PRESIDENT GUL TO PAY OFFICIAL VISIT TO CHINA
President Abdullah Gül next week will pay a weeklong official visit to China at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao, the Presidential Press Office announced yesterday. A large delegation including State Minister for the Economy and Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan, State Minister for Foreign Trade Zafer Caglayan and Interior Minister Besir Atalay as well as bureaucrats and businesspeople will accompany Gul during the visit, which will begin on Tuesday in Beijing. Gul will seek to diversify fields of bilateral cooperation between Turkey and China while also exchanging views on regional and international affairs during his meeting with Hu, the office said. There are plans to hold a Turkey-China business forum and to sign bilateral agreements during the visit, it added. Gul's visit will also take him to Xi'an, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Urumchi. /Today's Zaman/
ERDOGAN PUSHES MORE R&D AS WAY OUT OF CRISIS
Chaired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the High Council for Science and Technology (BTYK) convened yesterday in Ankara. Sixteen Cabinet ministers, including Deputy Premiers Cemil Cicek and Bulent Arinc, State Minister Mehmet Aydin, and Professor Nüket Yetis, the head of the Turkish Scientific and Technological Research Council (TUBITAK), attended the meeting as well. Addressing the council, Erdogan stressed the importance the government places on research and development. Stating that Turkey is feeling the global economic crisis to a certain extent, Erdogan called the crisis environment an opportunity to restructure the nation's sustainable development plans. Reiterating his determination to focus on the opportunities presented by the crisis rather than its threats, Erdogan said, "We believe that research and development activities are critical for taking advantage of the chances brought by the crisis. This is scientifically proven, and also supported by the experiences of countries that emerged stronger from past global economic crises." Erdogan also said that Turkey should attract more foreign researchers from across the world, calling the current number of such researchers employed by Turkish universities inadequate. /Sabah-Cumhuriyet/
BABACAN MEETS WITH IMF'S LIPSKY
Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan yesterday received International Monetary Fund First Deputy Managing Director John Lipsky at the Prime Ministry for some two hours. Lipsky is set to attend a Turkish Businessmen's and Industrialists' Association (TUSIAD) High Advisory Council meeting in Bodrum, Mugla. /Aksam/
GULF FOREIGN MINISTERS TO GATHER IN ISTANBUL
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is set to host a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) foreign ministers' meeting in Istanbul early next month. The meeting comes eight months after GCC countries declared Turkey a "strategic partner" and signed a memorandum of understanding for economic, political and security cooperation. Speaking to reporters yesterday, Turkysh Ambassador to Bahrain Haldun Osman said that the meeting is aiming to boost cooperation possibilities between Turkey and Gulf countries. /Hurriyet Daily News/
TURKISH MINISTERS INAUGURATE HISTORIC BRIDGE IN BOSNIA
Two Turkish ministers inaugurated a restored Ottoman-era bridge in Bosnia and Herzegovina on Tuesday. State Ministers Faruk Celik and Faruk Nafiz Ozak participated in the inauguration of the Konjic Bridge, near the capital of Sarajevo. The Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TIKA) funded the reconstruction, which cost some _2 million. The city of Konjic was annexed to the territory of the Ottoman Empire by Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror in 1463. The bridge was constructed over the River Neretva at the order of Sultan Mehmet IV in 1682. The 82-meter-long bridge was heavily damaged during World War II. President Abdullah Gul participated in a ceremony held on Sept. 10, 2007 to begin the renovation. /Today's Zaman/
FIRST INTERNATIONAL GAZA RECONSTRUCTION CONFERENCE BEGINS IN ISTANBUL
Organized by the Palestine Platform and the International Gaza Reconstruction Commission, the First International Gaza Reconstruction Conference began in Istanbul yesterday with the attendance of more than 1,000 businesspeople and representatives of non-governmental organizations from 30 countries. Speaking at the opening of the conference, Erol Yarar, the head of the Palestine Platform, called for more financial support for Gaza reconstruction efforts. "The Gaza Reconstruction Commission has carried out feasibility studies on 460 projects worth $300 million for Gaza's reconstruction, has prepared projects and is seeking support," he said. Also speaking on the first day of the conference, Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Deputy Irfan Gündüz said that Turkey expects the international community to lift the embargo on Palestine and Gaza and give back the territories under occupation to their rightful owners. "We also expect the international community to immediately grant the indispensable rights of Palestine, including the right to self-determination, and to establish an independent Palestinian state, with its capital in Jerusalem," Also the chairman of the Turkish Group at the Parliamentary Union of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), Gunduz said Turkey has consistently condemned Israeli violence against Palestinians. He also said Turkey expects international organizations like the UN, NATO and the European Union not to remain silent in the face of the tragedy in Palestine and Gaza but instead to take action. Gunduz also said that Turkey would continue to help meet Gazans' humanitarian and other needs, and exert every effort to end the tragedy in Palestine. Wa'el Al-Sakka, the head of the International Gaza Reconstruction Commission, pledged a transparent and accountable organization for aid distribution in Gaza. He said financial and humanitarian aid sent to Gaza will be used and handed out to the Palestinian people under the supervision of public authorities and NGOs in a way free from political and economic disputes. Gaza Mayor Refik Mekki talked about the ongoing humanitarian tragedy in Gaza, calling for more aid from the international community. He also thanked the Turkish government and people, especially Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, for their moral and financial support to the Palestinian people, adding that they would never forget the Turkish people standing by them during the last Israeli offensive in Gaza. The conference will end today. /Turkiye/
US AMBASSADOR JEFFREY VISITS DIYARBAKIR
US Ambassador to Ankara James Jeffrey yesterday visited Diyarbakir and met with the province's Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu and the city's mayor, Osman Baydemir. /Milliyet/
TURKEY TO HOST INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY FAIR
Turkey will host an information technology fair in October, its organizers said yesterday. CeBIT Bilisim Eurasia, an international trade fair for information technology, telecommunications, software and services, will take place in Istanbul on October 7-11. Over the last decade CeBIT Bilisim Eurasia has attracted some 1.4 million people and created a business volume worth 20 billion euros. /Hurriyet Daily News/
TURKEY, AUSTRIA SIGN PACT ON AGRICULTURE AND FOOD
Turkey's agriculture sector is one of the most important in the world, Agriculture Minister Mehmet Mehdi Eker told representatives of Turkish non-governmental organizations in Vienna yesterday. "Turkey annually sells food products worth $10 billion and has agricultural production of $57.5 billion," Eker said. He announced Turkey and Austria had signed a memorandum of understanding on the agriculture and food sector, adding, "Turkey has a very big potential for diversity of agriculture products, and cooperation will benefit both countries." Eker told the representatives about agriculture and food sector developments, calling Turkey a world leader in the processing of agricultural products. "For example, Turkey ranks seventh in grains and cereals and first in the vegetable and fruit sector," he said. Turkey is a leader not only among European countries, but also compared to Caucasus and African countries in terms of its agriculture and food products, he added. He also said Turkey has extended technical assistance and training to Caucasus and African countries. /Hurriyet Daily News/