ONE STEP AHEAD
BY DERYA SAZAK (MILLIYET)
On his six-day visit to the United States, Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday met with President George W.
Bush at the White House. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, State
Minister Ali Babacan and Kursad Tuzmen, Defense Minister Vecdi
Gonul and Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal as well
as a number of bureaucrats and advisors accompanied Erdogan
during his second visit to the Oval Office. Speaking to
reporters after the meeting, the two leaders stated that they
shared a warm handshake and discussed efforts to resume talks
over the future of Cyprus as well as the war on terrorism and
the future of Iraq. Bush described Turkey as a “friend and
important ally” of the US, words stressing that the two NATO
allies focus on the common threat of global terrorism and the
shared problem of stability in Iraq. Addressing Turkish fears
that the Kurds would be granted an independent state, Bush
told that the US supported a unified Iraq. “I assured Erdogan
that the United States' ambition is for a peaceful country, a
democratic Iraq that is territorially intact,” said Bush.
Praising Turkey’s efforts on the war against terrorism, Bush
added, “I appreciate the prime minister's steadfast
determination to fight terror.” For his part, Erdogan said he
was “very happy” that Washington had fulfilled pledges to list
the latest incantation of PKK as a terrorist group. “The
United States has decided to list KONGRA-GEL among terrorist
organizations, we're very happy for that,” added Erdogan.
“It's very obvious where Turkey stands in the fight against
terrorism that needs to be mutual and international,
especially in the aftermath of what happened on Sept. 11.”
Meanwhile, Paul Bremer, the US administrator in Baghdad,
yesterday issued a statement declaring the PKK and its
affiliates, which use northern Iraq as a “safe haven” would be
treated as terrorist organizations by coalition troops. The
two leaders also discussed recent efforts to reunify Cyprus.
“I state once again that the Turkish side is determined for a
solution,” said Erdogan. “We will always be a step ahead of
our Greek counterparts, and we're determined to solve this as
soon as possible.” For his part, Bush said, “I appreciated his
trying to find a solution, a solution to a longstanding
dispute," said Bush. In addition, Erdogan also added that Bush
charged Secretary of State Colin Powell to deal with the
Cyprus issue as a facilitator, who is expected to hold a
meeting with United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan
tomorrow. Bush and Erdogan are expected to meet again in June,
when NATO leaders gather in Istanbul for an alliance summit. /All
Papers/
On his historic visit to the United States, Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday met with religious leaders in
Washington and New York, calling the US as the meeting point
of different civilizations. The premier met with prominent
figures from the American Muslim community, including Sheikh
Muhammad Hisham Kabbani, chairman of the Islamic Supreme
Council of America, who is well known for his reformist stance.
American Muslim leaders stated that Turkey might be a model
for the Islamic world, urging Erdogan to improve Ankara’s
dialogue with other Muslim countries. Erdogan then met with
Jewish leaders at the Ritz Carlton Hotel and discussed Turkish-Israeli
relations and the Middle East Peace Process with them. He also
thanked the Jewish lobby for its pro-Turkey campaign in the
US. The premier also came together with the figures of the US
high society in a luncheon held in his honor. /Sabah/
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul is set to have a busy
schedule next month. Gul is set to travel to Brussels on Feb.
5 for an official visit. Later, upon the invitation of his
Polish counterpart Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz, he is set to pay
an official visit to Poland on Feb. 9. Gul would also meet
with Polish Prime Minister Leszek Miller during his visit. The
foreign minister is expected to attend a meeting in Kuwait on
Feb. 14. The meeting is set to focus on the Iraq issue. A
representative from Iraq is set to participate in the meeting.
Later, Gul is due to travel to Moscow on Feb. 24 upon the
invitation of Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov. /Turkiye/
The Parliament yesterday passed a bill to erase six zeros
from the Turkish lira. Speaking to the deputies, Finance
Minister Kemal Unakitan said that the Parliament took an
historic decision by accepting to erase zeros from the lira.
The new lira would begin to circulate in 2005. /All papers/
In an opinion piece entitled “A Turkish Success Story,” the
New York Times praised the leadership of Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan, who is currently paying a visit to the United
States. “Turkey is changing in surprising and encouraging ways,
setting a constructive example for the entire Muslim Middle
East,” noted the US daily. “Under the leadership of Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, an Islamic politician who
favors democratic pluralism, it has enacted far-reaching
reforms that are intended to meet the exacting admissions
criteria of the European Union. Mr. Erdogan, who visits the
White House today, is a strongly pro-Western leader who worked
hard to repair the breach that opened between Washington and
Ankara over the Iraq war, which Turkish public opinion
strongly opposed. The Bush administration clearly appreciates
those efforts, as the high-level reception awaiting Mr.
Erdogan in Washington shows. But the administration can do
more, especially on the tangled issue of Cyprus, divided
between Greek and Turkish Cypriot sectors. Winning E.U.
approval for Turkey's candidacy later this year probably
depends on a resolution of this issue.” The New York Times
also added that the Turkish generals must stand behind
Erdogan's Cyprus diplomacy as well as his efforts to move
closer to Western-style democracy. “America has a strong
interest in Mr. Erdogan's success,” stressed the daily. /Hurriyet/
Speaking to an Italian daily Corriere della Sera yesterday,
US Vice President Dick Cheney said that democracy and freedom
were adopted by such Muslim countries as Turkey, adding that
in order to defeat terrorist groups, democracy in the Middle
East should be developed. “Democracy is adopted by all Muslim
countries such as Turkey,” said Cheney. /Aksam/
Celal Adan, deputy leader of the True Path Party (DYP),
yesterday reacted harshly to Nechirvan Barzani, who had stated
that Turkish troops in northern Iraq deployed to prevent any
clashes between Iraqi Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (IPUK) and
the Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic Party (IKDP) should be
retreated. Barzani is a top official of the IKDP. Adan also
criticized the government’s northern Iraq policy, adding that
Turkey should begin an operation in northern Iraq with 20,000
troops. /Turkiye/
Paul Bremer, United States’ civilian administrator in Iraq
yesterday vowed to take harsh measures against the terrorist
organization PKK/KADEK, or with its new name Kongragel. In a
written statement, Bremer stressed that US President George W.
Bush had pledged to save Iraq from terrorist organizations.
“Both coalition and Iraqi security forces accept that the PKK/KADEK
or Kongragel is a terrorist organization and in no way they
will not be allowed to take shelter in new Iraq,” said Bremer.
/Turkiye/
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe yesterday
discussed a report on Turkey prepared by Hungarian
Parliamentarian Matyas Eorsi and made a recommendatory
decision. Praising Turkish government’s recent initiatives to
find a settlement on the Cyprus, the decision stated that
Ankara should be encouraged in the bid to solve the issue.
Another motion accepted advised that Turkey should be ensured
to begin negotiations for European Union membership as soon as
it fulfills Copenhagen criteria. In related news, EU
Commissioner for Enlargement Guenter Verheugen said that the
commission had mostly changed its views on Turkey positively.
He added that most of the governments of the EU countries had
a positive stance on Turkey’s EU membership; however, they had
some difficulties to convince their parliaments and public. /Hurriyet/
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said yesterday
that his recent meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan was “encouraging.” After meeting with European
Union Commission members in Brussels, speaking at a joint
press conference with Romano Prodi, the head of the commission,
Annan said, “In Davos, we had a very fruitful meeting with the
Turkish premier.” He expressed his pleasure to hear that
Ankara was ready to begin talks on Cyprus. “Erdogan presented
me certain proposals on the matter and I’m seriously examining
them,” said the UN Secretary-General. In addition, Prodi
stated that after his meeting with Erdogan in Ankara, he was
more hopeful for a solution on the island by May 1. /Turkiye/
European Union Commissioner for Enlargement Guenter
Verheugen said yesterday that the European Council’s point of
view on Turkey’s EU bid changed positively. “The commission
members’ ideas on Turkey’s EU membership changed positively,”
he said. Verheugen further stated that recently passed reforms
should be implemented. /Milliyet/
Greek Cypriot Administration Leader Tasos Papadopulos said
yesterday that if United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan
invites them to resume Cyprus talks, his administration would
accept it. Speaking at a session of the Parliamentary Assembly
of the Council of Europe, Papadopulos said that their
administration was ready to attend talks on Cyprus soon
without any precondition at the invitation of Annan. Stressing
that he wanted to believe sincerity of Ankara in its
initiatives for a solution, the Greek Cypriot leader said that
there was no need for a change of the mediator, UN Special
Envoy for Cyprus Alvaro De Soto, during the talks possible to
begin. /Turkiye/
Central Bank Head Sureyya Serdengecti said yesterday that
the exchange rates would continue to fall due to the recent
positive economic stability. Serdengecti briefed reporters on
the monetary policy, adding that the fiscal policy was also
important for the continuation of economic stability.
/Milliyet/
Columnist Nuray Basaran comments on Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to the United States. A summary of her
column is as follows:
“The first part of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s
critical visit to the United States is completed. But
Erdogan’s meetings in New York were as important as his
meeting with US President George W. Bush. Erdogan and
therefore Turkey, took very important steps through the
meetings in New York. Erdogan met with Orthodox Patriarch
Dimetrus and leading American businessmen with Greek origin.
One can ask why this meeting is so important.
First of all, the Jewish, Greek and Armenian lobbies are
very important in US foreign policy and especially by the
Congress. Turkey was very close to the Israeli lobby in both
its regional relations and relations with the US. Even if it
is claimed that Turkey and Israel have problems on some
regional issues like the Kurds in northern Iraq, the Jewish
lobby in the US has a major importance for Turkey. But
relations with the strong Greek and Armenian lobbies are
disregarded. As a new vision, Prime Minister Erdogan started a
process of close relations with the Greek lobby. The Turkish-Greek
rapprochement initiated by Greek Foreign Minister George
Papandreou and Ismail Cem created an important pleasure in the
public opinion. Bur this rapprochement caused neither a
development in the Cyprus problem nor a solution to the Aegean
problem.
It seems like this dialogue and rapprochement, initiated by
Erdogan will lead to more concrete results. A new process may
also begin with the Armenian lobby after this stage.
As a matter of fact, Turkey with its historical mission in
the region remains stuck in its relations with neighboring
countries. Of course the problems we lived through during the
establishment of the republic and the Cold War pushed Turkey
to these necessary options. But in the changing regional
conditions and US big game in the Middle East, Turkey has to
begin to use its cards. For this reason Erdogan’s meeting is a
very important step.
Columnist Derya Sazak comments on Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to the US. A summary of his column is
as follows:
“Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan received the support
it requested from US President George W. Bush about the
solution of Cyprus issue yesterday at the White House. Bush
charged US Secretary of State Colin Powell to have contact
with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. Bush made a striking
statement about Iraq’s future. Considering Turkey’s fear for
Iraq’s disintegration, Bush said, ‘I believe in God, trust me.
There will be no development disadvantageous to Turkey.’
Erdogan was very pleased with the meeting. After the White
House supported the thesis of ‘going one step ahead,’ Erdogan-Gul
administration now believes that a solution can be found to
the Cyprus solution before May 1 and that the path to the EU
will be opened at the end of 2004. Otherwise, the Greek
Cypriot administration will have the right to ‘veto’ after May
1 and the possibility of Greek to put Ankara under pressure
will increase.
Turkey becomes the side which compels the solution to the
Cyprus issue so the positive atmosphere in Europe won’t
disperse after the meetings held with EU Commission President
Romano Prodi. The US’ support is also important for Turkey’s
EU membership bid. The improvement to be made in the first
half of the year 2004 will also determine the stances of
countries, which object the timetable. Turkey didn’t put
itself into the position of an ‘invader’ next to the US and
thus increased its respect. Relations with the US which were
spoiled in March had been mended. Turkey is the most suitable
country to the model of democratization, which the US defends
in the Middle East. Iraq’s future also has priority in Turkish-US
relations. Before the meeting at the White House, it was
interesting that Erdogan said, ‘I don’t consider the approach
of a federal Kurdish state healthy.’ In addition, during the
meeting, the new name of the PKK-KADEK was announced as Kongra-Gel
terrorist organization.”
