Tusiad: Turkey Is About To Be Dragged By An Optimism Flow

BURSA, Jan 28 (A.A) - Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen Association (TUSIAD) Executive Board Chairman Tuncay Ozilhan said on Sunday, ''Turkey is about to be dragged by an optimism flow. It can be diverted from its route immediately.''
Speaking at a ceremony held by Bursa Industrialists and Businessmen Association (BUSIAD), Ozilhan said the primary important consequence of Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit's visit to the United States was not only the confirmation of Turkey's geopolitical importance but also its definition as a modern country.
Ozilhan said dimensions of relations following the visit was more important, and stressed the importance of setting up a high level committee that will discuss economic cooperation issues to carry military and strategic cooperation to the economy dimension. Ozilhan said the meeting would take place soon.
Ozilhan said economic relations between the private sectors of the two countries would improve after the removal of obtacles, adding that private sector organizations like TUSIAD, Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB) and Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM) would play key roles in this respect.
Ozilhan said there were important differences between the views of Turkey and the United States regarding Turkey's strategic importance and its being a model country, adding that, ''we suppose that we have deserved this status without doing nothing. In fact, the U.S. officials stress that Turkey should have overcome its problems to become a model country. U.S. President George Bush's national Security Consultant's definition discloses this approach the best. ''Rich, developed, purified from corruption, solved its problems in education, and a moderate Islam country''. In order to add economic dimension to the bileral relations, and to be a model country in our region, we should first purify ourselves from crises and problem, and cath a sustainable development line providing economic and political stability. If we fail to exert special efforts to improve relations, and fail to adjust the country by producing solutions to the problems, nobody will give us any money.''
Pointing out that a progress was recorded in Turkey in economic field, and that efforts were exerted to be back to the period before the crisis, Ozilhan said, ''Turkey is about to be dragged by an optimism flow. It may be diverted from its route immediately.
Ozilhan said another fundamental problem which should be solved in 2002 was that political system should reach a more democratic and respectul structure.