ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their brief stories in Turkey's press on February 29, 2004. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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SCHROEDER: WE SUPPORT TURKEY ON EU PATH
U.S. President George Bush received German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder at the White House for the first time after Iraq crisis. Schroeder, who had given positive messages to Turkey on EU issue in his visit to Ankara last week, told Bush that they supported Turkey on the path to EU.

FISCHER: WE NEED TURKEY IN EU
German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer supported statements of German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder about Turkey's European Union (EU) membership. Fischer said that they needed Turkey to be in EU for a big Europe.

DENKTAS: TURKEY FORCED US
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas told reporters yesterday that impositions which could not be seen in any place of the world were made on TRNC. He added that they were saying Annan Plan could not be negotiated, but when Turkey started to say it could be negotiated, the resistance of TRNC was broken.

MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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IT IS NOT EASY TO BE TURKISH
Competition increased in Western Thrace where Turkish people are highly populated before March 7 elections in Greece. Ten Turkish candidates compete with each other for being deputies in Komotini and Xanthi which send three deputies each to Greek Parliament. Turkish people can lose their right of representation at parliament for the first time due to this strong competition among themselves.

ONE MORE EU OBSTACLE LIFTED
Council of State cancelled two more articles of the regulation on search authority of police within the scope of adjustment to the European Union (EU). Police cannot search suspects without the decision of judge and public prosecutor anymore.

SABAH (LIBERAL)
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COX: THIS IS MY MOST IMPORTANT VISIT
European Parliament President Pat Cox will be in Ankara on Monday. Cox says that his visit to Turkey is one of the most important visits of his life. Cox who is one of the most important officials of EU will come to Ankara tomorrow. Cox said that he wanted to see in its place (Turkey) that some problems were sorted out. Cox added that Turkey's EU candidacy would be considered under the same conditions with other candidates. New and special conditions would not be asked from Turkey, he stressed.

CLAIM PUT FORWARD SAYING PKK DIVIDED, OSMAN OCALAN ESCAPES
It was claimed yesterday that the terrorist organization Kongra Gel (PKK) decided to dismiss Osman Ocalan, the brother of Abdullah Ocalan, the head terrorist and a group of top members from the terrorist organization and that Osman Ocalan escaped from the terrorist camp in north of Iraq and went to Barzani for shelter.

CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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GROSSMAN TO SEARCH FOR SUPPORT IN TURKEY
U.S. President George W. Bush speeds up the Middle East project to which he attributes special importance. U.S. State Department Undersecretary Marc Grossman who will visit various countries to find support to the project will come to Turkey next week. Grossman will try to end the doubts about the project during his visits.

100 PKK MEMBERS TAKE SHELTER IN IKDP REGION
The separation among the top members of the terrorist organization PKK/Kongra Gel has become very clear recently. It has been claimed that top members Osman Ocalan, Nizamettin Tas and Kani Yilmaz left the terrorist camps in north of Iraq and took shelter in the region controlled by Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic Party (IKDP) with 100 persons.

RADIKAL (LEFT)
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GREEK CYPRIOTS CAUSE FIRST PROBLEM
According to the schedule of U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, the first committee meeting to choose the national anthem and flag of the new state in Cyprus would be held yesterday. Denktas determined the persons who would be appointed as members of the committee, but the meeting was not held when Greek Cypriot side didn't give any name.

PAPANDREOU:TURKEY SHOULD JOIN EU
The new leader of Greek PASOK Party George Papandreou said that ''Turkey should join the EU as soon as possible, the process is irreversible.''

TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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ABDURRAHMAN: WE ARE TRYING TO SURVIVE
Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF) Chairman Faruk Abdullah Abdurrahman, who came to Ankara before Iraqi Governing Council's new constitution came into force, stressed that Turkmens were considered nonexistent in Iraq. He said that their struggle would continue until they were considered as fundamental elements of Iraqi society.

AGAIN TRUCK, AGAIN BRAKES
A similar tanker disaster like the one that took place in Istanbul, happened in Izmir yesterday. A truck, carrying coal, rammed into vehicles when its brake system failed. Two people died and ten people were injured.

ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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10,000 TEACHERS APPOINTED IN TEN MINUTES VIA INTERNET
National Education Ministry appointed 10,000 teachers in ten minutes via internet yesterday. When National Education Minister Huseyin Celik hit the button, teachers were appointed to all provinces of Turkey in 52 branches.

UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFIT NOT MISUSED IN TURKEY
The claims saying that unemployment benefit would be manipulated in Turkey didn't come true. On the contrary 40,541 persons who received unemployment benefit informed the Employment Agency that they found jobs and they didn't need unemployment benefit anymore.

(GC-Öª) 29.02.2004