ANKARA - Presidential Chief Adviser for Foreign Affairs Sermet Atacanli said on Friday that they hoped final result that would be reached in Cyprus would protect interests of Turkey and Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).
Speaking at a news briefing at Cankaya Palace, Atacanli stressed the importance of Cyprus for Turkey.
Atacanli stressed that talks continued on Cyprus, and noted that an evaluation meeting could take place in Ankara prior to the talks that would take place in Switzerland.
Mentioning the temporary constitution signed in Iraq, Atacanli said Turkey had several concerns on the issue, and noted that this concern was conveyed to related people, mainly the authorities in the United States.
''We hope our concerns will be taken in to consideration,'' Atacanli added.
Atacanli expressed the sorrow President Ahmet Necdet Sezer felt over the terrorist attacks in Spain, and stressed the importance of growing international cooperation in fight against terrorism.
ATACANLI STRESSES IMPORTANCE OF INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION IN FIGHT WITH TERRORISM
Presidential Chief Adviser for Foreign Affairs Sermet Atacanli pointed out to the importance of international cooperation in fight with terrorism.
Speaking in a news conference held in Presidential Palace, Atacanli said that Turkey conveyed its sorrow and reaction regarding the terrorist attacks in Madrid, Spain to Spanish officials at all levels.
Atacanli noted that President Sezer also expressed his sorrow over the attacks by sending a letter to Spanish King and shared the grief of Spanish people.
''Turkey is very sensitive about this issue because it suffered so much from terrorism. In that respect, we are in a position to feel and understand very well the pain of Spanish people. As we always say, terrorism can not be justified in any way or excused. The importance of international terrorism in fight with terrorism comes out every time and further increases after such sad incidents,'' Atacanli said.
Referring to the recent meetings of President Sezer, Atacanli said that Sezer recently met with many European officials in particular with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and European Parliament President Pat Cox.
Noting that Turkey-EU relations were mainly taken up in those meetings, Atacanli said that Turkey's EU bid carried out great importance within the context of December 2004. ''Mr. President stresses our views, desires and expectations about this issue especially to his European counterparts. Recently, we receive positive messages from our European counterparts. Our expectation, and hope is to see the transformation of these positive messages into a concrete result which will be EU's giving a negotiation date to Turkey in December. We will wait and see that.''
Mentioning the talks carried out in Cyprus, Atacanli said, ''Cyprus is an extremely sensitive issue for Turkey. We hope and expect the final result that would be reached in Cyprus to protect interests of Turkey and Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).''
Atacanli said another political issue which has primarily importance for Turkey was Iraq, recalling that a text about Iraq's future political system was signed. Atacanli said, ''we have concerns on this issue. This concern has been conveyed to the related sides, mainly the United States. We hope that our concerns will be taken into consideration in the coming stages. We also hope that Iraq's future political structure would be formed in a way that would meet Turkey's expectation.''
Replying to questions, Atacanli said he thought that consultation meetings would take place in Ankara prior to the meetings in Switzerland to evaluate the talks in Cyprus and determination of the attitude in Switzerland.
Atacanli said there was no scheduled meeting or summit, stressing that they would be in a position to reach a stage where they can say more concrete things as March 22 approaches.
When a journalist reminded Atacanli the allegations that attacks in Spain were made by Al Quaida, Atacanli said, ''We have witnessed a terrorist attack. Who made it or with which motive it was made concern police. What is important is the elimination of terrorism. Whoever has done it or its reason is not so important. Taking measures to prevent repetition of terrorism is important. Maintenance of international cooperation in fight against terrorism is very important.''
Replying to another question, Atacanli said President Sezer had his last face to face meeting with TRNC President Rauf Denktas prior to New York talks. He said Sezer spoke with Denktas by the phone from time to time.
(Öª-AY-AÖ) 12.03.2004