ECEVIT IN BARCELONA FOR EU SUMMIT
Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit travelled to Spain yesterday to attend the EU summit on employment and social policy in Barcelona. Both EU members and candidate countries such as Turkey are taking part in the summit. Ecevit was accompanied by Foreign Minister Ismail Cem and Finance Minister Sumer Oral. /All Papers/
TURKEY’S ISAF COMMAND DISCUSSED
Meetings among Turkish, US and British officials regarding Turkey’s possible command of the International Security and Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan are continuing today in Ankara. Following a five-hour meeting at the Foreign Ministry yesterday, US Special Coordinator for Afghanistan James Dobbins and David Reddaway, the British special representative for Afghanistan, said that the three countries had consulted on the ISAF command for some time and that they all supported the ISAF and its mission. Stressing that the meeting was fruitful, Dobbins said that Turkey had certain questions and conditions for assuming the ISAF command. “We tried to address their questions and to make the situation clearer,” he stated. Dobbins added that military officials would discuss certain technical matters at a series of meetings, and that then results would be presented to the Turkish government so that it can decide on the matter. /All Papers/
CEM: “COMMON VISION NEEDED FOR CYPRUS”
Speaking to daily the International Herald Tribune yesterday, Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem said that Turkey and Greece should forge a common vision on the Cyprus issue during current negotiations over the island. If we fail to do so, he added, the talks process will fail, but we still have time, it is not too late. /Cumhuriyet/
CILLER: “THE EU MUST DESIGNATE THE PKK A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION”
True Path Party (DYP) leader Tansu Ciller said yesterday that EU could not ask Turkey to abolish the death penalty without itself first designating the PKK a terrorist organization. Ciller made the remarks at a luncheon hosted by Manuel de la Camara, ambassador to Turkey from EU Term President Spain, with the attendance of other EU ambassadors and diplomats. Giving her views on capital punishment and Kurdish-language education, Ciller said, “Before dealing with these matters, the EU must first of all designate the PKK a terrorist organization.” Stressing that no country in Europe had suffered as much from terrorism as Turkey, Ciller asked the ambassadors, “Let’s say Turkey abolished the death penalty and allowed education in Kurdish, would the EU then accept Turkey?” The EU ambassadors present told her that when those issues were solved, Turkey would be in line with the other EU candidates and ready to implement the Copenhagen criteria. /Turkiye/
BAHCELI TO VISIT KAZAKHSTAN
Deputy Prime Minister and Nationalist Action Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli is scheduled to pay an official visit to Kazakhstan, on March 18-22. As part of his contacts, Bahceli is scheduled to meet with the Kazakh president, prime minister, Parliament speaker and members of the Kazakh Parliament’s Turkish Friendship Group. /Turkiye/
KIVRIKOGLU SIGNS MILITARY AGREEMENT WITH KAZAKHSTAN
As part of his current Central Asian tour, Chief of General Staff Gen. Huseyin yesterday met with the defense minister of Kazakhstan, Lt. Gen. Muhtar Altinbayev. During their meeting, the leaders discussed military cooperation between their countries and modernization of military bases in Kazakhstan, and they also signed an agreement on military aid to Kazakhstan. Gen. Kivrikoglu is expected to be received by Kazakh head of state Nursultan Nazarbayev today. /Turkiye/
DERVIS VISITS SWITZERLAND EN ROUTE TO THE US, MEXICO
Turkish State Minister for the Economy Kemal Dervis flew to Switzerland yesterday. Dervis will proceed from there to the United States and Mexico this weekend, where he is scheduled to attend a number of economic meetings over March 17-24. /Star/
ISO: “TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP IS A NATIONAL POLICY”
A delegation from the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ISO) headed by ISO Chairman Tanil Kucuk yesterday visited True Path Party (DYP) leader Tansu Ciller, Felicity Party (SP) Leader Recai Kutan, Justice and Development Party (AKP) leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Treasury Undersecretary Faik Oztrak, Central Bank President Sureyya Serdengecti and Foreign Trade Undersecretary Kursad Tuzmen in Ankara. In a report presented by the ISO to the political and government leaders, it was stated that Turkey’s EU membership was a national policy. /Cumhuriyet/
TURKISH BUSINESSMEN PRESS SPAIN ON EU MEMBERSHIP
Turkish Industrialists’ and Businessman’s Association Chairman Haluk Tukel met yesterday with Jose-Maria Aznar, the prime minister of current EU Term President Spain, in Barcelona. Tukel said that Turkey was diligently implementing the Copenhagen criteria, and asked Aznar to do what he could to ensure that Spain’s mid-year EU presidential successor, Denmark, begins Turkey’s full EU membership negotiations at year’s end. /Hurriyet/
DOGAN HOLDING ADVISOR TO ADDRESS UN CONFERENCE
Tevfik Altinok, an advisor to Dogan Holding’s Board of Directors, is scheduled to attend four separate roundtable meetings next week on “Financing Development” as part of an international conference under the auspices of the United Nations in Monterrey, Mexico on March 18-22. Participants on the ministerial level from various countries and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) are also invited to the meetings. The ICC suggested that Altinok attend the meetings on behalf of the private sector and to make a speech to a ministerial roundtable meeting on March 19. /Milliyet/
TELECOM ITALIA EXECUTIVE: “WE ARE AIDING IN TURKEY’S RECOVERY”
Telecom Italia Mobile (TIM) Director General Mauro Sentinelli said yesterday that the economic crisis in Turkey was also affecting Italy and the rest of Europe, but added that TIM was taking a pivotal role in helping Turkey overcome the crisis. Speaking to the Turkish journalists during a visit to promote TIM-Isbank’s joint GSM operation Aria as well as other new services, Sentinelli said, “Turkey overcoming its crisis will benefit us all. We have helped Turkey more than anyone else, even governments. We consider your problems as our problems. We are helping and will continue to help you with our strongest weapon, that is, technology.” Stating that Turkey would be a part of the EU sooner or later, Sentinelli added that its crisis would be solved and that TIM continued to have confidence in Turkey. /Milliyet/
YAPI KREDI HOUSING PROJECT SCORES WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
A Turkish residential development has taken first prize at a prestigious international real estate fair. Yapi Kredi Koray’s “Istanbul Istanbul House Project,” a residential development in Istanbul’s Kemerburgaz district, came in first yesterday among 100 entries at France’s annual MIPIM Fair. The project received more votes from 150,000 participants at the fair than any other project in the Residential Development category. Yapi Kredi Koray Director General Hakan Kodal said, “As Turkey is working through its economic crisis and EU accession process, we are very proud that a Turkish project scored such a success.” /Aksam/
METU HOSTS MODERN DANCE DAYS IN ANKARA
Middle Eastern Technical University’s (METU) “International Dance Days,” an event hosting performances by and discussions among modern dance troupes from Turkey, France and the US, began yesterday in Ankara. The dance days were first held in 1999 and are designed to gather together professional and amateur groups, institutions and people working in the field of modern dance on a common platform. A seminar during the event entitled “Dance Off-Stage: Dance’s Ways of Existence Outside the Stage” sponsored by the METU Modern Dance Group is aimed at promoting modern dance and making it more widespread. /Aksam/