CEM: "WE THANK EVERYONE WHO SHARES OUR PAIN"

Foreign Minister Ismail Cem stated that he thanked everyone and every country who shared the pain of the Turkish nation in these difficult days. Cem issued a statement and said that the teams, the number of members of which surpasses 1,300, were being welcomed by officials from the Turkish Foreign Ministry at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport and added that fire-fighters from Greece and Canada were already in Izmit. Cem remarked that Norway would send a fire-extinguishing helicopter while the US would send its fire-extinguishing planes based in Incirlik. Cem stressed that German and French technical experts were still inspecting the TUPRAS facilities in Izmit. Cem said: "I would like to express my gratitude to all countries which have offered spiritual and financial support to Turkey", the Anatolia News Agency reports.

DUTCH GOVERNMENT SENDS $360,000 AND SNIFFER DOGS TO TURKEY

The Dutch Government said yesterday that it was donating just under $360,000 in emergency aid plus a team of sniffer dogs to help Turkish earthquake relief efforts. The money will be distributed via the Dutch Red Cross and will be used for emergency shelters, hospitals, water and sanitary equipment and communications. A team of five sniffer dogs and their guides left the southern Dutch city of Eindhoven for Istanbul early yesterday.

EU TO SEND TWO MILLION EUROS IN AID FOR TURKEY

The European Commission said yesterday it would send two million Euros ($2.11 million) in emergency humanitarian aid to Turkey following Tuesday's devastating earthquake. The EU executive said the assistance was a preliminary measure to provide "immediate relief supplies to the areas worst affected by the earthquake".

TURKISH MPs GIVE BLOOD AND MONEY

Turkish MPs gave blood and money yesterday after gathering briefly to pledge rapid relief for the victims of the earthquake. Housing Minister Koray Aydin from the Nationalist Action Party (MHP) said the MPs of his party would each donate $1,140 or 30 % of their monthly wage, to the aid campaign. Other deputies went to the parliamentary clinic to contribute to a drive for more blood.

EARTHQUAKE COVERED IN BRITISH PRESS

The earthquake in Turkey was described as one of the worst disasters in the last 20 years in the British press. Almost all British newspapers devoted their front page to the earthquake. 'The Guardian' newspaper said that the number of people who need help following the earthquake was nearly 100,000. 'The Times' newspaper stated that oil leaking from the refineries in the region was another danger. British TV stations including Sky TV devoted wide coverage to the news concerning the earthquake through live broadcasts from Izmit and Istanbul.

SCHROEDER SENDS A MESSAGE OF CONDOLENCE TO ECEVIT

German Prime Minister Gerhard Schroeder sent a message of condolence to his Turkish counterpart Bulent Ecevit while German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer sent a message to his Turkish counterpart Ismail Cem due to the earthquake which happened in Turkey early on Tuesday. Schroeder expressed his sorrow over the incident while Fischer said that the German Technical Aid Institution was ready to help the victims on behalf of the German Government, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

BRITAIN SENDS 500,000 POUNDS, SEARCH AND RESCUE TEAMS TO TURKEY

The British Minister of International Development, George Foulkes, said that Britain would grant 500,000 pounds to the Red Crescent aid fund and 32,000 pounds to the UN Humanitarian Affairs Coordination Office, which assists in coordinating international aid for the emergency relief aid campaign due to the earthquake in Turkey. A statement issued by the British Embassy in Ankara remarked that Britain has sent an international search and rescue unit and 40 fire-fighting experts to Turkey. The statement pointed out that two more search and rescue teams together with specially-trained sniffer dogs would arrive in Turkey today. Meanwhile, the British Queen Elizabeth sent a message of condolence to Turkish President Suleyman Demirel yesterday and expressed her sorrow over the earthquake. British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Foreign Minister Robin Cook also sent a message of condolence to their Turkish counterparts, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

AID FROM UKRAINE, SLOVAKIA AND TURKMENISTAN

The Anatolia News Agency reported that an assistance team from the Ukraine will arrive in Turkey today. A statement issued by the Ministry of Emergencies said that the team which departed from Kiev yesterday consisted of two doctors, 30 assistants and seven specially-trained sniffer dogs. A spokesman for the Slovakian Government said that a team consisting of 14 search and rescue officials and sniffer dogs would be sent to Turkey. The Spokesman also stated that the Slovakian Head of State, Rudolf Schuster, and Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda offered their condolences to Turkish President Suleyman Demirel and Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit. Meanwhile, the Turkmen Government stated that it would send $100,000 to help the victims of the earthquake in Turkey. The President of Turkmenistan, Saparmurat Turkmenbasi, sent a message of condolence to President Demirel. Turkmenbasi also proposed to send doctors and experts to Turkey.

AID FROM ALGERIA, CANADA, AGFUND, BULGARIA

Algeria has sent a 40,000-ton aid package including foodstuff, sanitary equipment, tents and clothes for the earthquake victims in Izmit. Officials said that the aid had been sent to Turkey to show Algerian spiritual and financial support for Turkey. A medical assistance team will also arrive in Izmit. Meanwhile, the Canadian Minister of Defence, Art Eggleton, said that Canada would send 200 soldiers in order to contribute to rescue operations in Turkey. The Head of the UN Development Programme's Arab Gulf Fund (AGFUND), Prince Talal Bin Abdulaziz, said that the AGFUND would grant $150,000 to Turkey for those affected by the earthquake, the Anatolia News Agency reports. Bulgaria has also decided to send a 13-person health team to Turkey.

WORLD BANK TO ASSIST TURKEY

The Head of the World Bank, James Wolfensohn, said that the World Bank opened a new loan of $120 million for Ankara in the aftermath of the earthquake which hit northwestern Turkey. Wolfensohn stated that Turkey has experienced a great tragedy and pointed out that the World Bank has begun to take concrete steps to ease Turkey's pain. He added that the World Bank would offer a great deal of aid and provide new funds to Turkey. A statement issued by the World Bank recalled that the World Bank had also offered aid to Turkey in the aftermath of earthquakes in Erzincan and Adana and pointed out that the necessary support would be ensured for the reconstruction of the region heavily affected by the earthquake. The statement added that the World Bank guaranteed its support for Turkey, the Anatolia News Agency reports. The number of people who have lost their lives has exceeded 4,000 while the number of injured is more than 18,000 according to the daily 'Hurriyet' newspaper. Kocaeli: 2,033 dead, 5,011 injured; Sakarya: 811 dead, 3,346 injured; Istanbul: 467 dead, 5,009 injured; Yalova: 500 dead, 3,000 injured; Bolu: 204 dead, 408 injured; Bursa: 56 dead, 2,093 injured; Eskisehir: 28 dead, 19 injured; Zonguldak: 4 dead, 7 injured and Tekirdag: 35 injured.

BILD NEWSPAPER: "GERMANY SHARES YOUR PAIN"

The 'Bild' newspaper published in Germany, under the Turkish headline: "Arkadaslar, Almanya acinizi paylasiyor" (Friends, Germany shares your pain), devoted wide coverage to the earthquake in western Turkey. While German TV stations broadcast the terrible scenes from the earthquake, they also called upon the German nation to help the victims. The German newspapers 'Frankfurter Allgemeine', 'Suddeutsche Zeitung' and 'Die Welt' also covered the earthquake. Meanwhile, German President Johannes Rau sent a message of condolence to his Turkish counterpart Suleyman Demirel. /Hurriyet/

MERCY VISIT FROM JAPAN

Japan will help Turkey technically and financially because of the earthquake. It was reported that the aid would be presented by Japan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Masahiko Komura, who came to Ankara yesterday. Komura is expected to explain their aid package of 300 thousand dollars (131.5 billion). A spokesperson from Japan reported that they would send tents, bed sheets and medical supplies to Turkey. /Aksam/

$2 BILLION LOSS IN PRODUCTION OUTPUT

According to initial predictions by the Istanbul Chamber of Industry (ISO), the loss in production output caused by the earthquake in the Marmara Region totals $2 billion. ISO Chairman Husamettin Kavi said that if no more hitches occur, industrial facilities in Istanbul will begin production within a week. It is reported that the market value of the TUPRAS Refinery in Izmit amounts to $6.2 billion. The Izmit Refinery achieves 40 % of TUPRAS' oil production. It means that $2.5 billion is burning in Izmit now. Meanwhile, the Head of the Turkish Exporters' Assembly (TIM), Okan Oguz, called upon all exporters and export unions to actively participate in the efforts to heal the wounds caused by the earthquake. /Hurriyet/

IMKB CLOSED UNTIL TUESDAY

A statement issued by the Istanbul Stock Exchange (IMKB) said that Share Market transactions would be closed until August 24. It is reported that a proposal to close the Exchange temporarily received by the Capital Market Council (SPK) and the SPK accepted the proposal. /Hurriyet/

IMF SUPPORT FOR TURKEY

The Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Michel Camdessus, stated that they were sharing the pain suffered by the Turkish nation because of the earthquake and said that the IMF would do its best to support Turkey in order to overcome this disaster. Camdessus sent a written message to Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit and remarked that the IMF would exert every effort to help Turkey. Camdessus recalled that the Turkish Government has already shown that it could deal with economic problems. /Hurriyet/

BRIEGEL OFFERS A MATCH FOR THE VICTIMS

The Technical Director of the Besiktas football team, Peter Briegel, expressed his sorrow over the earthquake which hit western Turkey and said that if it is approved by the executive board, a match could be held with the German Bayer Munich football team. He added: "I want all the income obtained from this match to go to the victims". /Hurriyet/

AID FROM FOREIGN COUNTRIES

Among the countries which have sent emergency relief aid to Turkey are Israel, Japan, Belgium, the US, Austria, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Russia, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Switzerland, Greece, Sweden, Romania and Pakistan. Meanwhile, US President Bill Clinton, Albanian President Recep Meydani, Azerbaijan President Haydar Aliyev, Egyptian President Husnu Mubarak, Ukranian President Leonid Kuchma and Moldovian President Lunchinski phoned Turkish President Suleyman Demirel and expressed their deep sorrow over the incident. /Cumhuriyet/

EARTHQUAKE MEASURING 7.4 ON RICHTER SCALE

The Director of the Earthquake Research Institute of the Bogazici University, Prof.Ahmet Mete Isikara, said that the earthquake which had been previously announced as measuring 6.7 on the Richter scale was now determined as actually having registered 7.4. The epicentre of the earthquake was Izmit. Meanwhile, American experts say that the earthquake in Turkey was equivalent to the effect of 400 atom bombs dropped on Hiroshima. /Cumhuriyet/

DEMIREL APPROVES EXTENSION OF LOAN TERM

President Suleyman Demirel has approved that the term of foreign exchange loans and pre-financial loans will be extended in order to alleviate financial problems experienced by exporters. A statement issued by the Presidential Press Centre said that the term of the loans would be increased from 12 months to 18 months. /Cumhuriyet/

BUILDING INSURANCE SYSTEM WILL BE IMPROVED

State Minister Sadi Somuncuoglu said that they would improve the insurance system for buildings against earthquakes and they would use all their power to make the system functional. Somuncuoglu stated, "Everybody knows that Turkey is in earthquake fault zone. The possibility for an earthquake in which region and at which scale can be seen from the previous records. Projects are prepared and approved by the related authorities but then, the contractor and the person who constructed the building are compromised with the controller, so a construction merges which does not agree with the original project. As a result of that the building is demolished during earthquakes. To prevent this situation, beginning from the project phase, buildings should be insured for 20 years. If any damage occurs during an earthquake, the insurance company will pay for the loss. This will result in a better control system by the insurance company". /Sabah/

EARTHQUAKE IN WORLD PRESS

ABC NEWS: There is a worry about the lives of 10 thousand people. An interview with Jim Dewey from the American Geological Research Centre has been broadcast all day long. It was stressed that kind of an earthquake can also occur in the US. CNN: All day long it has examined the earthquake disaster. It connected with its correspondents from the Marmara Region. THE WASHINGTON POST: The newspaper stressed the inadequacies in the rescue work. TIME: It published the comments by the CNN correspondent, Andrew Finkel. REUTERS: It has been the strongest earthquake in the last 20 years. An expert from the Cambridge Universty, Prof. Daln McKenzie, said: "A quake with a scale of 5.0 shakes 10 times more than 4.0. Also 7.8 shakes 30-40 times more than 7.0.". /Sabah/

EMERGENCY RELIEF AID

Foreign search and rescue teams who are taking part in the rescue efforts in the demolished areas are continuing to arrive in Turkey. According to a statement issued by the Belgium Embassy, one more rescue team has departed from Belgium to Turkey. Noting that five Belgian doctors are still working in the earthquake-devastated area, it was stated that the Belgium Government will carry on sending aid to Turkey. Also in a declaration made by the Austrian Embassy, it was said that two planes carrying 37 tons of urgent supplies and a rescue team with specially-trained sniffer dogs have arrived in Istanbul and the team will be deployed in the town of Yalova, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

MESSAGE FROM KERIMOV

Uzbekistan President Islam Kerimov sent a consolation message to President Suleyman Demirel on the occasion of the earthquake disaster in Turkey. Expressing his deep sadness for the disaster, Kerimov offered his own and the Uzbek nation's condolences to the relatives of the victims of the tragedy, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

NEW YORK TIMES: ATTENTION ON CAUCASIA

In the 'New York Times', a newspaper published in the US, Robert Kaplan issued an article on the situation in Caucasia. He expressed his ideas in the article as follows: 'We shouldn't lose control over the region. In addition to certain measures, Western countries should also cooperate with the Turkish Armed Forces. If the Western Countries will not take the necessary precautions, Caucasia will resemble the Balkans. The struggle in the region is a combat for power and petroleum. Caucasia is the 'Wild-West' of Russia, whereas Russia sees it as a line of defence against Turkey and Iran. To lose Dagestan will weakean the position of Russia vis-a-vis Georgia and Azerbaijan. In spite of everything, Caucasia does not need the direct interference of the West as in the Balkans. Western powers can take some measures so as not to lose control over the region without using weapons and shedding blood such as the establishment of special units to prevent possible assasination attemps against the regional leaders, the development of closer cooperation with the Turkish Armed Forces, the normalization of relations with Iran and the bringing of Armenia to a such a position that it does not need Russia's military support. The West pretended not to see the Balkans up to the war in 1991; now it is time to think of the future of Caucasia and the Caspian Sea, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

THE INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENT

The Memorandum of Understanding between Turkey's Ministry of the Interior and the Canadian Rider Police has been approved and promulgated in the Official Gazette, reported the Anatolian News Agency. The memorandum that was signed on March 8, 1999 in Ankara envisages the construction of comprehensive cooperation between the security units of the two countries in order to fight the crimes and the criminals of terrorism, narcotics and smuggling.

BLUE STREAM PROJECT IS BEING IMPLEMENTED

The construction of the pipeline between Turkey, Russia and the Black Sea that was previously approved by the Russian government is going to begin in Turkey tomorrow, reported the Anatolian News Agency. It was reported that the bid entitled `the construction of the natural gas pipeline between Samsun and Ankara' that was put out by the General Directorate of Botas last year will be launched by Oztas-Hazinedaroglu and the Russian Stroytransgas Consortium. In a statement by the firm's officials, the construction of the pipeline, 444 kilometres long will begin in the following days. As part of the agreement between the Directorate General of Botas and the manufacturing firm, the line that is expected to be laid within 18 months will cost 340 million dollars. The cost of the construction of the line will be financed by the Directorate General of Botas' own funds. The natural gas pipeline between Samsun and Ankara that comprises the construction of various compressor stations and other units will come into operation at the same time with other units that are part of the Russia-Turkey and Black Sea project. For the natural gas pipeline that is expected to come into service in the year 2001, in January the period of management for three months will be taken into consideration and as part of this agreement, the gas will be transferred for the first time in the middle of the year 2001. As part of the trade agreement between Turkey and Russia in previous years, 4 billion cubic metres of natural gas and the year 2001 and 8 billion cubic metres of natural gas in the year 2002 will be imported from Russia. As part of the agreement that is valid through to 2025, as much as 12 billion cubic metres in 2005 and as much as 26 billion cubic metres of natural gas would be able to be purchased. The 444 kilometres of the pipeline that will be constructed in three separate parts will be built in Turkey; the 400 kilometres of the pipeline will be constructed in Russia and the third part of the pipeline will be laid on the Black Sea transit. The Russian part of the pipeline will be constructed by Russian firms whereas the Black Sea transit will be laid by Italian firms.

SOUTHEASTERN ANATOLIA PROJECT INVESTMENTS IN SANLIURFA

Investments as part of the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) in Sanliurfa have reached 3 quadrillion 500 trillion TL, reported the Anatolian News Agency. The governor, mayor and directors of investor institutions attended the meeting in the Coordination Council chaired by the Deputy Governor of Sanliurfa, Ahmet Hamdi Nayir. In the meeting, the Deputy Governor prayed for the souls of those who have died and wished recovery for the people who have been injured during the earthquake that occured in the Marmara Region and deeply saddened the world. Nayir added, "The cost of the public investments reached 3 quadrillion 500 trillion TL and most of these investments are for the GAP". Nayir, stating that the number of projects that were launched last and this year is 170 and that 1 quadrillion 600 trillion TL was spent, said, "The appropriation is 76.6 trillion TL and the money that was spent is 22 trillion Turkish lira." Furthermore, he added, "The construction of the projects is underway. On top of the list, there are energy, agriculture and transportation sectors.

TGNA GENERAL COUNCIL

A proposal that had been presented by the parties in power was accepted by the Turkish Grand National Assembly's (TGNA) General Council and thus, the TGNA interrupted its work until 23rd of August, Monday, reported the Anatolian News Agency.

PULSES PRODUCTION UP

A member of the Pulses and Products Committee of the Izmir Trade Exchange, Ersen Demirel, said that pulses' production was very high when compared to last year. Demirel added that Turkey began to export pulses this year. /Turkiye/

NINE KILOS OF HASHISH SEIZED IN IZMIR

During raids carried out by members of Izmir Security Office's Narcotics Department in the Aliaga and Odemis districts yesterday, 9.7 kilos of hashish worth nearly 7 billion TL were seized. Officials said that four people had been detained regarding the incident, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

VIOLINIST SARAH CHANG IN ISTANBUL

A renowned violinist Sarah Chang will stage a concert in Turkey on September 3. The concert will be organized by the Yapi Kredi Art Festival. /Hurriyet/

FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...

CRUEL PEOPLE: "THE AEGEAN SEA WILL PERISH" -BY IZZET SEDES (AKSAM)

Izzet Sedes is a columnist on the daily 'Aksam' newspaper. This is an article by him published in 'Aksam'. The earthquake in Turkey did not surprie Strasbourg Observatory's Director Michel Granet in France. The world-famous geophyscian said, "It is very hard to save Turkey from the terrifying conflicts of tectonic plates." According to Granet, the tectonic plates in the Arabian Peninsula to the South are moving towards the North and North East one or two centimetres a year, which is very fast. The layers are slowly but very strongly penetrating into the Eurasian plate on which Turkey is located. This penetration has been going on for millions of years and Anatolia has been pushed towards the West. "If it goes on in this way, then after millions of years Turkey and Greece will not be separated by sea, which means the Aegean Sea will perish." I am not sure if it is a soothsaying or not. However, according to the Greek philosopher Plato, the Atlantis island, which was bigger than Libya was sunk into the sea in 9600 B.C. Greece is considered to be one of the most active countries geopolitically. Turkey is also uphill and downhill and is located on high mountains and broken layers. The faults that resulted from the cracks in the plates that lie from North East to West are causing great strains. When the strains reach their peak, almost every year an earthquake occurs. If the strain lasts for a long time, then the strength of the earthquake heightens, just like in the earthquake in Erzincan in 1939, during which 32,962 people died. According to the French geophysician, the earthquake that occurred this week was "expected." A very strong earthquake occurred in 1894 and it is natural that every century a strong earthquake would occur. However, in spite of the information we have, it is impossible to predict the disaster. For example, the land in Izmit may remain static, but it may also be shaken every 50 years. The only thing that is known is that if the period between these quakes is long, then the strength of the earthquake heightens. However, today's technology is still not enough to predict the earthquake. These are the things that were explained by a world-famous earthquake expert. Our three days of experience have shown that in our country, which is in a seismic region, there are no precautions in place to rescue people and decrease the collapses in similar disasters. Some of the buildings, roads and bridges have not been constructed in accordance with the fact that our land should expect to experience earthquakes. Now one of the things that should be done is for official experts to technically examine the buildings that collapsed, injuring and killing thousands of people. If they were badly built, the contractors and those responsible for the delivery of those buildings should be held responsible. From now on there should be certain rules on this subject. The experts are warning us Turkey is in a dangerous region and other earthquakes will occur in the future. Therefore, we should take every precautions in order to decrease the number of dead and the amount of damage as much as possible. Japan is being shaken almost every day but every building had been constructed according to strict regulations and the quakes are being overcome with little damage and few dead. Why cannot we do the same thing? There are more people living in Japan, almost 150 million...

NATIONAL DISASTER -BY TAHA AKYOL (MILLIYET)

Taha Akyol, a columnist in the daily 'Milliyet' newspaper, says the following in his article today: "This is the biggest natural disaster we have ever experienced. There has been no such damage in previous floods or earthquakes. A national disaster happened in Erzincan in 1939. However the Erzincan disaster was not at that level. It was not so influential from the geographical standpoint. The economic damage was not that much. The current losses at TUPRAS facilities are so high. The earthquake in the highly industrialized-Marmara Region increased the losses from the humanitarian and economic point of view. All world media shows the earthquake as one of the worst disasters in the world. Yes, Turkey is along the earthquake fault line. Mankind knows the general rules of the nature. However we cannot know when, where and how they will happen..The solution lies on the social consciousness as mentioned by Prof.Ahmet Mete Isikara. Sociologist Ernest Renan said that in the formation of nations, disasters play a great role as well as the victories..".

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