GUL ON EGYPT: "IF THE LEADERS DON’T LEAD, THE PEOPLE WILL"
Joining a chorus of criticism from Turkish leaders, including Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President Abdullah Gul yesterday criticized Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, saying that Egypt’s people are pressing ahead for reforms where Mubarak did not. "Recent developments in Muslim countries are not surprising," he told a joint press conference in Ankara alongside visiting Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan. "At the Organization of the Islamic Conference meeting in Tehran, I made a call to all Muslim countries to make sweeping political reforms. I said that if they do this of their own will, everything will be better. Unfortunately, the people will move ahead with such reforms if the leaders do not." He added, "Egypt’s security, stability and being a strong friend and ally are very important. However, the more the wishes and demands of its people are taken into consideration, the quicker action is taken and the shorter the transition process lasts, the better everything will be. Turkey has historical, cultural and religious ties with Muslim nations. Thus, it is our wish that these people be happy and enjoy high standards of living." /Hurriyet/

PRESIDENT GUL TO VISIT IRAN LATER THIS MONTH
President Abdullah Gul will visit Iran on Feb. 14-16. During his visit, businessmen from both countries and trade union representatives will also meet at a forum, where Gul and his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will make opening speeches. Iran’s controversial nuclear program will be another key topic of the visit. /Turkiye/

GUL: "TOGETHER, TURKEY AND NIGERIA HAVE GREAT ECONOMIC POTENTIAL"
Trade between Turkey and Nigeria is nearing $1 billion, but this falls far short of both countries’ potential, said President Abdullah Gul yesterday, speaking to journalists after meeting with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, who is on an official visit to Turkey. Gul received his Nigerian counterpart at the Cankaya Presidential Palace, where the two leaders had a one-on-one meeting, in addition to a meeting between official delegations from both countries. Speaking to reporters afterwards, Gul announced that the countries had signed a number of agreements on defense, tourism, higher education and encouraging investments. A cooperative protocol was also signed between the two countries’ foreign ministries. /Today’s Zaman/

ERDOGAN CALLS ON EGYPT TO MOVE TO TRANSITIONAL ADMINISTRATION NOW
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday urged Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to start the transition of power sooner rather than later, a day after Mubarak announced he would surrender power in September. "It is very important to get over this period with a temporary administration," the Anatolia news agency quoted Erdogan as saying during a visit to Kyrgyzstan. "People expect Mubarak to take very different steps." Erdogan added that he had watched developments in Cairo on TV late into the night, and it appeared to him that the Egyptian people won’t be satisfied until plans for an early transition of power are announced. /Today’s Zaman/

DAVUTOGLU CONCERNED ABOUT RISING RACISM IN EUROPE
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu yesterday voiced serious concerns about rising racism in Europe, calling on European politicians to discuss immigration and integration issues together. At a joint news conference with his visiting Dutch counterpart Uri Rosenthal, Davutoglu pointed approvingly to the five ethnic Turkish deputies in the Dutch parliament, yet also said politicians have to discuss immigration and integration to head off rising animosities against foreigners that could damage European values. Rosenthal’s first visit outside the European Union is to Turkey, Davutoglu pointed out, saying he was pleased to welcome his counterpart. /Today’s Zaman/

BAGIS VOWS NO DEVIATION FROM COUNTRY’S EU GOAL
Turkey has no intention of deviating from its goal of European Union accession, said State Minister and Chief EU Talks Negotiator Egemen Bagis yesterday. Since the government has started negotiations with the EU on 13 chapters, it has no concerns or reservations about the membership process, he told a press conference in Ankara. "We’re still determined, and there’s no deviation from our EU target," he added. Calling the EU a union of values and the most important peace project in the history of humanity, Bagis said that before becoming a political union, the EU began as an economic union to prevent wars by European nations which had fought each other for centuries. Bagis said Turkey’s EU membership would be a symbol and example showing that differences can coexist and humanity can unite around common values. Turkey is organizing various events to promote itself within the EU, Bagis said. Ankara’s contributions to Europe’s energy security can’t be ignored, he adding, saying that as the Turkish military is one of the most dynamic, well-equipped and largest armies within the EU zone, Turkey is an important country for EU security. Objections to Turkey’s membership came because it was a large, poor, Muslim country, said Bagis, but Turkey’s size is an advantage to Europe now because the continent needs bigger markets today. Turkey’s per capita income is now rising faster than in other European countries, he pointed out, adding that Turkey has become a hub for the EU and Western civilizations to communicate with cultures, societies and belief groups in the East. The EU needs Turkey more with each passing day, Bagis said. /Hurriyet Daily News/

US AMBASSADOR RICCIARDONE UNDERLINES TURKEY’S DEMOCRATIC TRANSFORMATION
Recently arrived US Ambassador to Ankara Francis J. Ricciardone, who served here most recently more than a decade ago, pointed on Tuesday to the significant democratic progress that Turkey has made in the years since, but dismissed any comparison between its democracy and Egypt’s. "Turkey and Egypt have a common history, but it’s not right to compare the level of democracy in the two countries," the Anatolia news agency quoted him as saying, in response to a question from a Turkish journalist. /Today’s Zaman/

TURKEY, QATAR TO DISCUSS UPHEAVAL IN TUNISIA, EGYPT
The foreign ministers of Qatar and Turkey are set to meet today in Doha amid recent and ongoing unrest in Tunisia and Egypt, which could shake stability across the Middle East. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu will leave for Doha this morning to meet with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani. The initiative came after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke with al-Thani on the telephone on Tuesday. The two countries developed a good sense of cooperation in efforts to defuse a recent problem in Lebanon, according to diplomats. After the meeting in Qatar, Davutoglu is also scheduled to meet with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Munich on Saturday, on the sidelines of an international security conference. Due to the Egyptian unrest, Clinton recently postponed a planned trip to Ankara this month. /Hurriyet Daily News/

SURVEY: TURKEY’S POPULARITY IN THE MIDEAST SOARING
A new survey found that people in eight Middle Eastern countries view Turkey quite favorably, and positive feelings about Turkey have risen since the last such survey, as Turkey ranked first with 85 percent of respondents having very favorable or favorable views of it. The poll, Perceptions of Turkey in the Middle East 2010, conducted by the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV) and KA Research last August and September in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, the Palestinian Territories, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Iraq, and Iran, involved 2,267 people. Saudi Arabia was number 2 in the survey’s favorable rating, having switched places with Turkey since the 2009 survey. On Turkey’s role in the Middle East, three-fourths of respondents said Turkey is an increasingly influential actor in regional politics. About Turkey’s mediation between the West and Tehran over Iran’s controversial nuclear program, 61 percent of Iranians said they supported this role. /Today’s Zaman/

EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES CONFERENCE BEGINS IN ISTANBUL
New educational technology, innovative school curriculums and the latest thinking in guidance counseling are among the topics to be discussed by nearly 2,000 people from around the world gathering in Istanbul this week. Educational leadership will be the theme of the third World Conference on Educational Sciences. Organized at the city’s Bahcesehir University through Sunday, it is expected to draw more than 1,800 participants from 78 countries. According to Bahcesehir’s Adem Karahoca, who organized the conference, expected participation this year is nearly double that of last year. Educational scholars, administrators, counselors, education experts, teachers, graduate students and representatives of civil society organizations will share their knowledge in more than 1,000 presentations during the four-day conference. Participants will be able both to present their work on educational sciences and exchange views and experiences with their colleagues from other countries. Topics will include teaching programs and curriculums, educational technology, school management, guidance counseling and educational philosophy and psychology, as well as planning, measurement and assessment. The conference is organized by Bahcesehir University and Ankara University in Turkey, in cooperation with Near East University in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). Its proceedings will be published by the Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences Journal. /Hurriyet Daily News/