US VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY VISITS TURKEY
US Vice President Dick Cheney arrived in Ankara yesterday on the last stop of his 10-day tour of the Middle East region. Cheney was first received by Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. Foreign Minister Ismail Cem and Robert Pearson, the US ambassador to Turkey, and other Turkish and American high-level officials were also present at the meeting. Cheney then met with Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit at his residence. Following that meeting, Ecevit told journalists that their talks had been very fruitful and related that Cheney told him there was little chance of an operation in Iraq in the near future. Ecevit also stated, “Mr. Cheney told us that a proposal regarding $228 million in aid to Turkey would be presented to the US Congress today. I think this issue will be a contribution to offset our expenses in Afghanistan.” The two sides continued their discussions during a working dinner hosted by Ecevit. Turkish Chief of General Staff Gen. Huseyin Kivrikoglu also attended the dinner and after it, a meeting on bilateral military topics was held. A press conference by Cheney scheduled for this morning has reportedly been cancelled. Cheney will leave Turkey today following his visit to Anitkabir, Ataturk’s mausoleum. /All Papers/
PARLIAMENT COMMISSION APPROVES REFORM PACKAGE
A reform package which includes nine amendments to eight laws and proposes harmonization with EU norms was accepted yesterday at the Parliament Constitutional and Interior Affairs Commission. The bill will be debated at the Justice Commission today, and then it is expected to be taken up by the Parliament General Assembly. /Turkiye/
SOARES: “TURKEY LIES WITHIN THE EU’S NATURAL BORDERS”
Speaking to French daily Le Figaro yesterday, European Parliament member and former Portuguese President Mario Soares said that the European Union’s borders should include both Russia and Turkey. “We don’t want a Christian Europe, we want a secular Europe open to all religions,” he added. /Hurriyet/
BRITISH AMBASSADOR: “TURKEY WOULD MAKE A GREAT CONTRIBUTION TO THE EU”
Speaking to the British-Turkish Council in Konya yesterday, Britain’s Ambassador to Turkey Peter Wetmacott said that his nation supported Turkey’s European Union membership bid and that Turkey would make a great contribution to the Union. “Great Britain places great importance on the EU’s enlargement, and Turkey’s membership would be beneficial for itself as well as for the Union,” Wetmacott stated. /Hurriyet/
YILMAZ TO ATTEND EU CONVENTION
Deputy Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz and an accompanying delegation of parliamentarians will leave for Brussels tomorrow to attend the second meeting of the Convention on the Future of the EU. Issues facing the EU in the years ahead, possible responses to these, and reforms to be made will be discussed during the convention, which will continue all year long. /Turkiye/
TURGUT: “EUROPE MUST DO MORE TO FIGHT TERRORISM”
The Turkish General Staff’s head of Planning and Principles, Lt. Gen. Resat Turgut, yesterday called on European nations to cease supporting terrorist organizations. Speaking at the 21st meeting of the American-Turkish Council held in Washington, Turgut remarked that Europe was not doing enough to discourage and expel terrorist organizations such as the PKK, DHKP-C and Hizbullah. “Unfortunately Turkey has to deal with a double standard,” he said. “We have repeatedly tried to wake up Europe to the menace of terrorism, which threatens everybody and against which we have struggled for years. However, Turkey has been unable to find the support it was looking for in the international arena and it has even seen some European countries using Turkey for their own political ends.” /Aksam/
GUREL MEETS WITH KARZAI
Turkish State Minister Sukru Sina Gurel, who is currently visiting Afghanistan, yesterday met with Afghanistan’s Interim government Prime Minister Hamid Karzai. Speaking to the press after their meeting, Gurel stated that Karzai had conveyed his satisfaction with bilateral relations between Turkey and Afghanistan. Gurel added that Karzai was expected to visit Turkey next week to discuss Turkey’s possible takeover of the peacekeeping force in Afghanistan. /Star/
TALABANI VISITS ANKARA
The leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Jalal Talabani, arrived in Ankara yesterday to be briefed on US Vice President Dick Cheney’s current Mideast tour, which also stopped off in Ankara yesterday. Talabani is to meet with Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal today. Talabani stated that had not asked for an appointment with Cheney, adding that he was visiting Ankara to tell about his recent visit to Syria to the Turkish officials. /Cumhuriyet/
DENKTAS AND CLERIDES MEET IN CYPRUS BUFFER ZONE
As part of the direct talks process which began this January to find a solution to the Cyprus issue, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas met with Greek Cypriot leader Glafcos Clerides for the 19th time in the island’s buffer zone yesterday. Following their one-and-a-half-hour meeting, Denktas said that United Nations Special Cyprus Envoy Alvaro de Soto would go to Athens, Ankara and New York to work on the issue. Stating that it was too early to speak of a deadlock on Cyprus, Denktas added that detailed disclosure of the meetings would be given when the time was right. /Aksam/
ISTANBUL HOSTS SEMINAR ON MARITIME ENGLISH
Today Istanbul Technical University’s Maritime Faculty (ITUMF) and the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) are opening a seminar today on the use of “ Maritime English” at the university’s campus. This is the world’s first seminar on Maritime English, a simplified language to help professional seafarers better communicate and avoid accidents. Representatives from maritime organization, maritime scholars, and business representatives will attend the seminar, which is due to run through Friday. /Milliyet/
DERVIS: “OUR ACUTE CRISIS IS OVER, WE ARE DOING WELL”
Speaking at the American-Turkish Council meeting in Washington yesterday, State Minister for the Economy Kemal Dervis said that Turkey’s acute economic crisis was now over and that the government’s economic program was going well. Dervis added that the focus in Turkey was mainly on growth, but that reducing inflation was also important. /Hurriyet/
TURKISH SKIER WINS GOLD AT BALKAN GAMES
Turkish skier Kelime Aydin scored a gold medal this week at the Balkan Winter Games held in Pompora, Bulgaria. Kelime, the first female Turkish athlete to participate in the games, came first in a field of 22 rivals from Greece, Bulgaria and Romania in the Young Women’s 30-km. Endurance Skiing Competition. Saying that she was pleased with her success, Kelime added, “My goal is to win a gold medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Italy.” /Aksam/
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION