SEZER TO FLY TO ROMANIA TODAY FOR TRILATERAL SUMMIT
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer is due to fly to Romania today for a trilateral summit between Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria where he will meet with his counterparts from those countries, Ion Iliescu and Georgi Purvanov. The three presidents are expected to exchange views on a number of regional and international issues as well as cooperation between the three countries. /Star/

GUL TO PARTICIPATE IN NATO FOREIGN MINISTERS’ SPRING MEETINGS
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul is set to participate in the NATO foreign ministers’ spring meetings beginning in Madrid, Spain today. Gul is to expected meet with his counterparts from fellow member countries at the North Atlantic Council, NATO’s top decision-making body. The council is to review the implementation of decisions and initiatives begun at last year’s Prague summit. /Star/

DENKTAS: “IF TURKS WERE EXPANSIONIST, GREEK CYPRUS WOULD BE TURKISH LAND BY NOW”
Greek Cyprus would have already been Turkish land if the Turks had any expansionist tendencies, said Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas yesterday. Taking sharp exception to Greek Cypriot leader Tassos Papadopoulos’ recent remarks that talks between Turkish and Greek Cyprus would be aimed towards ending the “Turkish invasion” of the island, Denktas charged that Papadopoulos was deliberately turning a blind eye to massacres of Turks perpetrated by the Greek Cypriots between 1963 and 1974, when Turkey itself intervened in the cause of peace. “Pretending as if nothing happened during those years will avail Papadopoulos nothing,” added Denktas. /Hurriyet/

US REJECTS TURKISH CALL FOR ANNUAL PARTNERSHIP MEETINGS
Washington has rejected Ankara’s call to hold annual meetings of the Joint Defense Group and Economic Partnership Group, two important bodies reinforcing partnership relations between Turkey and the US. The US rejection was characterized by some sources as a reaction to Turkey’s “less-than-supportive” attitude towards the US in its war against Iraq. /Hurriyet/

TURKEY, GREECE CONTINUE TO DISCUSS AEGEAN ISSUES
Turkey and Greece are continuing contacts to find resolutions to their issues over the Aegean. Yesterday, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal met with Greek Foreign Ministry Secretary-General Anastase Skopelitis in Ankara. Following their three-and-a-half hour meeting, the officials said that their talks had been fruitful. Turkey wants to comprehensively address such issues as the continental shelves, airspace, islets and territorial waters, while Greece claims that the sole Aegean issue is continental shelves, which it says should be decided by the Court of International Justice. The next meeting on these issues is scheduled to be held in Athens in July. /Cumhuriyet/

CICEK: “TURKEY’S EU BID IS A VITAL ISSUE, ONE WHICH THE NATION CAN’T FORSAKE”
Speaking after yesterday’s six-hour Cabinet meeting, Justice Minister and government spokesman Cemil Cicek said that the nation’s European Union membership bid was a vital issue for Turkey, one which the nation could not forsake. “The government’s National Program will be published at the end of this month,” said Cicek. He said that Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul had briefed his fellow Cabinet ministers on recent developments concerning Turkey’s EU bid, adding that the stance of the EU countries had been very positive of late and that the government would carry out all needed reforms as soon as possible. “Parliament will work overtime if necessary to pass the EU harmonization package,” he stated, saying that the government didn’t want to miss the EU opportunity and that there was no need for hesitation on the package. Also touching on social security and health services, Cicek said that members of both public and private pension funds could now receive medical treatment at health institutions affiliated with the Health and Labor and Social Security Ministries. /Turkiye/

GEN. OZKOK: “BY LEAVING KADEK OFF ITS TERRORIST GROUP LIST, THE EU IS ENCOURAGING TERRORISM”
The European Union is effectively encouraging the terrorist organization KADEK-PKK by not including its most recent name on the Union’s official list of terrorist groups, Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok charged yesterday. Speaking at the opening day of the Silk Road-2003 Flag Officers Seminar, Ozkok stated that terrorism was one of the most dire issues facing the world today. “KADEK’s absence from the EU list constitutes a kind of support for the bloody acts this terrorist organization has perpetrated up to now,” he asserted. Last spring – after years of delay – the EU added the PKK to its terrorist list, whereupon the terrorist group quickly changed its name to KADEK, which has yet to be added to the list. In addition, Ozkok stressed that Turkey wanted to participate actively in the reconstruction of Iraq and make substantial contributions to that process. He also called for the preservation of Iraq’s sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as the use of its natural resources to provide prosperity for the Iraqi people. /Turkiye/

CB HEAD TO MEET WITH ERDOGAN TO DISCUSS RECENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS, POSSIBLE INTEREST RATE CUT
Central Bank Governor Sureyya Serdengecti is expected to meet with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan today to brief him on recent economic developments and the CB’s monetary policy. During the meeting, Serdengecti will reportedly discuss the balance between interest rates and currency exchange rates. One of the key issues to be discussed at the meeting could be a possible interest rate cut, an issue on which the CB has yet to decide. The CB is weighing the issue on the basis of recent inflation figures, the budget, and monetary policy. Serdengecti last week also briefed Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan on recent developments on Turkey’s budget. In related news, State Minister for the Economy Ali Babacan reiterated yesterday that the CB was an autonomous institution which would independently decide on a possible interest rate cut. “Price stability is important, but I believe that the CB will also consider other factors,” said Babacan. /Milliyet/

ANNUAL CURRENT ACCOUNT DEFICIT REVISED UPWARD TO $6.1 BILLION
State Minister for the Economy Ali Babacan announced yesterday that Turkey’s expected annual current account deficit, previously set at $3.7 billion, had been revised to $6.1 billion due to problems in structural reforms. He cited appreciation of the lira, higher private sector demand, and the Iraq war’s negative effects on tourism as factors driving the revision. “We’ve also revised our tourism revenues to $7.9 billion,” added Babacan. “However, April statistics show the primary surplus target of 6.5% on track. We have taken all necessary measures to reach this goal.” Babacan added that structural reforms had been deviated from somewhat, but that regulations as part of these reforms would be completed as soon as possible. /Milliyet/

ERDOGAN RECEIVES HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL CHAMPIONS
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday received members of the Bursa Cinar High School boy’s basketball team, winners of a gold medal at last week’s World High School Basketball Championships held in Brazil. Erdogan and Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin both congratulated the young athletes on their success. /Turkiye/

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