SEZER: “CORRUPTION LED TO THE BINGOL DISASTER”
Last week’s earthquake disaster in Bingol stemmed from corruption and ignorance rather than natural causes, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer said yesterday. Speaking at a conference entitled “Forging Tomorrow, Target 2003” in Istanbul, Sezer said that Turkey’s aim was to establish a powerful economy and democracy. “We will reach this goal through our dynamic young people, successful entrepreneurs and wealth of rich natural resources and possibilities,” stated Sezer. Regarding the devastating Bingol earthquake, the president said, “This quake was a tragic reminder of how the future can go awry. The disaster of this quake resulted from ignorance, corruption and flouting the rules rather than true natural causes.” He added that these factors were the main obstacles to Turkey’s modernization and so must be resisted. /Turkiye/

ERDOGAN ADDRESSES GOVERNORS IN ANKARA
The governors of Turkey’s 81 provinces gathered in Ankara yesterday. Addressing the meeting, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey needs practical-minded, positive leaders who are open to dialogue and committed to spread rights and freedoms in the nation’s march forward. Stressing that the governors bear a great responsibility, Erdogan asked them to work in coordination with the government in Ankara. /Turkiye/

GUL: “IT’S HIGH TIME FOR THE TRNC EMBARGO TO END”
The time has come for the lifting of the 20-year illegal embargo on the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), declared Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul yesterday. Speaking with Britain’s Financial Times, Gul argued that ending the TRNC’s economic isolation would help build momentum for reconciliation on the island. “Let’s build some confidence on the ground, then we won’t have much left to solve at the negotiating table,” said Gul, adding, “It’s high time for the European Union and others to lift the embargo.” Turkey’s top diplomat hailed the TRNC’s decision last month to open its border gates with Greek Cyprus as a “courageous” move. “What we did not achieve on paper through negotiation, we achieved on the ground,” he said. Addressing Turkey’s EU membership bid, he said he would work to make sure EU harmonization laws are observed in practice. “I’m emphasizing that passing [EU accession] legislation is important, but implementing it is more important,” stated Gul. /Turkiye/

OSMAN PEPE NAMED HEAD OF MERGED FOREST AND ENVIRONMENT MINISTRY
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer yesterday approved the appointment of Osman Pepe, former forest minister, to head the newly merged Forest and Environment Ministry. Kursat Tuzmen, the former environment minister, was also confirmed in his new post as state minister. /Turkiye/

VERHEUGEN ALLEGES LACK OF RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN TURKEY, URGES PROGRESS ON RIGHTS
Turkey needs to improve its record on respecting rights and freedoms, in particular religious freedom, in order to advance its European Union membership bid, said EU Commissioner for Enlargement Guenter Verheugen yesterday. Speaking during a visit to the Vatican, Verheugen said that the Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) desire to get Turkey into the Union was evident, adding that any step towards this goal would be positive. “However, Turkey still has many problems, especially concerning basic rights,” said Verheugen. “Another problem is the lack of religious freedom in Turkey.” /Aksam/

BOUCHER: “THE US WAS DISAPPOINTED, BUT WE VALUE OUR CONTINUED RELATIONS WITH TURKEY”
Echoing recent similar statements by his colleagues US Secretary of State Colin Powell and Undersecretary Marc Grossman, US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher told a press conference on Wednesday that Turkey had disappointed Washington earlier this year by rejecting US troop deployment in the country, but emphasized the importance of Turkish-US relations and continued cooperation in the future. “We were disappointed by the way events unfolded in Turkey. The operations from Turkey did not receive the parliamentary majority that was necessary to make the deployments,” said Boucher. “We believed that cooperation was in Turkey's interest as well as ours.” Stating that the US placed great importance on its relations with Turkey, Boucher remarked that Washington has stressed its desire to work with Ankara on many issues concerning the stability and reconstruction of Iraq, as well as a “free political future” for the country. /Cumhuriyet/

TOP US OFFICIAL: “WE HAVE NO HIDDEN AGENDA; WE OPPOSE ANY KURDISH STATE IN NORTHERN IRAQ”
The US administration, respecting the country’s territorial integrity, does not support the establishment of an independent Kurdish state in northern Iraq, a top-level US official who wished to remain anonymous said yesterday. The official stated that the US had no secret agenda in northern Iraq and so Turkey had no reasons for concern. “We have stressed publicly and privately on numerous occasions that we don’t want a Kurdish state,” said the official. “Turkey should stop looking for hidden meanings in what we say. We mean exactly what we tell Turkey.” /Sabah/

ITALIAN PM BERLUSCONI TO VISIT TURKEY
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is scheduled to visit Turkey next Monday. During his two-day stay in Ankara, Berlusconi is set to meet with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan as well as other top-level state officials. On the expected agenda of the meeting are Turkish-EU relations, issues concerning Iraq and the Middle East as well as bilateral relations between Turkey and Italy. On July 1, Italy is due to assume the rotating presidency of the European Union. /Cumhuriyet/

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT SUSPENDS LAW ON COMPULSORY RETIREMENT
The Constitutional Court yesterday ruled to suspend a law establishing a younger compulsory retirement age for public servants. Under the suspended law, the retirement age was reduced from 65 to 61, and many civil servants, including top state officials, had been forced to quit their posts. The opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) had applied to the Constitutional Court to have the law annulled. The court’s decision opens the way for those who retired due to the law to return to their posts by applying to administrative courts. /All Papers/

KRUEGER: TURKEY MUST CARRY OUT ITS FISCAL PLEDGES AND ECONOMIC REFORMS”
Speaking at a conference in Istanbul yesterday, International Monetary Fund First Managing Director Anne Krueger said that Turkey must diligently carry out its fiscal pledges and economic reforms before the IMF will pay its next credit tranche of $16 billion. Asked what the Fund would do if Turkey failed to keep its pledges, Krueger replied that then it would be impossible to complete the review of the economic program. “There are things that must be done by the Justice and Development Party [AKP] government,” said Krueger. “The IMF paid a $700 million credit tranche last month that had been long held up by Turkish delays on reforms.” Krueger remarked that any additional budget revenues from a tax amnesty should be used to bring down Turkey’s high debt stock. “Now the situation is manageable,” she said. “However, this also provides an awful lot of room for maneuvering.” Krueger added that the Fund was distrustful of tax amnesties. Speaking at the same conference, IMF Executive Director Willy Kiekens said that founding the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) nearly three years ago was one of Turkey’s most important reforms and that Ankara’s continued implementation of the economic program would also advance the nation’s European Union membership bid. Kiekens said that international organizations as the IMF and the World Bank were key institutions for aiding growth. /Milliyet/

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