TURKEY IN BID TO RALLY SUPPORT FOR IRAN NUKE DEAL
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has phoned world leaders to seek support for a deal Iran agreed to earlier this week to ease tensions over its nuclear program as a US-led coalition pushes for sanctions against Tehran to force it to stop enriching uranium. Erdogan spoke to US President Barack Obama and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Wednesday evening and was due to call the leaders of France, Britain, China and Germany, all members of what is commonly referred to as the P5+1 -- a group which consists of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany which has pressed for Iran to stop its nuclear enrichment activity. But Erdogan, speaking at a joint press conference with Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaci in Ankara, said he was also seeking support from neighboring countries, a move that appears to be aimed at broadening the base of international support for the deal. Erdogan spoke to Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou. "I would be happy if we can make the slightest contribution to the world peace," Erdogan said, urging the West to heed the conciliatory step taken by Iran. Brazil and Turkey brokered a surprise deal on Monday, in which Iran agreed to send its high-enriched uranium to Turkey in return for fuel rods for a medical research reactor. Turkey, Brazil and Iran have urged a halt to talk of further sanctions because of the deal, but critics in the West insist the deal was only a tactic to avert or delay sanctions. Despite the deal brokered by Turkey and Brazil, the US proposed a draft sanctions resolution, agreed to by all five permanent UN Security Council members after months of negotiation, to the UN Security Council on Tuesday. Erdogan said Obama was focused on the content of the letter Iran would send to the IAEA in their telephone conversation. "He said the US was attaching big importance to this," he said of the conversation. "The president stressed the international community's continuing and fundamental concerns about Iran's overall nuclear program," the White House said in a statement summarizing Obama's telephone conversation with Erdogan. Obama told Erdogan that the international community is waiting for "formal and authoritative message" from Iran to IAEA, according to the statement. Russia also urged Iran to send the proposal to the IAEA as soon as possible. Iran has said it will respond to the IAEA by May 24. "We call on Iran to send its proposal to the IAEA as quickly as possible so that the scheme for the fuel exchange can be agreed," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said during a visit to Italy yesterday. Meanwhile, Iran announced yesterday that it could cancel its agreement with Turkey and Brazil to transfer some of its uranium abroad if the UN Security Council approves the sanctions. /Today's Zaman/
TURKEY, BRAZIL URGE UN SECURITY COUNCIL TO GIVE IRANIAN NUKE DEAL A CHANCE
Turkey and Brazil urged the UN Security Council to avoid imposing more sanctions on Iran, saying that a compromise they brokered earlier this week is the best way out of the international dispute over Tehran's nuclear program. In a joint letter, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and his Brazilian counterpart, Celso Amorim, urged fellow UN Security Council members to heed the nuclear swap deal that they signed with their Iranian counterpart Manouchehr Mottaki on Monday to solve the Iranian nuclear issue. Davutoglu and Amorim expressed in the letter their wish that the joint declaration announced in Tehran would be evaluated by the veto-wielding members of the Council. "Brazil and Turkey are convinced that it is time to give a chance for negotiations and to avoid measures that are detrimental to a peaceful solution of this matter," the foreign ministers said in the letter. They asked the five permanent members of the Council to reconsider the agreement, which requires Iran to deposit 1,200 kilograms of low-enriched uranium in Turkey in exchange for 120 kilograms of nuclear reactor fuel. /Star/
ERDOGAN TO EMBARK ON LATIN AMERICA TOUR NEXT
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to visit Brazil, Argentina and Chile from May 25 until June 1, the Prime Ministry announced in a statement released yesterday. The visits aim to deepen Turkey's developing opportunities for cooperation with countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. Erdogan will attend the third United Nations Alliance of Civilizations Forum in Rio de Janeiro from May 26-29. More than 2,000 political and corporate leaders, civil society activists, youth, representatives of foundations and religious leaders are expected to gather and agree on joint actions to improve relations across cultures. Erdogan is also scheduled to meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Afterwards, Erdogan is set to travel to Argentina on May 31 to meet with Argentinean President Christina Fernandez de Kirchner. He will then move on to Chile to have talks with Chilean President Sebastian Pinera. /Today's Zaman/
IN WASHINGTON DEPUTY PM CICEK MEETS WITH US DEPUTY SEC'Y OF STATE STEINBERG
Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Cicek yesterday met with US Deputy Secretary of State Jim Steinberg and discussed Iran issue. Cicek will meet with Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and US Attorney General Eric Holder today. During the meetings, Cicek is expected to discuss terrorism issue. In related news, a number of deputies including Deputy Parliament Speaker Sadik Yakut, the ruling Justice and Development (AK Party) deputies Edibe Sozen, Ali Riza Alaboyun, Yusuf Ziya Irbec, Murat Mercan and Suat Kiniklioglu, main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) deputy Gaye Erbatur and opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) deputy Faruk Bal are holding contacts in Washington. /Cumhuriyet/
TURKEY, US EYE STRONGER TRADE TIES
Foreign Trade Minister Zafer Caglayan on Wednesday said Turkish and US entrepreneurs could cooperate in joint investments in relatively less developed markets in Third World countries. Speaking at a meeting co-hosted by the American-Turkish Council (ATC) and the Turkish-American Business Council (TAIK) in Washington, Caglayan said during his talks with US officials that he had mentioned the need to increase mutual investments and also carry such cooperation outside of both countries. "A high-level US State Department official told us that Turkey offers great opportunities to US businesspeople in the renewable energy, tourism and finance sectors," Caglayan said, adding that US companies could use Turkey as their door to a fast-emerging region. He said companies from Turkey and the US could cooperate with each other in third countries and make joint investments in the fields of chemicals, automobiles, electronics, machinery and construction. "We aim to establish new cooperation between the world's biggest importer, the United States, and a regional power, Turkey. I hope our mutual trade with the US is balanced, sustainable and maintains a sustainable increase," Caglayan said. Recalling that the parties had signed the Framework for Strategic Economic and Commercial Cooperation in December, he said this and other similar deals would help Turkish-US economic relations develop. The two countries will establish a business council in June. /Today's Zaman/