ECONOMIC CONGRESS TO BRING ERDOGAN, MERKEL TOGETHER
A long-awaited meeting between Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will finally take place in Berlin when the two leaders will both participate in the Turkish-German Economy Congress to be held by the Turkish-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (TDIHK) in late May. The first Turkish-German Economy Congress was held last May in Istanbul with the participation of Erdogan and then-Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. /Turkish Daily News/
GUL TO SEEK RICE'S SUPPORT OVER CYPRUS
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul will meet with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice twice next week. During their talks, Gul reportedly will seek Rice's support for Turkey's Cyprus action plan announced in January. Welcoming Gul's invitation to Turkey, Rice is expected to arrive in Ankara before or after the unofficial NATO-European Union summit in Sofia, Bulgaria on next Thursday. She is set to be received by President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In addition to Cyprus and Iraq, as well as the Middle East issue, recent developments in Iran are also expected to dominate their talks. Furthermore, afterwards, Rice will also visit Athens to exchange views on the Cyprus issue. /Aksam-Turkiye/
ARINC TOUTS HEALTHCARE REFORMS
Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc said yesterday that the most important reforms in recent years in Turkey had been done in health care. Addressing a gathering at Manisa State Hospital, Arinc stated that promoting health is one of the main duties of the state. Pointing to recent developments in the system, the speaker said Turkey had very good health personnel, equipment and facilities. /Turkiye/
GOVT SPOKESMAN CICEK: "ANTI-TERROR LAW WILL BE SENT TO PARLIAMENT"
Speaking after yesterday's Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, government spokesman Cemil Cicek said that the signing of the anti-terrorism bill has been completed and that it will be sent to Parliament. Speaking about the law, Cicek said that no single law could defeat terrorism, adding, "The target of this law isn't our citizens, but those who willingly help terrorist groups will face harsher sentences." /Star/
DYP'S AGAR CALLS FOR EARLY ELECTIONS
Addressing a meeting of his party yesterday, opposition True Path Party (DYP) leader Mehmet Agar said that the country needed early elections. "Early elections will pave the way for the nation," he said. Speaking afterwards, Agar stated that the conditions in Turkey necessitated early elections, adding that especially farmers, retirees, and small businessmen face difficult conditions. /Milliyet/
OZAL REMEMBERED 13 YEARS AFTER HIS DEATH
Beloved Turkish statesman Turgut Ozal was commemorated at his tomb in Istanbul yesterday on the 13th anniversary of his death, with ceremonies held by his family and his former party. At the morning ceremony, the proceedings started with Presidential Secretary-General Kemal Nehrozoglu laying a wreath. His widow, Semra Ozal, said the people loved President Ozal so much that no matter how hard some try, nothing would make them forget his contributions. "They understand him better with the passage of time," she added. /Turkish Daily News/
CZECH PRESIDENT VISITS ANKARA
Czech Republic President Vaclav Klaus arrived in Turkey today on a two-day official visit to further strengthen and develop ties between the two countries. The Czech president will hold a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Necdet Sezer to discuss relations between Turkey and the Czech Republic along with other recent international and regional topics. They also plan to discuss Turkey's European Union membership process. Klaus will also deliver a speech on EU enlargement and Turkey's membership process at Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara. /The New Anatolian/
US EMBASSY: "WE'RE NOT ASKING TURKEY FOR BASES"
The US Embassy in Ankara yesterday said that the US administration wasn't seeking any bases from Turkey. The statement from the embassy denied press reports that the US administration wants to establish three bases in Turkey, saying that the US didn't want to set up any military bases on Turkish soil. In related news, speaking to journalists, Foreign Ministry spokesman Namik Tan called news reports about the matter baseless rumors. /Cumhuriyet/
SPANISH NEWSPAPER: "CERTAIN COUNTRIES ARE WORKING TO BLOCK TURKEY'S EU MEMBERSHIP BID"
Spanish newspaper El Pais said yesterday that France, Denmark, Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration were working to block talks between Turkey and the European Union. Stressing that those countries were putting forward certain criteria which were not political conditions for membership, the paper said this constituted an effort to make the negotiations difficult for Ankara. As an example, the article said recently, these four countries claimed that there had been discrimination in Turkey regarding the education of women and girls, adding that that matter should be included as a criterion in talks on culture. However, that was rejected by other members of the EU, said the article. /Turkiye/
IRAN'S HEZBOLLAH THREATENS TURKEY IF IT AIDS ATTACK
Iran's Hezbollah leader Seyyed Mohammad Bager Kharrazi yesterday said, "If the US strikes Iran, we will stage suicide attacks on US targets throughout the world and if Turkey cooperates with the US, we will also take Turkey as a target." Speaking to news channel NTV, Kharrazi said, "If the US uses bases in Turkey and gets help from Turkey, we also attack Turkey. We'll fight back no matter who helps Iran's attacker." /Milliyet/
MESROB II TO ATTEND ARMENIAN CONFERENCE
Mesrob II, the Armenian patriarch of Turkey, will attend for the first time a conference on the Armenian issue entitled, "The Art of Co-Existence in Ottoman Society: The Case of the Turkish-Armenian Relations." Mesrob II confirmed that he would attend the three-day conference beginning Thursday in Kayseri and said, "I am going to the conference this time because it's been organized by young, well-intentioned academics. They came to Istanbul and sincerely told their stance." Professor Metin Hulagu, deputy dean of the Faculty of Science and Letters of Erciyes University, said that the participation of the patriarch was very important for them, and added, "We spoke face to face with Mesrob II in Istanbul. We told him our aim. We told him that we're not destructive but constructive. And he agreed to attend the conference and give a speech." /Hurriyet/
TRNC'S DENKTAS SPEAKS AT CANKAYA UNIVERSITY
Speaking at Ankara's Cankaya University, former Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas criticized the "dishonesty" of international actors towards his state. Without mentioning which government or bloc he means, Denktas said, "The TRNC is 23 years old. When they speak to us they say `TRNC' but when they speak to others, they say `Northern Cyprus.' They say, `Lift the embargo for the Cypriot Turks, not for the TRNC.' You cannot ignore a state which you recognize just because others ignore it. This TRNC is not anything to be ashamed of." /Hurriyet/
BABACAN: "INTEREST RATES HAVE FALLEN CONSIDERABLY IN RECENT YEARS"
Speaking at a press conference at the Treasury Undersecretariat yesterday, State Economy Minister Ali Babacan said that interest rates in Turkey had fallen considerably since 2003, but added that they were still too high. "Interest rates fell in a period when elsewhere in the world they were going up," said Babacan. Touching on the current account deficit, Babacan said that there was no need for worry. "Last year, the deficit was $23 billion, which was 6.3% of our gross national product (GNP)," he said. "In the last three years, the percentage of the deficit to the GNP increased by 3 points. Countries in a European Union membership process always have a high current account deficit." He further stressed that the government would continue to maintain a 6.5% primary surplus in order to control the deficit. Babacan stated that the private sector had contributed to Turkey's growth since 2003, adding that the economy had a sound structure. /Aksam/