ERDOGAN MEETS WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF NGOs IN TRABZON
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday met with representatives of non-governmental organizations in Trabzon in the wake of the murder last month of Hrant Dink, a Turkish journalist of Armenian descent. Ogun Samast, Dink's confessed murderer, came from the Black Sea city. During the meeting, Erdogan said that people should guard against provocations, adding that rather than brandishing guns, he wants to see young people shaping humanity with pencils and pens in hand. Commenting on arguments that Trabzon doesn't deserve to be linked to Dink's violent death, Erdogan said that a person from any province could have committed the murder. "We shouldn't allow those who want to shatter our unique structure and the hopes of our children," stressed Erdogan. /Milliyet/

ARINC: "WE WILL NOMINATE AN AKP DEPUTY FOR PRESIDENT"
Appearing on television yesterday, Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc commented on this May's presidential election to be held in Parliament, saying that the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AKP) candidate would come from inside the government. "The candidate will be from inside the AKP and will be a deputy," said Arinc. Commenting on claims that he would choose the candidate in cooperation with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (a likely candidate himself) and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, Arinc rejected this as a "dictatorial" method. "We couldn't do this, because doing so would show disrespect to Parliament," added Arinc. /Sabah/

CHIEF OF STAFF BUYUKANIT IN WASHINGTON FOR VISIT
Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit is now visiting Washington as the official guest of his US counterpart Gen Peter Pace. Besides Pace, Buyukanit will meet with Vice President Dick Cheney, US Undersecretary of Defense for Policy and former US Ambassador to Ankara Eric Edelman, and Chief of Staff of the US Army Gen. Peter Schoomaker. Buyukanit is also scheduled to speak at a think-thank, where he is expected to convey his views on the terrorist PKK and the so-called Armenian resolution before Congress. /Star/

BAYKAL: "WE NEED TO WAGE A DETERMINED FIGHT AGAINST COUNTRIES WHO SHELTER TERRORISTS"
Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal said yesterday that a determined fight was needed against countries which provide shelter for terrorists. Speaking to reporters after the 43rd International Security Conference in Munich , Baykal stated that all countries should fight terrorism, adding that the conference participants agreed that terror couldn't be countered through arms alone. "The fight against terrorism should be considered comprehensively," he added. Later, Baykal returned to Turkey . /Turkiye/

AGAR: "POLITICS REQUIRES LOYALTY AND DETERMINATION"
Speaking at a weekend ceremony marking the 46th anniversary of the founding of the Justice Party (AP), a now-defunct party that was the predecessor of his own, opposition True Path Party (DYP) leader Mehmet Agar said that politics requires loyalty and determination. Agar stressed that the AP was the first party to have a presence all across Turkey , adding that it didn't abandon its principles in the face of change. Agar added that the AP did the greatest service to the nation in Turkish history. /Turkiye/

AUSTRALIAN FM DOWNER VISITS TURKEY
Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer is now visiting Turkey as the official guest of his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul. During his stay, Downer will also meet with President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc. Additionally, he will meet with Hikmet Cetin, a former Parliament speaker and NATO senior civilian representative in Afghanistan . /Cumhuriyet/

BABACAN TO VISIT BRUSSELS
Turkey's chief European Union negotiator Ali Babacan will visit Brussels on Thursday and Friday for talks with EU officials. Babacan will meet with European Commission Vice President Guenter Verheugen, European Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn and other five members of the European Commission during his two-day visit. Babacan is set to discuss issues such as Turkey 's negotiation process and the chapters on which its negotiations can start, and is also expected to brief EU officials on last month's murder of journalist Hrant Dink and recent developments on Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK). /Star/

US CHARGE D'AFFAIRES MEETS WITH DYP OFFICIALS
U.S. Embassy Charge d'Affaires Nancy McEldowney hosted a weekend luncheon at the embassy with several opposition True Path Party (DYP) officials: deputy leader Nedim Bilgic, Gultekin Uysal, Umut Arik, Hatay Deputy Mehmet Eraslan, Denizli Deputy Ummet Kandogan and Ankara Regional Director Bulent Kusoglu. During the luncheon, topics of discussion included the so-called Armenian resolution facing the US Congress, the terrorist PKK, Iraq and last month's murder of journalist Hrank Dink. /Aksam/