Turkish Press Review

kurdeng at aps.nl kurdeng at aps.nl
Fri Jun 23 05:45:58 BST 1995


From: tabe at newsdesk.aps.nl
Subject: Turkish Press Review
Reply-To: kurdeng at aps.nl


                    TURKISH PRESS REVIEW
                       JUNE 21, 1995


Summary of the political and economic news  in  the  Turkish
press this morning.


CILLER DEFENDS TURKEY AGAINST EURO CRITICISM

Prime Minister  Tansu  Ciller  yesterday  defended  Ankara's
stance in the face of European criticism regarding the human
rights situation  and  the  Kurdish  issue,  admitting  that
Turkey lacks some elements of a true democracy, but pledging
to  remove  several  anti-democratic  legislative  articles.
Addressing  a  Western European Union (WEU) assembly meeting
in the French capital, Ciller urged  Europeans  to  show  no
sympathy  to the PKK, which she said was a violent terrorist
organization.  Replying to questions by members of  the  WEU
assembly  after  her  speech,  Ciller  said  Iraqi President
Saddam  Huseyin's  administration  supported  the   PKK   in
retaliation   for   Turkey's  firm  backing  to  the  US-led
multinational  movement  against  Baghdad  during  the  Gulf
crisis.   In  a  press  statement,  Ciller  also  reiterated
Turkey's demand to become a full member of the  WEU,  saying
this  issue  could  be  finalized  during  the  process of a
European review conference scheduled to begin in 1996.

While in Paris for a meeting of the Western  European  Union
(WEU),  in her talks with French Prime Minister Alain Juppe,
Prime Minister Ciller called upon the French  government  to
lend  more  support to Turkey's efforts to join the European
Union (EU).

Noting that both Turkey and Europe were  in  fact  part  and
parcel  of  the  same democratic union, and always would be,
Ciller drew attention to the unique role that Turkey  played
in the region as a stable, secular moslem country.

During a two-hour  dinner,  Ciller  and  Juppe  spoke  about
Turkey  and  democratization  developments  as they affected
ties with Europe and the process of customs union  with  the
EU.  /Cumhuriyet/

ARAFAT:  "NO SIMILARITY BETWEEN PKK AND PLO"

Turkish  officials   and   party   leaders   gave   visiting
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat confirmation that Turkey
will continue to support Palestine and the Middle East peace
process.   Meeting  the Parliament Speaker and party leaders
yesterday, the second day of his official visit  to  Turkey,
Arafat  reiterated  that  Turkey, a respected country in the
region, has big responsibilities in terms of the realization
of  a  just  and comprehensive peace in the Middle East and,
"Turkey's contribution in all fields is needed".

In a press  meeting  held  before  his  return  to  his  own
country,  answering  a question about his comment on now the
PKK was taking the Palestine Liberation  Organization  (PLO)
as  an  example,  Yasser  Arafat, the Palestinian President,
said:  "Palestine neither exports  nor  imports  her  ideas.
The  PKK  and the PLO have no similarities.  There are great
differences between them".  It has been stated  that  Arafat
has  gained  power  in  his  struggle  against peace process
opponents by winning "every kind of  support"  from  Turkish
officials  in  Ankara.   Stating that Israel was not keeping
her promises, Arafat asked  Turkey  to  persuade  Israel  to
stick  to  peace process agreements.  Turkish officials have
stated that they will exert every possible effort  but  have
noted  that  a  mediator role was not being considered.  The
Palestinian  leader  said  that   his   administration   was
expecting   the  Turkish  government  to  encourage  Turkish
businessmen to seek a share in the  construction  of  houses
and port facilities.  A promise of support has been given to
Arafat  regarding  these  projects.   Saying  that   Western
countries were not giving support to Palestine, Arafat asked
Turkey to negotiate new credit facilities with  the  Western
countries.  Turkish officials said that they were continuing
initiatives regarding this issue.  Arafat also asked  Turkey
to  organize  a joint project regarding $50 million Eximbank
credit promised by Turkey which remains  unused  because  of
the lack of suitable projects.  /Hurriyet/


US:  "CUSTOMS UNION MUST BE REALIZED"

A US State Department Spokesman, Nick Burns,  reaffirmed  US
support for Turkish membership in the EU and said Washington
had no intention  of  indexing  Turkey's  EU  membership  to
progress  in  resolving  the Cyprus issue.  "There can be no
connection between the Cyprus issue and US-Turkey relations.
Turkey  is  an  ally  of  the US and very important from the
strategic stand point.  We stand by our attempts to  try  to
convince  our European partners to integrate Turkey into the
EU eventually, and certainly to facilitate the Customs Union
agreement.   Turkey  will  remain  one of the most important
countries in all of Europe to the  US,  and  our  policy  is
based  upon that fundamental fact" he said.  Burns said that
Turkey-EU ties were discussed at the recent  G-7  summit  in
Halifax, Canada.  "Turkey and the EU should work to create a
close relationship and that there should,  we  hope,  be  an
agreement  between Turkey and the EU on a customs agreement"
Burns added.  He emphasized Turkey's importance for European
stability  and  security.   "We  believe that the process of
Turkey's  integration  with  the   West   through   economic
institutions and political relationships is a very important
process for the future of Turkey.  And we also believe  that
the  foundation that Turkey provides, a stable foundation in
its part of the world, which  is  a  troubled  part  of  the
world,  is  a very important factor in European security and
that the European countries have to  take  account  of  that
when they develop their polticies toward Turkey" Burns said.
/Hurriyet-Sabah/


VURAL'S APPOINTMENT TO BONN FORMALIZED

The appointment of Volkan Vural,  former  advisor  to  Prime
Minister  Tansu  Ciller,  as Turkey's new ambassador to Bonn
was published in the Official Gazette yesterday.  Vural, who
was    among    the    candidates   for   Foreign   Ministry
Undersecretary, replaces  Onur  Oymen,  the  ministry's  new
undersecretary.

COMMANDER OF NATO'S DEFENCE COLLEGE IN TURKEY

Gen.Richard  J.Evraire,  the  commander  of  NATO's  Defence
College,  yesterday  visited  Defence Minister Mehmet Golhan
and Gen.Ahmet Corekci, deputy  chief  of  general  staff  in
Ankara,   the   Anatolia   news   agency  reported.   Golhan
reportedly said in the meeting that, in view  of  increasing
regional  clashes,  NATO  had  an important security role to
play.  Gen.Corekci said that Gen.Evraire was  briefed  about
the Turkish Armed Forces, the agency reported.


SIX MILITANTS AND A SOLDIER KILLED IN THE SOUTHEAST

Six militants  of  the  PKK  terrorist  organization  and  a
soldier  were  killed  during  military  operations  in  the
Southeast.  Officials from the  state  of  emergency  region
said  that three militants were killed in Hakkari's Semdinli
district, two in Sirnak's Namazdagi district and another  in
Elazig  and  their  weapons were confiscated.  A soldier was
killed in action during the clashes.


1,560 PKK MILITANTS RENDERED INEFFECTIVE IN 1995

Unal Erkan, governor of the state of emergency region,  said
yesterday  that  1,560 Kurdish separatists had been rendered
"ineffective" in the first five months of 1995, the Anatolia
news  agency reported.  Erkan said during a press conference
that military operations  are  continuing  against  the  PKK
militants,  but  that  terrorist  attacks  in the region had
decreased from a year ago.  Erkan said that a total  of  113
people  -72  men, 20 women, 21 children- had been killed and
142 people had been injured by PKK militants  in  the  first
five  months of 1995.  The governor also reported that 1,289
PKK militants had been killed, 15  were  injured,  130  were
captured and 141 had surrendered in the region over the same
period in 1995.


GERMANY SAYS NO LEGAL STATUS FOR KURDISH PARLIAMENT

Germany said on Monday that the so-called Kurdish Parliament
had no legal status and that cooperation with the parliament
was out of the question.   The  German  government  said  it
called for a peaceful solution to the problem in the region.


SECOND WARNING TO IRAN

President Suleyman  Demirel  has  again  warned  Iran  about
allowing  PKK  terrorist  groups to filter across the border
between Turkey and Iran.

Demirel has again made it known that Turkey wants Iran to be
far  more  aware  of  what  the PKK is doing and take action
against border  activity  that  endangers  Turkish  domestic
security.   Demirel  has  in  fact,  spoken extensively with
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Alaaddin Brucerdi, who after
his  talks  with  Demirel  said  that  relations between his
country and Turkey were cordial, and that it was the hope of
the  Iranian government that more cooperation between Ankara
and Tehran would lead to a solution of the border problem.

But according to Defence Minister Mehmet  Golhan,  there  is
every  evidence  that the PKK is still using the border with
Iran to get into Turkey.   Recent  attacks  against  Turkish
border police stations were carried out by terrorists coming
over from from Iran, say military representatives.

In the meantime,  Turkish  security  forces  in  the  region
around   Van   have   been   taking   measures  against  PKK
infiltration.  President Demirel has been briefed  a  number
of times on regional developments.  /All papers/


PRAISE FOR TURKEY FROM SINGAPORE

Singapore has been full  of  praise  for  a  "Turkish  Week"
arranged  by Turkish Airlines (THY) to promote Turkey in the
towns  and  cities  of  Singapore.   The  special  week   of
promotion  was tied in with new THY flights between Istanbul
and Singapore.

With a "Cafe Turk"  and  other  attractions  including  folk
dancing  and  exhibitions  by  the  whirling  Dervishes, the
people  of  Singapore  enjoyed  a  special  kind  of   week.
/Hurriyet/


TURKISH PARLIAMENTARIANS GET RIGHT TO VOTE

Following a proposal by Britain's Lord Finsberg at the Paris
sessions  of  the  Western  European  Union  (WEU), European
parliamentarians agreed that Turkish parliamentarians  could
vote in the WEU.

Turkish parliamentarians  will  thus  be  able  to  vote  in
committee meetings and similar functions of the WEU.  Noting
that Turkey was not yet a full member of  the  WEU,  Spanish
representative   Martinez   was  critical  of  the  Finsberg
proposals and said that it was too early to gove  the  right
to vote to Turkish representatives.  /Cumhuriyet/


PKK TERRORISTS KILL TWO CHILDREN

Two  ten-year  old  shepherd  girls  were  killed   by   PKK
terrorists   in  the  province  of  Batman  yesterday.   The
children's relatives, hearing the sound of  gunfire,  rushed
into the surrounding fields and were themselves wounded by a
PKK mine.  One of those wounded later died in the  hospital.
/Sabah/


TURKEY THE BEST EUROPEAN HOLIDAY DESTINATION

According to research made  by  the  noted  German  magazine
Focus,  Turkey  is  much  better  for European tourists than
Italy, Greece and Spain.  Focus  magazine  commissioned  the
Munich-based   European   Research  and  Information  Agency
"Ectrotrans" to find out which were the  preferred  European
coasts  during the 1995 summer season.  Importance was to be
given to environmental protection, environmental cleanliness
of  the  coasts  and sea water, and entertainment facilities
were some factors taken into consideration in the  research.
Marmaris,  Side and Kemer were the first three chosen out of
100 European cities in 16 countries.  Research  was  carried
out  by international experts between March and May.  Turkey
won the highest scores with  her  coasts  free  of  seaweed,
clean   waters  and  unspoiled  nature.   According  to  the
research, it was shown that Italy, Spain and Greece although
famous for being "tourism paradises" were not deserving this
fame, and it was noted that it was very  difficult  for  the
holiday  resorts of these countries to maintain their former
high  standards.   Concretization,   pollution   caused   by
industrialization  and irresponsibility have spelt an end to
these continental centres.  /Sabah/

END

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 * Origin: APS Amsterdam (aps.nl), bbs +31-20-6842147 (16:31/2.0)



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