ERDOGAN VISITS BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday paid a one-day visit to Bosnia-Herzegovina. At a joint press conference alongside his Bosnian counterpart Nikola Spiric, Erdogan spoke about US Vice President Dick Cheney's visit this week to Ankara, saying that Cheney hadn't asked Turkey to send additional soldiers to Afghanistan. Erdogan also delivered a speech at Sarajevo International University. /Turkiye-Hurriyet/
CHIEF OF GENERAL STAFF BUYUKANIT DUE IN TRNC
Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit will fly today to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) to pay a three-day visit at the official invitation of TRNC President Mehmet Ali Talat. During his stay, Buyukanit will meet with high-level TRNC state and government officials and will inspect Turkish Peace Forces deployed in the TRNC. /Star/
MHP'S BAHCELI: "PARLIAMENT IS THE PLACE TO RESOLVE THE AKP CLOSURE CASE"
Speaking at his party's group meeting yesterday, opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli urged everyone to unite in democratic solidarity to end the tension currently rocking Turkey. Commenting on the closure case against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), Bahceli said, "The most important task ahead of us is keeping the crisis from deepening. The place for a solution is Parliament. We're ready to do whatever we can towards this end." In related news, opposition Democratic Left Party (DSP) leader Zeki Sezer said that it would be both unethical and unconstitutional to enact constitutional changes now which could affect the AKP closure case. Speaking at a press conference, Sezer said Turkey is going through a period of tension and uncertainty and that the economy is also feeling the effects of this. /Turkiye-Cumhuriyet/
BAYKAL: "WE BUILT THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY, NOT THE DEEP STATE"
Speaking at his main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) parliamentary group meeting yesterday, Deniz Baykal spoke about the controversy surrounding the ongoing Ergenekon probe into a right-wing gang. Charging that the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is trying to build its own "deep state", he said Turkey's security forces and judges are the target of this project. Rebuffing Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's attempting to link the CHP with a possible "deep state," Baykal said that his party - Turkey's first political party - had built the Republic of Turkey, not the deep state. Baykal also criticized the detention of Ilhan Selcuk, the chief columnist for Cumhuriyet daily, as part of the Ergenekon probe. "Such things happened in Turkey during the (1980) coup," he said. /Aksam/
MOELLER: "I HOPE TO SEE TURKEY IN THE EU ONE DAY"
Foreign Minister and chief negotiator for Turkey's European Union talks Ali Babacan yesterday met with his visiting Danish counterpart Per Stig Moeller. "Turkey should continue its democratic reforms, and I would like to see Turkey in the EU in the years to come," Moeller told a joint press conference after the talks. Asked about the case seeking the closure of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), Moeller said, "These kinds of issues shouldn't be discussed in court. Courts aren't the place to engage in political disputes. I hope Turkey will solve this issue as soon as possible." He added that in Denmark, a political party can only be closed down if it engages in violence. /Milliyet/
UNIONS, BUSINESS GROUPS TO ISSUE CALL FOR COMMON SENSE
Seven labor unions and business groups, led by the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodities Exchanges (TOBB), are set to issue a joint statement calling for common sense to help ease the recent tension in Turkish political life. "After each of our groups discussed the recent incidents by itself, we all agreed that Turkey is swiftly heading for polarization," said TOBB head Rifat Hisarciklioglu. "We're very concerned." Saying that the statement will discuss both the prosecutor's indictment seeking the closure of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the principle of the separation of powers, Hisarciklioglu added that it will warn that party closures hobble Turkey's democratic process and democratic institutions. After the statement's release, leaders of the signatory groups are set to meet with President Abdullah Gul and political party leaders. /Milliyet/