BINGOL EARTHQUAKE TOLL STANDS AT 167 DEAD, 521 INJURED; RESCUE EFFORTS OFFICIALLY END
Authorities have announced the final toll of the 6.4 earthquake that rocked the eastern Anatolian province of Bingol last Thursday at 167 dead and 521 injured. Search and rescue operations officially ended yesterday after teams digging into the collapsed dormitory at Celtiksuyu Primary School pulled the bodies of the last two children from under the debris of the building. A tearful crowd applauded the rescue teams as they left the school site. A total of 198 children were asleep in their dormitories when the earthquake hit; 84 children and one teacher lost their lives, while 114 survived. /Hurriyet/

GUL ATTENDS EU FOREIGN MINISTERS’ MEETING
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul attended unofficial meetings of the European Union foreign ministers over the weekend on the Greek islands of Kastelorizo (Meis) and Rhodes, just off Turkey’s coast. The ministers also visited the Turkish coastal town of Kas. Saturday night, the ministers discussed the Iraq and Palestinian issues, and Gul represented Turkey’s views on the topics. He also met with his Greek counterpart George Papandreou. During their meeting, the top diplomats discussed Turkish-Greek relations and the Cyprus issue, with both sides agreeing to a simultaneous proposal to the UN to ban land mines along the island’s green line border. Gul said that Papandreou’s stance on all issues had been positive. After the meeting on Kastelorizo, Gul and the EU ministers proceed to Rhodes. Gul was the first Turkish foreign minister to visit the island in some 15 years. Speaking to reporters, Gul said that an embargo imposed on the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) should be lifted. Pointing to recent developments on Cyprus, Gul said that ending the embargo would help strengthen mutual trust and pave an easier path to a peace settlement. /All Papers/

PARLIAMENT SPEAKER ARINC VISITS BINGOL, BUSH SENDS MESSAGE OF CONDOLENCES
Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc yesterday traveled to Bingol, the eastern Anatolian province that was hit by an earthquake last Thursday. Visiting the province and its suburbs, Arinc was briefed on the damage wrought by the disaster. Regarding the outrage surrounding buildings that collapsed during the quake, Arinc stated that the culprits responsible for these substandard structures would be punished. In related news, US President George W. Bush sent a written statement to Ankara conveying his condolences for the victims of the quake, adding that the US was ready to give any support needed to help repair the damage done. /Turkiye/

PARLIAMENT TO DISCUSS TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP BID
In a prelude to a planned government breakthrough initiative on Turkey’s European Union membership bid, Parliament is expected to take up the topic some time this week. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul is expected to give a briefing on the bid, and a session of the full Parliament will be held. The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the opposition parties will also express their views on Turkey’s efforts to join the Union. /Turkiye/

DE SOTO: “I ADMIRE DENKTAS’S DECISION TO OPEN CYPRUS’ BORDER GATES”
Speaking to Greek Cypriot daily Politis yesterday, UN Special Envoy to Cyprus Alvaro de Soto said that he welcomed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas’s recent decision to open the border gates for crossings between the island’s two nations. “Denktas has clear beliefs,” said de Soto. “I greatly admire him. His views are firm, and he doesn’t easily change his stance. The problem is that he was unable to bring a realistic resolution to the Cyprus issue during our talks.” De Soto remarked that he was surprised by Denktas’s decision to open the borders between the TRNC and Greek Cyprus since, in his view, the TRNC president had declared that the island’s Turkish and Greek residents could not live together. “Free border crossings are a sign of a changing policy on Cyprus, and his decision to open the borders was the correct one,” said de Soto. “My astonishment concerning the borders is due to my pleasure.” The envoy added that both sides should accept UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Cyprus plan as soon as possible in order to find a permanent resolution to the issue. /Aksam/

TURKISH BUSINESSMEN TO VISIT WASHINGTON IN BID FOR SHARE OF IRAQ’S RECONSTRUCTION
More than 100 Turkish businessmen are due to fly to Washington today to seek contract opportunities in Iraq’s postwar reconstruction process. The businessmen are scheduled to hold a series of meetings with representatives from a group of US companies which are likely to receive the lion’s share of the reconstruction pie. The Turkish businessmen, however, are also expected to win a substantial share, especially in the food and construction sectors. /Hurriyet/

FOREIGN TRADE UNDERSECRETARY KAYALAR: “FOR NOW, THE LIRA’S RISE AGAINST THE DOLLAR POSES NO THREAT TO EXPORTS”
The rise of the Turkish lira’s value against the dollar in recent months is no cause for concern, said Foreign Trade Undersecretary Tuncer Kayalar yesterday. “This rise doesn’t pose any threat to our exports,” said Kayalar. “The bulk of Turkey’s exports are to European Union countries, and currently the lira-euro rates are fine.” Kayalar added that the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government was taking all necessary measures in order to protect the nation’s exporters. /Milliyet/

APRIL INFLATION FIGURES RELEASED
The State Institute of Statistics (DIE) yesterday released month-on-month inflation figures for April. Inflation last month was 1.8% on the wholesale price index (WPI) and 2.1% on the consumer price index (CPI). The figures pushed year-to-year WPI inflation to 35.1% and CPI inflation to 29.5%. /All Papers/

TWO TURKISH WRESTLERS WIN SILVER MEDALS IN EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP
Turkish wrestlers Arif Kama and Fatih Cakiroglu both won silver medals yesterday at the 46th European Freestyle Wrestling Championship held in Riga, Latvia. The Turkish wrestling team competing at the championship came in second with a total of two silver medals and one bronze. /Sabah/

SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION