PM ERDOGAN IN BULGARIA TO BOOST BILATERAL TIES
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is visiting neighboring Bulgaria today for official talks in a bid to improve bilateral ties. During his one-day visit, Erdogan is scheduled to meet with his Bulgarian counterpart Boyko Borisov to discuss issues of mutual interest to strengthen ties. A comprehensive exchange of views on regional developments and international affairs with a special emphasis on the Balkans, along with bilateral issues, will take place during their meeting. Erdogan will also meet with Ahmet Dogan, the ethic Turkish Bulgarian leader of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (HOH) party, and former Bulgarian Chief Mufti Mustafa Alish Hadzhi. Mass protests were recently sparked when Bulgaria appointed a former spy and retired lieutenant colonel to the mufti post, replacing Hadzhi, who was elected by the Muslim community. Erdogan is also expected to discuss the issue with his counterpart. Ties were ruffled this January, when Bojidar Dimitrov, a minister without portfolio who runs the Agency for Bulgarians Abroad, committed a gaffe by saying Turkey should pay tens of billions of dollars in compensation to Bulgarians who left Thrace early in the 20th century. Turkey protested the claim, warning it could harm bilateral ties. /Today`s Zaman/
MARKING YEAR 5 OF EU TALKS, BAGIS WARNS OF STRAINED PATIENCE OVER POLITICAL OBSTACLES
In a message marking Ankara`s fifth year in accession talks with the European Union, Chief Negotiator for EU Talks Egemen Bagis urged EU member countries to make up their mind about Turkey. Stating that Turkey`s efforts have the same enthusiasm and excitement five years after the start of its accession talks, Bagis also warned that Turkey`s patience shouldn`t be tried by persistent political hurdles being placed before it. As only 13 of Turkey`s 33 chapters have been opened in its EU accession talks, with 17 blocked for political reasons, Bagis said, "Though the technical process of accession talks between Turkey and the EU is being blocked through political tricks, our determination and resolve remain undimmed." Saying that he consistently tells EU officials that Turkey`s patience is strained and that the current situation is unsustainable, Bagis said, "Launching accession talks with the EU wasn`t Turkey`s ultimate goal. Our ultimate goal is full membership." Stating that over the last eight years Turkey has seen major transformations, Bagis said, "Turkey has become a more democratic and free country, with a stronger economy and greater international clout, in the process refuting the arguments of the EU`s Turkey-skeptics." Pledging that Turkey will determinedly continue to pursue its full membership goal, Bagis said, "But our European friends need to make up their minds about Turkey. As Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently said, Turkey is not a country that can be kept waiting at the door forever." Also over the weekend, addressing a conference at Istanbul`s Bilgi University which also featured a speech by former US President Bill Clinton, Bagis said nearly 3 billion people living over a vast region are closely following developments in Turkey`s EU accession process, and thanked Clinton for supporting Turkey`s bid. Bagis added, "There is no shift in Turkey`s axis, but it is only doing what should be done in the 21st century." /Sabah/
TURKEY, SYRIA VOW COOPERATION TO REPEL TERRORISM IN THE REGION
Top Syrian and Turkish officials yesterday pledged to block those seeking to hamper a vision of strategic cooperation in the Middle East, including the terrorist PKK. They made this pledge at the second ministerial-level meeting of the bilateral High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council in Syria`s port city of Latakia."There is a joint will and desire between the two countries as well as ongoing cooperation against terrorism. We are working to expand this cooperation," Assistant Vice President Hassan Turkmani, who chaired the Syrian side during the meeting, told reporters at a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who chaired the Turkish side. The two sides agreed that an already existing framework security cooperation arrangement, based on the Adana Protocol, will be expanded, according to diplomatic sources. "There are two visions for the region," Davutoglu told the press conference. "One vision is the mission of building mutual welfare, peace and stability through mechanisms such as the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council. The other vision is based on sowing disputes and tension." He added, "The first vision will serve to restrict the second. As regional cooperation improves, the positive agenda will grow stronger. These cooperation mechanisms will also serve as measures to head off disputes. The understanding between Turkey and Syria is in full harmony, in terms of both vision and activity." /Today`s Zaman/
BILL CLINTON CALLS TURKEY "KEY TO FUTURE GLOBAL UNDERSTANDING"
Turkey offers the West the way to a new future with the Muslim world, according to former US President Bill Clinton. Speaking at Saturday at Istanbul`s Bilgi University, Clinton said that Turkey is maximizing its geostrategic potential and holds the key to global understanding between the nations of the world. Turkey`s quick recovery from the global economic crisis, recent democratization efforts, and history of religious tolerance make the country a potential gateway for understanding between Eastern and Western civilizations, he added. "Turkey has shown respect for religion without being paralyzed by it," said the popular ex-president. "Turkey could be the gateway to a whole different world of understanding if it continues on its path of modernization and reconciliation." Clinton rejected claims that Turkey`s is shifting its focus towards the East, saying that it remains a firm anchor between the East and the West. "Turkey is on its independent course of building bridges," he said. In his speech, Clinton spoke on the impact of increasing interdependence between nations at the dawn of the 21st century, saying it is changing the world for both the better and the worse, and that it is up to people to accentuate the positive. /Hurriyet Daily News/
PRAISING TURKEY AS "TRUSTWORTHY PARTNER," ITALIAN FM PUSHES OPENING OF ENERGY CHAPTER
Hailing Turkey as a "strategic country" and "trustworthy partner," Italy said on Friday that it wants to reinvigorate Turkey`s European Union membership negotiations through opening the energy chapter. Speaking after the Turkish-Italian Friendship Association honored him with its Turkey in Europe award, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, a staunch supporter of Turkey`s EU bid, said his country is working for the energy chapter to be opened under the current Belgian rotating term presidency before year`s-end. Frattini described the prize, awarded by the group`s head Giorgio Zappa, as "recognition for the input given by the Italian government to smoothing Turkey`s road into Europe." Frattini called Turkey a country of strategic importance as a partner for security and a player in the Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Caucasian regions, and a trustworthy partner for facing up to challenges such as terrorism and nuclear proliferation, as well as a very active NATO member. Urging the need to open the energy chapter, Frattini said this would be a significant step since Turkey is a hub for infrastructure projects in which Italy is involved. Frattini stressed that his country has for some time been promoting an informal group of pro-Turkey nations to "crystallize" support for Ankara`s EU accession. Decrying the hurdles placed by certain nations, Frattini said that Turkey`s road to Europe, especially following the recent successful referendum on a constitutional reform package, must not be blocked. /Today`s Zaman/
TURKEY SET TO TRAIN IRAQI ARMY IN COUNTER-TERRORISM, TOP IRAQI GENERAL ANNOUNCES
Iraqi Chief of General Staff Babaker Baderkhan Shawkat Zebari yesterday said Turkey is going to train the Iraqi army in how to combat terrorism. Urging the northern Iraqi regional administration to support Turkey`s fight against terrorism, he said this was the subject of talks between Iraqi Defense Minister Abdul-Kader Jassem al-Obeidi and his Turkish counterparts last week. They also discussed ways to improve defense and anti-terrorism cooperation between Turkey and Iraq, he said. Stressing that ties between Turkey and the regional administration have recently been positive, he said he believes the regional administration will support Turkey and the Iraqi central government`s fight against terrorism. He also claimed that a possible agreement between Turkey and Baghdad against the terrorist PKK could be signed with the approval of the regional administration because Iraq`s northern border remains within the Kurdish region of Iraq. In other news, Turkey and Syria came close to signing an agreement with NATO`s Maintenance and Supply Agency (NAMSA) to demine their shared border. Under the agreement, the removal of tens of thousands of mines from the Turkish-Syrian border is expected to be completed by 2014. /Hurriyet, Cumhuriyet/
GERMAN PRESIDENT: "ISLAM NOW HAS A PLACE IN OUR NATION"
Islam has a place in Germany now, said German President Christian Wulff yesterday on Unity Day, in a speech celebrating two decades of reunification. His comments came amid public debate over the role of immigrants. "Christianity certainly belongs in Germany," said Wulff. "Judaism certainly belongs in Germany. That is our Judeo-Christian heritage. But now, Islam also belongs in Germany." He added, "When German Muslims write to me to say that I`m their president, then I answer with all my heart, `Of course I`m your president`, " Germany has 4 million Muslims among its population of 82 million, and the issue of their integration is a contentious one. Wulff urged all sectors of society to strive for solidarity and tolerance. "We cannot allow the perpetration of myths, or the hardening of prejudices and exclusion," he said. /Aksam, Sabah/
WALL STREET JOURNAL: "TURKEY MAY REPLACE BELGIUM ON THE IMF EXECUTIVE BOARD"
Amid debate over reforms to the International Monetary Fund in the runup to its annual meetings next week in Washington, the Wall Street Journal last week wrote that there could be a compromise on the European Union relinquishing two of its seats on the IMF Executive Board to make room for rising economic stars like Turkey. Stating that modest and temporary reforms could be made to the structure of the IMF before comprehensive ones, it said countries such as Turkey, Poland or South Korea could replace Belgium, the Netherlands, or Denmark on the board. IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn last week urged that emerging economies be given a stronger say at the Fund`s helm, reducing excessive European representation on its board. In related news, Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) head Andrey Kondakov over the weekend said Turkey has become the leading country of its region thanks to it forging successful trade and investment ties with neighboring countries. Stating that Turkey had started to attract investments from its neighbors, including Greece, Kondakov said, "Turkish entrepreneurs` work in Black Sea countries isn`t confined to the manufacturing, construction, retail, tourism and finance sectors but also includes active trade in such sectors as transportation, telecommunication and energy." Praising Turkey`s improving relations with its neighbors, Kondakov said the BSTDB sees those ties as an model and will support mutual investments between Turkey and regional countries. /Sabah/
TURKEY, FRANCE SEEK COOPERATION OVER TECHNOLOGICAL PARKS
Jean-Noel Durvy, the CEO of Sophia Antipolis, the world`s second-largest technological park (technopark), said yesterday that they would like to cooperate with similar facilities in Turkey. Welcoming Industry and Trade Minister Nihat Ergun yesterday in Nice, France, Durvy said he plans to visit Turkey later this month to meet with technopark executives to discuss opportunities for bilateral cooperation. Touring Sophia Antipolis yesterday, Ergun heard about the firms working there, including Ask, a company which exports security cards, bank cards and chips to many countries, including Turkey. "Silicon Valley is world`s biggest technopark, while Sophia Antipolis is a technology region with 40 years of experience," Ergun said later. "Most of Turkey`s technoparks are small and located on university campuses, whereas Sophia Antipolis is a large technology region with a university in it. Seeing Sophia Antipolis helps us consider the advantages and disadvantages of technoparks in Turkey." He added that his ministry is working on projects to unite small- and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) in the technology sector with entrepreneurs. "With this project we will support SMEs who are seeking new projects with entrepreneurs who lack the capital to fund their projects," he said. "For instance, we can bring together entrepreneurs with SMEs by organizing `techno-cafe days` on Sundays where entrepreneurs can present their projects to these firms and the SMEs could share their experiences." /Today`s Zaman/