ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their brief stories in Turkey's press on March 31, 2004. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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TODAY AT MIDNIGHT
Final is tonight in the solution of 30 years of Cyprus problem. If sides cannot reach an understanding until midnight, the United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan will solve the problem himself.

NSC TO CONVENE FOR TWO TIMES DUE TO SCHEDULE OF ERDOGAN
National Security Council (NSC) meeting will be held for two days because Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is still in Switzerland for Cyprus negotiations. NSC meeting is decided to be held on Thursday following the meetings between Presidency and Prime Ministry. However, in accordance with the laws, NSC has to convene once in two months and on the last day of the month, thus it cannot be delayed. On this condition, NSC meeting was decided to be held at 01.30 p.m. today and issues except Cyprus issue will be taken up in the meeting. Cyprus issue which was the main agenda item of NSC will be discussed at 01.00 p.m. on Thursday with the participation of Erdogan.

MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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SPECIAL REQUEST OF ERDOGAN
The Turkish side has considered the 4th plan of United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan satisfactory in general. The four-party Cyprus talks among Turkey, Greece, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and the Greek Cypriot side in Switzerland will end on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is currently in Buergenstock town of Switzerland to attend the talks, told United Nations Secretary General Annan, ''our Justice and Development Party (AK Party) lost 6 points in the local elections because of the Cyprus issue. You should meet our requests.''

MILLER DUE IN TURKEY
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Hilmi Guler, who attended Turkey-Moldova Joint Economic Commission meetings in Ankara, has said that Russian Gazprom Executive Board Chairman Aleksei Miller would come to Turkey on April 17. Guler added that the Gazprom was planning to make an energy investment in Turkey worth of 200 million U.S. dollars.

SABAH (LIBERAL)
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SIDES CONVEY THEIR OBJECTIONS ABOUT FOURTH ANNAN PLAN
The sides have conveyed their objections to United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan about his fourth plan aiming to find a solution to the Cyprus issue. Annan is expected to say the final words later today to solve the 30-year Cyprus issue.

DATE CRISIS
The scheduled meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) has become scene of a crisis. A proposal was made to postpone today's NSC meeting since Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul are currently in Buergenstock town of Switzerland to attend the four-party Cyprus talks. However, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer rejected the proposal by saying, ''the acting prime minister can attend the meeting in place of Prime Minister Erdogan. Today, the NSC will convene and discuss the issues of Iraq and politicization activities of terrorist organization of PKK. State Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin will attend the meeting in place of Prime Minister Erdogan. On Thursday, the NSC will convene again with the Cyprus issue on its agenda. Prime Minister Erdogan and Foreign Minister Gul will inform members of the NSC on the four-party talks in Switzerland.

CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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''TURKEY IS A TARGET IN ILLEGAL MIGRATION''
Under Turkish-Greek European Union (EU) Co-operation Committee, a seminar was held jointly by the ministries of Justice, Internal Affairs and Finance and the Customs Undersecretariat on ''Corruption, Swindling, Money Laundry, Organized Crimes, Illegal Migration and Schengen Practices''. Speaking at the Seminar, Ministry of Internal Affairs Undersecretary Sahabettin Harput said that Turkey was a target country in illegal migration and transit passages.

ALIYEV DUE IN TURKEY
President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan will pay an official visit to Turkey between April 13 and 15, 2004 upon an invitation of President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. President Aliyev will proceed to Istanbul after completing his scheduled meetings in Ankara.

RADIKAL (LEFT)
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ONE MORE STEP FOR SOLUTION
The Turkish side has held talks with European Union (EU) Commissioner for Enlargement Guenter Verheugen about the primary law, and put pressure on United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan through the EU and the United States during the Four-party Cyprus talks in Switzerland. The eight-day talks among Turkey, Greece, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and the Greek Cypriot side in Switzerland will end tonight. United Nations Secretary General Annan listened to objections of the sides yesterday. He is expected to submit the final shape of the plan. Meanwhile, all sides are uneasy about Annan's pressure to sign the plan.

SAYIN: ''INTERESTS RATES WILL FURTHER DROP''
Public Banks Joint Executive Board Chairman Zeki Sayin has said that the interest rates would further drop. Speaking at the 18th General Congress of the Automotive Distributors' Association, Sayin said, ''when I was appointed to my current position, interest rates were about 50-60 percent. We cannot secure investment in Turkey with such high interest rates. Therefore, we have dropped them.''

TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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WE PUT OUR INFLUENCE
The commitment of the United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan who said ''you will find what you want'' was realized in the fourth plan of Annan for solution in Cyprus. ''Sine qua nons'', which Turkey and Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) have laid as condition for years, took place in the new plan. Changes on ''bizonality, political equality and security'' which were included in the fourth plan were satisfactory for Turkish side. Also the U.N. accepted the condition of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan who wanted the agreement to be accepted as the primary law in the European Union (EU). EU countries also considered the condition positive.

CHP BOILING
When Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal said ''there is no shrinking on the base of votes'' after local elections, opposition within the party took action. A group of opponents is preparing to call for extraordinary general assembly meeting.

ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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WE PASS CHINA ON WORLD REFUGEES LEAGUE
Turkey, which thousands of foreigners want to live in, was also among the leading countries in sending refugees to other countries. Turkey ranked the fourth by passing China for taking refugee in other countries with 23 thousand applications. The first three countries were Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran. Turkey is the leading country which those three countries preferred to come as refugees.

U.S. PLEASED, DENKTAS CAUTIOUS, GREEKS ANGRY
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas had a cautious attitude after the United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan presented his last plan. Denktas said that there should be an agreement which two sides accepted about Cyprus issue and added that the agreement should not cause Turkish Cypriots to experience 1963-1974 period again. Greek Cypriot press said that Greek side was disappointed with the plan.

(UK-GC-AÖ) 31.03.2004