ERDOGAN LAYS DOWN CONDITIONS FOR POSSIBLE NATO LIBYA OPERATION
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday said that military operations against Libyan government forces could only take place if four conditions were met: 1) The operation should end as quickly as possible. 2) NATO should take part to confirm that Libya belongs to the Libyan people, not for the sake of its oil resources. 3) The Libyan people should be given every opportunity to make their own future. 4) The Libyan people should be allowed to make their own decision before any possible occupation.

DAVUTOGLU QUESTIONS LEGALITY OF LIBYAN OPERATION
Commenting on the ongoing international campaign against Libya, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu yesterday said he did not think that international legal procedures had been adequately followed, despite UN approval and Arab League support for a no-fly zone. Turkey is continuing to do its best to stop the bloodshed in Libya, he added.

OBAMA, ERDOGAN SPEAK ON TELEPHONE ABOUT LIBYA
US President Barack Obama last night telephoned Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to hear Turkey’s concerns about the current air campaign in Libya and possible NATO intervention there. Erdogan is set to speak today about the conversation at his party’s group meeting at Parliament.

TURKEY CRITICIZES FRANCE’S ROLE IN LIBYA INTERVENTION
Ankara yesterday expressed its uneasiness regarding fellow NATO member France’s "prominent role" in the UN-approved intervention in Libya, signaling further disagreements within the alliance. "France’s being so prominent in this process is incomprehensible to us," Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul told reporters while meeting with his visiting Macedonian counterpart Zoran Konjanovski. "We’re having difficulty understanding it acting like the enforcer of UN decisions." He added, "But later it became clear that it’s the US that is in command." Turkey, which has spoken against intervention in Libya and called for an immediate cease-fire, wants careful planning on planned NATO involvement, concerned that an operation on a Muslim country could damage the alliance’s reputation.

TURKEY NEGOTIATES RELEASE OF NEW YORK TIMES JOURNALISTS IN LIBYA
Four journalists from The New York Times who were captured during fighting in Libya were released yesterday following negotiations by Turkey with Libyan authorities, adding to Turkey’s emergence as a protector of US and other countries’ diplomatic interests in the war-torn country. The four were released into the custody of Turkish diplomats. "Four journalists from The New York are currently in our embassy in Libya," Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told reporters. "We will do whatever is necessary to return them to their countries within a few hours." Namik Tan, Turkey’s ambassador in Washington, said on Twitter that the journalists – Anthony Shadid, Tyler Hicks, Lynsey Addario and Stephen Farrell – were released following negotiations between Turkey and Libyan authorities and are expected to be transferred to US officials.

PORTUGUESE AMBASSADOR PROMOTES TRADE TIES WITH TURKEY
Portugal and Turkey countries could benefit from sharing the best business practices they have developed over many years and help each other out in markets where they have developed competitive leads, according to Portuguese Ambassador in Ankara Luisa Bastos de Almeida. Speaking in an interview this week, de Almeida said it was a blessing for both Turkey and Portugal to have diversified export markets, especially after major contraction in the European Union market. "After the global economic crisis, European countries – small and big – have been trying desperately to reach out to other markets in order to diversify their export portfolios," said the ambassador. "We are lucky in a sense that we had Portuguese-speaking countries to expand our markets (to) and Turkey has special ties with countries from Ottoman times." She underlined that amid a slump in exports to EU member countries during the economic crisis, Portuguese has sought new markets, and seen a rise in exports to third-party countries. She said Portugal enjoys very good relations with African nations and is working hard to do the same in Turkey as well in terms of boosting trade ties.

REPORT: NEW TURKISH AIRSTRIKES IN N.IRAQ
Turkey has reportedly launched airstrikes against the terrorist PKK in northern Iraq as clashes resurface between it and the Turkish military, Iran’s state-run Press TV said on Sunday. Press TV cited a report by Iraq’s Aswat al-Iraq news agency, which quoted eyewitnesses as saying Turkish warplanes pounded Nirwa Rikan, east of the town of al-Imadiya, on Saturday. It was not clear whether the attack resulted in any casualties. The PKK declared a unilateral so-called truce last August and later extended it until Turkey’s general elections on June 12, to give the government space to resolve the conflict. The PKK said after it called off the truce last month that it would not attack Turkish targets, but would take a more "effective" defensive posture.

VAKIF GUNES WINS TOP HONOR IN WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
Turkish volleyball team Vakifbank Günes Sigorta Turk Telekom made history on Sunday by claiming the CEV Women’s Champions League title with a 3-0 victory in Istanbul. Vakif Gunes beat Azerbaijani side Rabita Baku 3-0 in the final match played at Istanbul’s Burhan Felek Sports Hall. Vakif Gunes, which beat fellow Turkish team Fenerbahce Acibadem in Saturday’s semifinal, completed a memorable weekend to become the first-ever Turkish club to claim the CEV Champions League crown.