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Turkish Press Review, 96-09-18Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>CONTENTS
TURKISH PRESS REVIEWWEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 18, 1996Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning[01] CILLER TO MEET IMF OFFICIALSIt is reported that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Tansu Ciller, who will be going to the US for a UN meeting in the forthcoming days, will also make contacts with International Monetary Fund (IMF) officials. Preparations will be made before the IMF meetings which are to be held at the end of this month, Ciller said. /Hurriyet/[02] PKK MILITANTS INFILTRATING FROM THE BORDERS ARE BEING KILLEDDuring clashes between Turkish security forces and PKK terrorists along the borders of Iran, 128 terrorists, and Iraq, 126 terrorists, totalling 254 terrorists were killed in one month while thirty-five Turkish soldiers died. /Sabah/[03] GHALI'S REPRESENTATIVE ARRIVES IN ANKARA TODAYUN Cyprus Special Representative Han Soong-Joo will arrive in Ankara today. Joo will meet Foreign Minister Tansu Ciller, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Onur Oymen and Deputy Undersecretary Inal Batu. /Sabah/[04] AMBASSADOR KANDEMIR HITS BACK AT CRITICS OF HADEP PROSECUTIONNuzhet Kandemir, Turkish Ambassador in Washington, sent a letter to Rep.Christopher Smith (R) of New Jersey, replying to Smith's comments at the House of Representatives on the prosecution of pro-Kurdish HADEP Party members.Kandemir pointed out that HADEP was not like any other country in Turkey since "HADEP claims to represent an ethnic group with an ethnic agenda. This is tantamount to the creation of a strictly racially or religiously based policital party in the US". Refusing Smith's allegation that HADEP had been the Turkish government's target, Kandemir said: "The public prosecutor decided to file a suit against HADEP not because the Turkish flag was torn down during incidents at the recent HADEP convention as claimed in your statement, but rather because masked individuals put up PKK banners, posters of the PKK's head and chanted PKK slogans, effectively turning the convention into a PKK gathering. The Turkish ambassador recalled for Smith how PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan owned up to the HADEP as a "tactical" move. During an interview broadcasted on MED TV on June 27, 1996, PKK leader Ocalan stated the following: "I carry out the tactical leadership of the legal movements such as HADEP". Kandemir said: "Despite its combat against a savage terrorist organization, the PKK, Turkey did not derogate even from accepting international judicial and administrative monitoring". "In this framework" he reminded "the former DEP parliamentarians that they have appealed to the European Commission on Human Rights. I hope you will find the decisions of the Commission objective and satisfactory". /All papers/ [05] GERMAN OFFICIAL VISITS CELIKCornelia Schmalz-Jacobsen, head of the German government's department dealing with foreign nationals, visited Labour and Social Security Minister Necati Celik yesterday. Schalmz-Jacobsen briefed Celik on the proposed changes concerning the German law on foreign nationals. Noting that the status of young foreign people and retirees will be strengtened, Schmalz-Jacobsen said that she was particularly interetested in the problems of Turks living in Germany.Necati Celik said that Turkey's desire to establish good relations with its neighbours in the east and southeast will never be an alternative to its relations with the West. Expressing his pleasure about the planned changes to the German law on foreign nationals, Celik said that a commission has been set up for German citizens living in Turkey. Celik also noted that within the framework of new regulations on work and residence permits for foreigners, the duties which had been dispersed through various ministries will be centralized in one ministry, and that the new regulation will take the European Union law into account. Celik also gave information on vocational training in Turkey, adding that significant progress had been achieved in this area. Pointing out that the Turkish system is quite similar to the one in Germany, Celik said there were currently 30,000 students in vocational schools. /Cumhuriyet/ [06] GUL AND GROSSMAN MEETState Minister Abdullah Gul has met with US Ambassador to Turkey, Marc Grossman. Grossman announced after the meeting that Gul had plans to visit the US, saying that the date and the context of the trip would be determined by Turkey's state minister himself. The ambassador also noted that the subjects of Iraq and Cyprus were not discussed in the meeting but that they spoke about US-Turkish relations in general. /All papers/[07] TURKEY REQUESTS BETTER IRANIAN PERFORMANCE AGAINST PKKTurkish Interior Minister Mehmet Agar yesterday treated Iran to a polite but firm verbal bombardment over continuing infiltrations by separatist Kurdish militants, stressing that a better performance was required on Tehran's part to prevent the use of its territory against Turkey, in keeping with existing border security arrangements.Agar was speaking after a meeting with Iranian official Hussein Mirza who arrived for talks on security cooperation between the two countries. The PKK militants entrenched in Iran have recently attacked Turkish army posts on the border, killing six Turkish soldiers. Agar said the PKK concentrations on the Iranian side of the border temporarily disappeared from time to time, but had recently increased as a result of the developments in northern Iraq -where Mesut Barzani's Kurdistan Democratic Party, which has better relations with Turkey, defeated Celal Talabani's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, reputed to be more tolerant of the PKK. /Cumhuriyet-Sabah/ [08] NATO EXERCISE TO BEGIN ON SEPTEMBER 20Preparations are ongoing for the Ardent Ground-9 military exercise planned by NATO European Allied Forces Supreme Headquarters (SHAPE) to be held near the southeastern town of Sarikamis. Units from Germany, Belgium, Britain, Holland, Denmark, the US and Canada have begun arriving in the area for the exercise which will be commanded by the NATO Southeast Europe Allied Land Forces Headquarters.The aim of the exrcise beginning on September 20 will be to improve artilerry skills for fighter jet support and to coordinate strategy in order to handle any crises on NATO's southern wing. The exercise, which is to be held in three phases, will end on October 6 and NATO forces will return to their countries on October 10. /All papers/ [09] SOLDIERS FREED AFTER 11 MONTHS IN PKK HANDSAfter almost a full year in captivity, two of the eight Turkish soldiers held by the PKK terrorist organization were released and have returned with their families to Turkey yesterday. Adnan Elci, the Welfare Party (RP) chief in the southeastern town of Cizre, and Ali Dinler, a lawyer from the Human Rights Association, traveled to Duhok, a town in northern Iraq, to meet the released guards and escort them home. Turkish security officials at the Habur border gate, near Zakho, questioned the soldiers and their families. Six other village guards remain in the hands of the PKK. /Sabah/[10] ENTRY IN N.IRAQ IS LIMITEDTurkey has decided to apply a limitation on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) on entering the region (northern Iraq) through Turkey. Ankara has refused European Union (EU)'s request regarding softening these limitations.For a long time Turkey has been disturbed by the support given to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) by the NGOs, most of which were formed by Kurds, concerning humanitarian aid which Turkey considers has encouraged the establishment of a Kurdish state. Within this framework, Turkey has applied new limitations in entering northern Iraq via its territory and has notified related countries of its decision. The EU Representation to Ankara had a meeting with Turkish Foreign Ministry officials yesterday and requested that they soften the limitations but Turkey rejected this request and Ankara re-announced that humanitarian aid extended to northern Iraq would be arranged by the Turkish Red Crescent. /Cumhuriyet/ [11] SADDAM WILL USE PKK AGAINST TURKEYAccording to foreign diplomatic sources in Turkey and some domestic political circles, ensuring control in northern Iraq by allying with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) Saddam Hussein would put pressure on Turkey by allowing members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) over the border to Turkey. The KDP, a new ally of Iraq, filled the power vacuum in northern Iraq and said that it would be difficult for Turkey to launch operations in the region whenever necessary.Western diplomats said that the new period would be difficult for Turkey. /Cumhuriyet/ END Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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