Gul: Northern Cyprus Government Has To Draw Foreign Investors

LEFKOSA - Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) government should draw foreign investors to increase investments, Turkish Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul said on Tuesday. ``With this objective, the TRNC government has to offer every facility including incentives for foreign investors.``
Speaking to reporters in Girne, Gul who is currently in the TRNC to attend the celebrations to mark 30th anniversary of the Turkish Peace Operation in Cyprus, said, ``the current situation of the TRNC is clear. Steps that would be taken on the policies to determine the country`s political future should be taken with determination and patience.``
Gul said that foundation of a touristic facility which would cost 800 million U.S. dollars was laid the day before in Kervansaray region of Girne, proving that foreign entrepreneurs would rush to invest in the TRNC in case the TRNC government offered every convenience including incentives.
Abdullah Gul said, ``the important thing at the moment regarding Cyprus is to assess the results of the referendums well and to get the acquisitions that Turkish Cypriots deserved in return for their stance towards resolution of the Cyprus issue. This is what the world should talk about. Nobody has the right to digress it. We attribute no importance if they attempt to digress it. At the moment, embargoes and sanctions imposed on the TRNC should be lifted and the TRNC`s economy should be revived. We currently focus on these. There can be several attempts to digress it and let it forgotten. We ignore them and we don`t attribute importance to them,`` Gul added.
(MS-AÖ) 20.07.2004