ERDOGAN CALLS ON SOUTH KOREAN BUSINESSMEN TO INVEST IN TURKEY
On the second day of his visit to South Korea, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was received by President Moo-hyun Roh at the Presidential Palace in Seoul. Following the meeting, Erdogan said that the Greek Cypriots should also be willing and determined to reach a permanent settlement on the island until May 1, stressing only the efforts of the Turkish side would not be enough. Reiterating that Turkey supported UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's good will mission, Erdogan said Annan and Bush welcomed and supported the latest initiative launched by Turkey for resuming the Cyprus talks. Stressing that Turkey had become an attractive country for foreign investors, Erdogan said that South Korean investors should benefit from those opportunities. He called on the South Korean businessmen to invest in Turkey’s free zones to boost commercial relations between the two countries. /All Papers/

DENKTAS TO MEET WITH PAPADOPOULOS TODAY
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas and Greek Cyprus leader Tassos Papadopoulos are due to meet today in New York to discuss the Cyprus issue. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan would decide whether to begin negotiations or not after the meeting. In related news, Denktas, who is currently in New York, yesterday met with UN Special Envoy to Cyprus Alvaro de Soto to discuss the issue. Later, speaking at a press conference yesterday, TRNC President Rauf Denktas said that United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan had been in contact with Turkey, Greece and Greek Cyprus, but not with the TRNC. “I don’t know why he had done such a thing,” he said. “We have a lot of things to say to him.” Later, Denktas, Papadopoulos, and Annan are expected to hold a meeting today. /Milliyet/

ANNAN: “I HOPE BOTH TURKISH AND GREEK CYPRIOTS PUT PRESSURE ON THEIR LEADERS FOR A RESOLUTION ON THE ISLAND”
Speaking at a press conference yesterday, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said that he had hoped both Turkish and Greek Cypriots to put pressure on their leaders for a resolution on the island. “I want to say that Cypriots have an historical opportunity to reunify the island,” he said. “I hope they would not miss this chance.” In related news, UN spokesman Fred Eckhard said that Annan wanted to find out the elasticity of both sides. /Aksam/

SIMITIS: “ANNAN’S NEGOTIATION CALENDAR IS LIMITING”
Speaking after his meeting with Greek Cyprus leader Tassos Papadopoulos yesterday, Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis said that UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s negotiation calendar for the Cyprus issue was limiting. “It is time for Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) administration to prove if they really want a resolution,” stated Simitis. Touching on upcoming general elections in Greece, Simitis said that after March’s general elections, the new government which would be elected and Turkey would discuss the security of the island. /Cumhuriyet/

IPUK OFFICIAL VISITS ANKARA
Behram Salih, one of the top leaders of the Iraqi Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (IPUK), yesterday arrived in Ankara to hold a series of contacts. Speaking to reporters at Esenboga Airport, Salih said that during his meetings, he would exchange views with Turkish officials on the recent situation in Iraq and that express IPUK’s gratitude to Turkish government for its aid to Iraqis injured during recent attack in Arbil. /Turkiye/

EGYPTIAN PRESIDENT MUBARAK TO VISIT TURKEY
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is to pay a visit to Turkey tomorrow. Mubarak is expected to meet with President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and senior Turkish officials. A number of ministers, businessmen and journalists will accompany the Egyptian president. “During the visit, the two sides will discuss bilateral ties along with international and regional issues such as Iraq and the Palestinian-Israeli dispute,” said a statement by the Presidential Press Center. /All Papers/

POLISH FOREIGN MINISTER: “WE SUPPORT TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP”
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul who is currently visiting Poland, met yesterday with his Polish counterpart Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz. Following their meeting, at a joint press conference, Gul said that they agreed to further develop bilateral relations. Expressing Turkey’s satisfaction from Poland’s European Union membership, Gul said that Turkey had always supported Poland in NATO and that would continue to do so. Stressing that Turkey placed great importance to Iraq’s stability, Gul said that Turkey would bolster all efforts to be done by NATO to bring peace to that country. For his part, Cimoszewicz said that Turkey was a modern and democratic country representing Islam world and that Poland fully supported Turkey’s EU membership. Pointing to a NATO summit to be held in Istanbul, he said that Poland wanted NATO to be involved in the Iraq issue. /Turkiye/

BAHCELI: “ANNAN’S PLAN IS A TRAP”
Nationalist Action Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli said yesterday that UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Cyprus plan was a trap to lead Turkish Cypriots becoming a minority nation on the island. During his visit to Motherland Party (ANAP) leader Nesrin Nas, Bahceli said that Turkish side faced with a fait accompli. Stressing that the foreign minister called on all institutions and public to help them to solve such an important issue, Nas said that all political parties should be fully briefed on the topic by the government to contribute to this process. /Turkiye/

EU COMMISSION APPROVES € 35 MILLION SUPPORT FOR CROSS-BORDER CO-OPERATION BETWEEN GREECE AND TURKEY
The European Commission adopted a cross-border co-operation programme between Greece and Turkey, which covers the whole of the eligible neighbouring regions of the two countries for the period 2004-2006. “Developing cross-border co-operation between Greece and Turkey marks a historic milestone in the relations between both countries,” said Michel Barnier, Commissioner in charge of regional policy. “This programme is primarily aimed at upgrading the infrastructure in the cross-border area and the development of cross-border co-operation in fields such as business development, environment or culture. I am sure it will have a noticeable impact for the people in the regions concerned and opens a perspective of strengthening relations in the future.” The programme’s main objectives are to promote sustainable development of the cross-border region and economic co-operation. /Sabah/

TOBB DELEGATION VISITS BAGHDAD, MEETS WITH BREMER
A delegation from the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodities Exchanges (TOBB), led by TOBB Chairman Rifat Hisarciklioglu yesterday met with Paul Bremer, US chief administrator in Iraq. Speaking afterwards, Bremer said that positive developments had been achieved regarding Iraq’s security, but the issue had not been totally solved yet. “Efforts to ensure internal security succeeded, but there are still some problems stemming from outside Iraq,” he said and predicted that the country would become more secure in 12-18 months. Bremer stated that regional countries were interested in undertaking projects in Iraq, adding that Turkish companies would decide whether or not to undertake projects in the country after visiting there. Later, the delegation met with Thomas Foley, the director of private sector development in Iraq. Speaking afterwards, Foley said that timing of the delegation’s visit was appropriate and that Turkey was a good trade partner of Iraq. /Cumhuriyet/