ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their brief stories in Turkey's press on October 23, 2003. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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CHP CONGRESS TO START TODAY
The 30th Congress of the Republican People's Party (CHP) will start in Ankara today. Talking to the paper, Baykal said that his party had to be governed by a team which would give confidence. Baykal said that ''there are concerns in economy and political field stemming from the Justice and Development Party (AK Party). It is one of the most important missions of us to prevent these concerns from negatively affecting Turkey.''

ERDOGAN:TURKEY BECOMES SOURCE OF INTEREST
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey became the source of interest in the last ten years for businessmen of the EU and regional countries, adding that ''our country gradually gets the place it deserves in world trade.'' Addressing the meeting in which Kyrgyz and Turkish businessmen participated, Prime Minister Erdogan said that the basic priority of the stability policy pursued by the government was to implement the necessary financial discipline and ensure the non-interest surplus targeted in the budget. ''The independence of Central Bank is maintained. There is progress in the inflation target,'' Erdogan added.

MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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DERVIS IS STAR OF CHP
More than the candidates who want to be the leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP), CHP deputy Kemal Dervis and his letter to deputies are on the agenda. The two-day regular congress of CHP will start in Ataturk Sports Hall today. Erol Tuncer, Bedri Baykam and Cemal Ozdemir will compete in the elections which will be held on the first day. However CHP deputy Kemal Dervis's letter to CHP deputies is expected to be the number one issue during the congress. Dervis, who had earlier criticized CHP's organization, applied to such a method. According to the paper, his letter can be considered as an apology.

DENKTAS:U.S. CASTS SHADOW OVER ELECTIONS IN TRNC
TRNC President Rauf Denktas said that Annan plan targeted indirect Enosis and uprooting Turkish nation from the island, stressing that the U.S. cast shadow over the elections in TRNC. Noting that U.S. Cyprus envoy Weston went too far in his statements and showed him as a target to TRNC people, Denktas said that the U.S. which warned Turkey not to interfere with elections, started to do it itself. Denktas added that he would not meet with Weston who came to the island, but his undersecretary would meet with Weston.

SABAH (LIBERAL)
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GUL'S VIEWS DIFFERENT FROM THOSE OF GEN. OZKOK
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul has been the first Turkish foreign minister who finished his visit to Greece while nobody talked against him in Greece. However his statements to Greek state tv channel NET contradicted with an earlier interview made with Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok which was published in Greek press. Gen. Ozkok had stated that ''if progress is recorded in Turkey-EU relations, Aegean problems and other problems with Greece could be solved in one week.'' Gul, on the other hand, told the Greek journalist who referred to the statements of Gen. Ozkok that ''our government launches great efforts to solve all the problems with Greece. We want to solve the problems before EU membership. We are resolved in this issue, because we believe that we can have better relations within EU family after solving our problems.''

CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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LORD ROBERTSON IN ANKARA
NATO Secretary General George Robertson will come to Turkey today.
Robertson, whose term in office will finish at the end of 2003, will come to Turkey within the scope of his farewell visits to capitals of NATO member and partnership countries. Robertson will meet with President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul, National Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul and Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok.

U.S. WAITS FOR DECISION OF TURKEY
U.S. Treasury Undersecretary for International Affairs John Taylor said that there was no problem about the 8.5 billion dollars of credit which U.S. would give to Turkey. He added that the first tranche could be given when the Turkish government wanted it.

RADIKAL (LEFT)
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BOSNIA SAYS FAREWELL TO IZZETBEGOVIC
Alia Izzetbegovic, the first leader of Bosnia-Herzegovina after the country gained its independence was buried yesterday. Totally 150,000 persons attended the funeral. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, Finance Minister Kemal Unakıtan, State Minister Ali Babacan and a crowded delegation from Turkey were in the funeral.

SIMITIS:WE SHOULDN'T WAIT TILL TO THE LAST MINUTE
Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis received Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul in Athens yesterday. Simitis said that ''the year 2004 is critical for Turkey's relations with the EU. We shouldn't wait until the last moment to solve the problems in Cyprus and Aegean.''

TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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U.S. WARNS PKK
U.S. which took into consideration the conditions of Turkey to send soldiers to Iraq took the first important step regarding the terrorist organization PKK/KADEK. Turkey had told U.S. side that the existance of 5,000 terrorists in the north of Iraq constituted a threat. CIA officials who went to the camp of the terrorist organization PKK/KADEK in north of Iraq last week, told terrorists to give up their weapons.

TURKEY'S AID REACHES IRAQ
The distribution of the humanitarian aid sent by Turkey's Red Crescent reached Baghdad and started to be distributed to poor families. Iraqis who got the aid said that they were grateful to Turkey which worried about Iraqis.
ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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FIVE WEAK POINTS IN EU COMMISSION'S PROGRESS REPORT ON TURKEY
European Union (EU) Commission will publish its Progress Report on Turkey on November 5. The progress report is particularly important regarding the critical decisions which EU would give about Turkey during its summit to be held in December 2004. EU Commission is expected to appreciate the AK Party government due to its resolved attitude in the reform process. However the Commission is expected to criticize Turkey saying ''the courts interpret the laws not from an liberalist point of view. Bureaucracy does not fulfill its mission in the EU process. Problems regarding the freedom of expression and to right to get organized continue. Education practices in mother tongue are not at the desired level. The reform law which permitted broadcasting in mother tongue could not be put into practice.''

(ÖŞ-AY) 23.10.2003