinds of sanctions
against Iran. The first is limiting the investments of foreign
countries in Iran, and the second is banning the investments of US
companies in Iran with a decree. While the sanctions provided the
European companies a certain opportunity to do business with Iran, the
American entrepreneurs were totally left out from this market. Cheney
aims to eliminate this imbalance in competition. He also aims to
provide support for reformist candidate Hathemi to take Iran out of
the list of countries supporting terrorism. He wants American capital
to enter Iran who needs foreign investments and modern sophisticated
technology for the oil industry. Therefore, Tantan's visit which aims
to eliminate the inconfidence between two neighboring states is of
utmost importance. If Ankara and Tehran overcome their mutual problems
of security, close economic and commercial relations will be
established. That is why Ankara has to follow the developments in
Tehran in the next 100 days very closely."
