AFTER ATTACKS KILL 12 SOLDIERS, TURKEY UNVEILS NEW ANTI-TERROR STRATEGY
Following back-to-back terrorist PKK attacks which left 12 soldiers dead over the weekend, Turkey yesterday announced that it will restructure its intelligence and military operations in an attempt to stop the growing assaults by the group. The new threefold anti-terror strategy will see Turkey review current operations, intensify cooperation with neighboring countries, and work to boost the nation's morale while psychologically weakening the terrorist group. "The fight against terror was comprehensively assessed and in light of recent developments, it was decided to take additional short- and mid-term measures," said a statement issued after a security summit chaired by President Abdullah Gul with the participation of top civil and military officials, including the heads of the intelligence service and the newly established civilian anti-terror unit. Participants at the meeting agreed to review the intelligence-gathering operations and structure of the military personnel serving in the country's southeast, where the PKK is very active. The second part of the new strategy calls for intensified coordination with neighboring countries and others related to the fight against the terrorist PKK, a change that is likely to bring more talks with Iraq and especially Massoud Barzani, the head of the northern Iraqi regional administration. During his landmark visit to Turkey this month, Barzani was given strong evidence and information on the terrorist group's moves in his region. Though some progress has been seen, Turkish diplomats said they are still far from satisfied with Barzani's support for anti-terror efforts. The subject is also expected to be part of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's likely meeting with US President Barack Obama during the G-20 summit in Toronto this weekend. The third part of the strategy calls for a solid psychological "war" to keep up the nation's morale without encouraging the terrorists through media coverage. "The media should be more sensitive in informing the public," the statement said. According to government sources, the summit will be followed by other meetings to review the state of the fight against the terrorist PKK, and will be accompanied by meetings with opposition parties to try and secure the entire country's support. As part of this effort, Gul met separately with opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) head Devlet Bahceli and Gulten Kisanak, co-chair of the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP). The president is also planning to meet with Kemal Kilicdaroglu, head of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), today in Istanbul. /Hurriyet Daily News/
FM DAVUTOGLU: "TURKEY AND KAZAKHSTAN HAVE AGREED ON A JOINT ACTION PLAN"
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, after a series of contacts in Astana, yesterday stated that in wake of last week's unrest in neighboring Kyrgyzstan, Turkey and Kazakhstan have agreed on a joint action plan to help restore security and stability to the region. Davutoglu met with Foreign Minister Kazakh Kanat Saudabayev and President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan, which currently holds the rotating presidency of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). /Milliyet/
JOURNALIST SELCUK PASSES AWAY
Cumhuriyet daily Editor in Chief Ilhan Selcuk, 85, passed away yesterday at Istanbul's Vehbi Koc Foundation American Hospital, where he had been undergoing treatment in the intensive care unit. Born in Aydin in 1925, Selcuk was a writer-journalist. /All papers/
JEFFREY: "THE US IS READY TO SHARE MORE INTELLIGENCE WITH TURKEY TO COMBAT THE PKK"
Amid speculation of an alleged weakening in intelligence-sharing between the US and Turkey on the terrorist PKK, which has recently escalated its attacks on the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), US Ambassador James Jeffrey yesterday released a written statement saying that there has been no change in the level of intelligence-sharing between the US and Turkey concerning the terrorist PKK, which has launched attacks against Turkish security forces from northern Iraq. "America shares in Turkey's grief at the loss of 12 heroic troops and police in our joint struggle against the PKK," said the statement. "There has been no change in the level of US-Turkey intelligence sharing regarding the PKK in northern Iraq. We stand ready to review urgently any new requests from the Turkish military or government. It is worth noting that despite our best intelligence efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan supporting our forces there, we have experienced attacks similar to that conducted against Turkish forces in Semdinli." He called the PKK a common enemy of both the US and Turkey. In related news, Chief of General Staff Gen. Ilker Basbug told reporters that the military would continue to fight terrorism with patience and determination. "There is not the slightest decline in our resolution to fight terrorism," he said. Asked about intelligence-sharing with the US, Basbug said this would continue in efforts against the terrorist PKK, adding that Turkey is thankful. In other news, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen yesterday condemned the recent terrorist PKK attacks and expressed full solidarity with Ankara's anti-terrorist efforts. "I strongly condemn the recent terrorist attacks in Turkey, which have caused the deaths of a number of Turkish soldiers in the past few days, and dozens since March," he said. "There is no justification for these terrorist attacks." EU Commissioner for Enlargement Stefan Fule and the French Foreign Ministry also condemned the attacks. /Sabah/
TUSIAD HEAD URGES NONPARTISAN APPROACH TO TACKLE TERRORISM
Speaking at a meeting on business's role in regional development in the Black Sea province of Trabzon yesterday, Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen's Association (TUSIAD) Chairwoman Umit Boyner called for a nonpartisan stance to draw up a firm roadmap to eliminate terrorism. "Everyone must do their part, and the ruling and opposition parties must immediately put into effect an irrevocable course of action based on a single discourse and supra-political party understanding," she said, warning against delaying such an effort. She also called for more steps to make it possible for "independent and voluntary representation institutions" to participate in decision-making and policy-setting processes at the central and local administrative levels for regional development studies. Boyner said the involvement of individuals and private entities in decision-making processes is a hallmark of developed societies. "In a modern society, citizens are important only for their rights and responsibilities but for their active participation in solving social problems as well as their establishment of democratic civilian monitoring and supervision mechanisms," she argued. /Sabah, Today's Zaman/
UN TO OPEN ITS FIRST LIAISON OFFICE IN ISTANBUL
Istanbul will host the Eastern Europe and Central Asia Regional Office of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA). Relocation of the office to Istanbul will reportedly be accompanied by other regional UN offices, thus making Istanbul an important center for UN offices. The UNFPA Regional Office does important work on issues of mother and children's health and fertility in 20 countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. /Aksam/