CNN ARABIC READERS CHOOSE ERDOGAN AS MAN OF THE YEAR
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been named "Man of the Year" by readers of CNN Arabic’s website. According to the Dubai-based news portal, an overwhelming 74 percent of readers voted for Erdogan, trailed by Syrian President Bashar Assad with 20 percent. The website said Erdogan’s recent success in diplomacy was pivotal in his winning the title. It pointed to Erdogan’s stand at the Davos summit early last year, his position in the aftermath of the Mavi Marmara attack in May, Turkey’s role in Iraq and Afghanistan, its role as a mediator between Iran and major Western powers, and its efforts to solve problems between Syria and Lebanon. /Hurriyet Daily News/
TURKEY’S UN SECURITY COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP CONCLUDES
Turkey’s temporary membership at the United Nations Security Council ended over the weekend, as Germany, India and South Africa prepared to take their places at the table. During its tenure on the 15-member body, which began on Jan. 1, 2009, Turkey twice assumed the council’s term presidency. It also organized summits on building and keeping peace and counter-terrorism, the Anatolia news agency reported yesterday. Turkey also voted against new sanctions on Iran, although it did agree to abide by the body’s sanctions. /Hurriyet Daily News/
AGRICULTURE MINISTER AIMS TO BOOST TRADE WITH LIBYA
Agriculture and Rural Affairs Minister Mehdi Eker met last week in Tripoli with Abu Bakr Mabruk al-Mansuri, who heads the Libyan People’s Committee for Agriculture, Maritime and Animal Resources. Eker and al-Mansuri share a common goal of boosting bilateral agricultural cooperation and investment ties, said Eker’s office. The two also agreed to cooperate intensively in commerce and agriculture. During the meeting, Eker said Libya’s agriculture and investment opportunities should be considered in detail, adding that Turkish investors have to know what kind of incentives and opportunities Libya offers. Libyan officials said they could allocate 60,000 hectares of land for Turkish investors to produce wheat and corn. Libya, whose volume in the food processing sector is very high, has the potential to become Turkey’s gateway to Africa, said the ministry. Eker is also set to hold meetings with Matuq Muhammad Matuq, the head of Libya’s People’s Committee for Public Works, and Muhammad Ali al-Huwayz, who heads the People’s Committee for the Economy, Trade and Investment. /Hurriyet Daily News/
YILDIZ PLEDGES GREEN ENERGY POLICIES
Turkey will never resort to a policy that would harm the ecological balance or the environment, said Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz on Saturday. "As we hope to see an increase in investment, we will never favor a set of working conditions that would harm the environment," he said when asked a possible thermal power plant in the Black Sea tourist town of Amasra, where Yildiz and Labor and Social Security Minister Omer Dincer were visiting a coal and methane gas exploration site. "Our work will not harm the environment or the ecology here," Yildiz added. New hydroelectric power plants and nuclear power plants have drawn criticism from environmentalists, but Yildiz has stressed that projects in the pipeline include respect for the environment as a principal condition. The hydroelectric and nuclear power projects are meant to help Turkey reach its 2023 goal of an end to dependence on foreign energy supplies. Turkey’s imports of crude oil and natural gas are the primary cause of its foreign trade deficit, which last year exceeded some $60 billion. /Today’s Zaman/
HOPES RUN HIGH FOR HUNGARY’S EU TERM PRESIDENCY
Turkish officials have expressed optimism about moving ahead with the country’s European Union accession negotiations during the Hungarian term presidency, despite a lack of progress under previous EU president Belgium. "Hungary has already taken its first step to support Turkey’s EU membership," State Minister Egemen Bagis, Turkey’s chief EU negotiator, told daily Sabah yesterday. "It will organize a ministerial summit for the candidate countries on Jan. 13 in Hungary. Candidate countries, including Turkey, will be meeting for the first time since 2005." Hungary started its six-month rotating EU presidency on Jan. 1. During Belgium’s term, Turkey failed to open a single chapter in its talks with the bloc. Each side blamed the failure on the other, but Bagis said it was due to a disagreement between Belgium and the European Commission. "We’ve actually removed necessary [obstacles] to be able to open the competition chapter," he said. "Turkey’s economic boom is whetting the Europeans’ appetite. But we’re not going to risk our economy and industry to open a chapter. If Europeans try to get further concessions from us, we would decide not to open this chapter." Asked about his expectations for Hungary’s term presidency, Bagis recalled a meeting he held last year with Hungarian President Pal Schmitt: "He told me: ’Normally I don’t meet with government ministers. You’re the first. There’s a reason for this. Your ancestors who once ruled our country didn’t interfere in either our religion or language. They treated us with tolerance." According to Bagis, Schmitt promised to back Turkey’s EU bid, just as Turkey supported Hungary’s successful NATO membership bid. /Hurriyet Daily News/
BUSINESSMEN TO BID FOR HUGE PROJECTS DURING GUL’S VISIT TO YEMEN
Some 80 businessmen from the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK) will accompany President Abdullah Gul on his visit to Yemen on Jan. 10-11, DEIK said yesterday. In a statement, DEIK said that the large delegation is expected to win significant public tenders during the two-day official visit. There are a number of projects that Turkish companies have already submitted bids for, among them construction of a new airport in the Yemeni capital of Sana’a and a 96-kilometer highway between Sana’a and Damar al-Qarn, which is expected to cost $400 million. Another 104-kilometer highway between the cities of Taiz and Aden will also be put out to bid when the necessary financing is found. In addition, a $3 billion, 4,000-kilometer rural road is to be constructed. Sadik Yildiz, who heads DEIK’s Turkish-Yemeni Business Council, said that he expects many bilateral cooperation agreements to be signed for transition to an e-state system, new organized industrial zones, and defense. There are also opportunities for Turkish companies in Yemeni food, furniture and textiles, he added. DEIK hopes to boost trade between Turkey and Yemen from some $400 million to $1 billion by the end of next year, the statement said. /Today’s Zaman/
AZERI AMBASSADOR CONFIDENT TIES WITH TURKEY WILL STAY STRONG
In an interview published today, Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Turkey expressed confidence in the strength of friendly relations between his country and Turkey. "The friendship and fraternity between our two countries is unwavering," said Ambassador Faig Bagirov, adding that some of the prickly issues between the two are now a thing of the past, apparently referring to strains after Turkey signed rapprochement protocols with Armenia in October 2009. Bagirov said Baku is working for a peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia. "We have always been aware of and have seen Turkey’s support in this matter. We highly value this support," Bagirov said, adding that this has empowered Azerbaijan’s regional role through joint projects carried out with Georgia. "Armenia is a lonely country in the region," he said, blaming the Armenian leadership for its stalled rapprochement with Turkey. But Bagirov sounded optimistic about deepening bilateral cooperation between Baku and Ankara. "There are circles who exaggerate these situations," he said. "There are circles who don’t like Azerbaijan or Turkey. We should be very careful about these groups and not allow even the tiniest opportunity that could potentially lead to a misunderstanding between our countries." On the future of ties between Ankara and Baku, Bagirov stressed the importance of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway connection between Baku and the eastern Turkish city of Kars, currently under construction. "This project is very important, as it will link Azerbaijan to Europe and Turkey to Central Asia," Bagirov said, expressing hope that it will be operational by 2012. Bagirov added that he believes both Azerbaijani and Turkish officials have the political will to finalize an agreement to largely end visa requirements between the two countries. He said Azerbaijan is continuing efforts to finalize domestic legal procedures for such a pact and predicted that the deal could be finalized "within 2011." /Today’s Zaman/
2011 AMBASSADORS CONFERENCE STARTING IN ANKARA TODAY
Turkey’s ambassadors serving abroad and at Foreign Ministry headquarters will gather today for a week-long brainstorming session to discuss Ankara’s foreign policy goals. This is the third annual ambassadors’ conference being held under the auspices of the Foreign Ministry. "Visionary Diplomacy: Global and Regional Order from Turkey’s Perspective" is the theme of this year’s conference, set to be held in both Ankara and the eastern Anatolian province of Erzurum, as chaired by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. "The third conference will serve as an opportunity to re-discuss important issues that are considered a priority in both our foreign policy and international politics," said a ministry statement. /Today’s Zaman/
TURKEY FIELDING CANDIDATE FOR OSCE SECRETARY GENERAL
Turkey, seeking to further strengthen its position in the international arena, is now looking for a Turk to be secretary general of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) for the next three years. To date all OSCE secretaries general have come from European Union member states, but Turkey will field Ersin Ercin, currently ambassador to Brazil, touting him as a candidate who can unite East and West. No country has ever nominated a candidate for the position, so Turkey’s action is unprecedented. The EU is also expected to support Ercin, and the first declaration of support for Ercin came from Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou. Ercin’s road to nomination began when President Abdullah Gul named him a special advisor for European security. Gul has also introduced Ercin to dozens of leaders during international summits and meetings. The OSCE is set to choose a new secretary general this summer. /Sabah/
"ISTANBUL IS EUROPE’S NEW PARTY CAPITAL"
Istanbul is thriving as the new party capital of Europe, wrote Andrew Finkel in British daily The Observer yesterday. He said that Istanbul’s covered market, an "early shrine to shopaholism," is about to celebrate its 550th anniversary with a multimillion-pound facelift. "In fact, the entire city is in the throes of a multibillion-pound makeover, as what was once an outpost on the edge of Europe rebrands itself as a regional magnet," he wrote. According to the article, Washington-based think tank the Brookings Institution said that Istanbul had beaten Beijing and Shanghai to claim the title of 2010’s most dynamic city. /Sabah/