PRESIDENT SEZER VISITS EARTHQUAKE REGION
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer accompanied by Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok and Land Forces Commander Gen. Aytac Yalman yesterday visited the earthquake-stricken eastern province of Bingol. Sezer toured the area and was briefed by local officials about the damage wrought by last week’s quake as well as ongoing reconstruction work. Speaking to Bingol residents, Sezer expressed his condolences to the quake victims, adding that the area had been declared a “disaster region” and that the state would meet all the survivors’ needs. /All Papers/

PRIME MINISTER ERDOGAN TO VISIT TRNC
Following a recent invitation from the Turkish Cypriot government, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is due to pay a visit to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Friday. Erdogan is scheduled to meet with TRNC President Rauf Denktas and Prime Minister Dervis Eroglu. In related news, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul yesterday denied rumors that Erdogan would propose a gradual pullback of Turkish troops from the TRNC. The troops were first deployed there in 1974 when Turkey launched a Peace Operation to protect the Turkish Cypriot population following a Greek Cypriot coup. /Cumhuriyet/

GUL: “NEW EU HARMONIZATION PACKAGE IS IMMINENT, TO BE PASSED BY JULY”
Prime Minister Abdullah Gul said yesterday that the government was resolved to pass a new reform package by July to help Turkey further harmonize itself with European Union norms. Gul yesterday received his Kyrgyz Republic counterpart Askar Aytmatov. Following their meeting, Gul told reporters that the government had nearly finished work on the new harmonization package expected to be passed in Parliament before July. Speaking at a meeting held at Turkey’s EU Secretariat General, the foreign minister stated that integrating the nation into the EU had been its most important project for a half-century. Stressing that Turkish-EU relations had reached a critical point in recent years, Gul said that all sectors of society would act together to attain their common EU goal. /Turkiye/

DEFENSE MINISTER GONUL: “NO ALLIANCE HAS BEEN FORMED AGAINST THE US”
Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul said yesterday that allegations of Turkey, Iran and Syria forming an alliance against the United States were patently false. In Washington to attend a meeting on NATO-Ukrainian relations, Gonul delivered a speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) think tank. Denying claims that Turkey had begun to break away from the West, Gonul said that since its foundation the Republic of Turkey had turned its face to the West. “Nobody can change this reality, and nobody has any intention of doing so,” added Gonul. /Turkiye/

WOLFOWITZ CRITICIZES TURKEY FOR NOT BACKING THE US IN IRAQ WAR, SETS OUT FRAMEWORK FOR MENDING TIES
Speaking to CNN Turk yesterday, US Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz criticized Turkey for not backing the United States in its war against Iraq and urged Ankara to now follow Washington’s line in relations with Syria and Iran. He stated that he had been particularly disappointed by the Turkish military. “I think for whatever reason they did not play the strong leadership role ... that we would have expected,” he said. “Turks overwhelmingly opposed war against a fellow Muslim country, fearing it could destabilize the economy and the region. Many analysts believe Turkey’s military did not feel Washington was taking its security concerns seriously, including fears that the strengthening of Iraqi Kurdish groups could inspire Turkey’s Kurdish rebels.” Wolfowitz urged Ankara to step up and say, “We made a mistake … Let's figure out how we can be as helpful as possible to the Americans.” Turning a new page in bilateral relations depends on Turkey’s close cooperation on Iraq, said Wolfowitz, but also on its cooperation concerning Iran and Syria, other regional powers that Washington has accused of sponsoring terrorism. “I’d like to see a different sort of attitude [on Ankara’s part] than I have yet detected,” he said, adding, “Maybe it’s there, I haven’t been to Turkey in a while.” He said that Turkey and the US could still mend ties by closely cooperating in rebuilding Iraq. "We have an opportunity in cooperating on maybe the most important project of this century, which is to build a free, democratic Arab country to the south of Turkey and frankly, if we can work together to achieve that in Iraq, it will more than repair whatever damage has been done," said Wolfowitz. “Turkish companies are keen to participate in Iraq’s reconstruction.” He added that the US hadn’t gotten the full support that it expected, but that Turkey had paid a greater price for that than the US. /Aksam/

GUL: “WOLFOWITZ’S STATEMENTS WERE SINCERE AND PRAGMATIC”
Responding yesterday to remarks by US Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz criticizing Ankara’s stance on the Iraq war, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul called the top defense official’s remarks sincere and pragmatic. “One needs to read the whole statement in order to evaluate it properly,” said Gul. “I did read the whole statement and found it sincere and pragmatic.” Gul added that Wolfowitz had given positive signs in his speech for the further development of Turkish-US relations. /Aksam/

TURKEY TO REOPEN ITS EMBASSY IN BAGHDAD
In light of improved security conditions in Iraq’s capital, Turkey has decided to reopen its embassy in Baghdad, the Foreign Ministry announced yesterday. Ambassador Osman Paksut and the embassy’s staff are set to fly to Iraq tomorrow to resume Turkey’s diplomatic relations with the country in the postwar era. Turkey ordered the facility evacuated for security reasons just before the Iraq war. /Cumhuriyet/

IMF’S KRUEGER ARRIVES IN ANKARA
International Monetary Fund Deputy Manager Director Anne Krueger arrived in Ankara yesterday. Krueger met with State Minister for the Economy Ali Babacan at a banquet at Ankara’s Bilkent Hotel, where they were joined by IMF Executive Director Willy Kiekens and Turkish Treasury Undersecretary Ibrahim Canakci. Krueger and the accompanying IMF delegation are expected to hold a series of meetings with Treasury officials today. /Hurriyet/

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