ANKARA - Justice and Development Party (AK Party) leader and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that Turkish-U.S. relations continued on a sound basis and on the basis of strategical partnership.
Speaking at the group meeting of his party, Erdogan evaluated the EU summit held in Thessaloniki.
Erdogan said the performance exhibited by Turkey in the recent months about adjustment with the EU created amazement in everybody, stating that the EU leaders also pointed out this.
Erdogan said because of those developments, Turkey was accepted as a member to the Intergovernmental Commission, which would determine future of the EU and prepare and approve EU Law.
Erdogan said positive developments strengthened their determination to fulfill legal arrangements and to put implementations into enforcement.
Erdogan said, ''with this determination, we will complete the legal arrangements we should do, and be very careful on implementation. I would like to thank EU leaders and organs who contributed positively to Turkey's EU process.''
''I would like to share a sincere idea of mine with you in this respect: Turkey will start full membership negotiations in the date that had been set. You should not have doubt about this. We overcome the obstacles in front of us and continue the process,'' Erdogan said.
Expressing determination to fulfill legal arrangements to implement Copenhagen Criteria soon, Erdogan said, ''adjustment and implementation are very important in this respect. What is important is to put those arrangements into implementation. The rest depends on the decision that would be taken by the EU countries.''
Erdogan said National Program was on their agenda primarily in this framework, adding that the previous National Program was prepared as if it was a government program. Prime Minister Erdogan said that program was not negotiated at the Parliament, stating that, ''several developments took place since that time. This is natural. Turkey's position and place changed.''
''The National Program had to be revised and re-written,'' Erdogan said, and recalled that studies of Foreign Ministry were discussed in yesterday's Council of Ministers meeting.
Erdogan said they did not want the National Program to be only a government program.
Erdogan said the draft National Program would be presented to Republican People's Party, several other parties, and NGO's after foreign ministry and justice ministry review the studies.
Prime Minister Erdogan said Turkish-U.S. relations progressed on a solid basis and in the basis of strategical partnership despite pessimistic statements, adding that, ''Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal's visit to the United States last week was beneficial in this respect. Turkey made several proposals to the United States regarding re-building of Iraq, and the sides exchanged views in this respect. A decision was taken about transportation of Iraq oil to Iskenderun within the scope of humanitarian aid to Iraq, and its marketing from there to the world markets. Also, a decision was taken for the trucks to transport gasoline in their return to Iraq.''
Erdogan said with this implementation the promise given to the contractors would be fulfilled. He said 300 truck-tankers who wait at the region, thus would be assigned in transportation of oil.
ERDOGAN: TURKEY RELATIONS WITH NEIGHBORING COUNTRIES AND FRIENDLY RELATIONS SUCH AS PAKISTAN AND MALAYSIA WILL MAKE CONCRETE CONTRIBUTIONS TO PROSPERITY OF BOTH THE REGION AND THE WORLD
Erdogan gave information about his visits to Pakistan, Malaysia and Greece.
''Some circles have been trying to categorize our visits to Pakistan and Malaysia with some outdated and dilapidated concepts and approaches. In fact, these relations cannot be considered an alternative to our political, military and cultural relations with the Western world in the levels of planning and implementation. Our interlocutors in Malaysia and Pakistan did not describe our visits in such a way. On the contrary, both Pakistan and Malaysia attribute great importance to our relations with the West. They think that setting up closer and more productive relations with Turkey is of great importance in regard to their relations with Europe,'' he said.
Recalling that an agreement was reached during his visits about Turkish Airlines' (THY) flights to Pakistan, Prime Minister Erdogan said, ''this agreement is enough to prove Turkey's influential geographical position between the East and the West.''
Stressing that there were not separate agendas for the East and the West, Prime Minister Erdogan said, ''our relations with the European Union (EU) shape, deepen and enrich our relations with the other regions.''
''During the World Economic Forum meetings in Jordanian capital Amman last week, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said that Iraq was a neighbor of the EU. If Germany, one of the locomotive countries of the EU, has begun considering Iraq like this, it means that Germany accepted Turkey as a part of the EU,'' he said.
Prime Minister Erdogan continued, ''when our financial relations with both Pakistan and Malaysia are further improved besides our historical and cultural relations, this will have a positive impact on our interlocutors in the EU. Turkey's relations with neighboring countries and friendly countries such as Pakistan and Malaysia will make concrete contributions to prosperity of both the region and the world.''
''Trade volume between Turkey and Pakistan is about 156 billion U.S. dollars. This amount is far away from the desired levels. We do not have any problems with Pakistan. We should further improve our bilateral relations,'' he said.
Erdogan emphasized, ''Turkey's credibility has increased. The whole world appreciated settlement of legal, political and social confidence in Turkey. We do not lose our rely on Turkey even in the most pessimistic days. At the current point, Turkey has overcome its pessimistic atmosphere and launched a great initiative to heal wounds of the past.
''Turkey has suffered and paid a heavy price for years. The whole world has been monitoring our multidimensional policy and stable administration with admiration,'' he added.
(UK-AÖ) 24.06.2003