ISTANBUL - Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that their meetings with international finance organizations in the United States were very good.
Erdogan returned from the United States to Turkey on Sunday and held a press conference at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport.
Stating that they focused on cooperation opportunities in economic and commercial fields in their meetings in the United States, Erdogan said, ''we also found opportunity to explain developments and progress in Turkish economy last one year and its current potential to people in our meetings with several think tanks and businessmen in the United States.''
''Our meeting with international finance organizations was very good. We are very pleased with international finance organizations' positive views about Turkey,'' he noted.
Erdogan said that U.S. President George W. Bush, who would come to Istanbul for NATO summit, and he took up contributions that Turkey could make to reconstruction of Iraq, as it did in Afghanistan.
He added that they saw during meetings in this country that U.S. authorities wanted to further improve relations between the two countries.
ERDOGAN: ''WHEN WE WERE PAYING AN OFFICIAL VISIT TO UNITED STATES, AN OPERATION WAS LAUNCHED AGAINST PKK. OF COURSE, IT WAS NOT A COINCIDENCE''
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said, ''the terrorist organization of PKK was brought onto agenda of our meetings with U.S. officials. When we were paying an official visit to the United States, a statement was made about an operation against the terrorist organization of PKK. Of course, it was not a coincidence.''
Holding a press conference at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport after his return from the United States, Prime Minister Erdogan said, ''the terrorist organization of PKK was brought onto agenda of our meetings with U.S. officials. When we were paying an official visit to the United States, a statement was made about an operation against the terrorist organization of PKK. Of course, it was not a coincidence. It was an expression of our positive efforts and our joint fight against international terrorism.''
Upon a question about lifting of the embargo imposed on Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Prime Minister Erdogan told reporters, ''let's say Turkey fulfilled its responsibilities as a guarantor state and the TRNC carried out its responsibilities with good will, but Greece and the Greek Cypriot side did not fulfill them. In that case, we will bring lifting of embargoes, which have been imposed on the TRNC by violating human rights for 40 years. We believe that the EU-member countries will assume a more positive approach when the issue is brought onto agenda.''
When asked, ''during your speech at Boston's Harvard University, you said that you can cede a certain amount of territory to reach an agreement in Cyprus. What did you mean?'' Prime Minister Erdogan said, ''this is not a new matter. Earlier, President Rauf Denktas of TRNC also mentioned it. The most important thing is to reach a solution. Turkish Cypriot people have been settled in 36 percent of the island. We have taken a step to find a solution to the Cyprus issue. We expect the Greek and Greek Cypriot sides to display the same good-will with us.''
When asked whether or not he got the result that he wanted from his visit to the United States, Erdogan recalled that a resolution on Turkish officials' visit to the United States was submitted to the U.S. Congress and Senate and added that this situation was assessed a success of Turkish lobby in the United States.
Upon questions on meetings with World Bank and IMF, he said that meetings were very good and noted that those organizations also thought that developments in Turkey were very positive.
Asked whether or not those organizations proposed any loan to Turkey, Erdogan said that they did not need such a thing now.
Asked whether the United States had a concrete demand from Turkey, Erdogan said, ''they don't have a concrete demand. As you know, there are joint steps that were earlier taken by the two countries as a requirement of strategic partnership between the two countries. We have been fulfilling those things. We discussed what the two countries can do more.''
(UK-EÖ-AÖ) 01.02.2004