SEZER TO ATTEND SEVILLE SUMMIT
The Presidential Press Office yesterday announced that President Ahmet Necdet Sezer will attend the European Union’s Seville summit scheduled for June 21-22. Sezer is to travel to Spain accompanied by Foreign Minister Ismail Cem. /Turkiye/
SEZER APPROVES SPECIAL CONSUMPTION LAW
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer yesterday put his signature on the Special Consumption Law (OTV). The Presidential Press Office announced that OTV No. 4760 was sent to the Prime Ministry to be published in accordance with the Constitution’s Article 89, paragraph one and Article 104, paragraph two, clause (a). As part of the law, a variety of levies totalling 16% collected at various stages during the delivery and export of goods such as fuel oil, automobiles and other durable goods will be consolidated into a single tax collected just once. In addition, taxes will no longer be collected from the sales of used cars. /Milliyet/
CEM VISITS UKRAINE
Foreign Minister Ismail Cem yesterday arrived at Kiev, the capital of Ukraine for a one-day official visit. Cem said that this visit would accelerate relations between Turkey and Ukraine. Cem met with his counterpart Anatolly Zlenko and Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma. /Turkiye/
YILMAZ: “WE ARE SEARCHING FOR AN AGREEMENT”
Speaking to reporters yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister and Motherland Party (ANAP) leader Mesut Yilmaz said that the parties in Parliament were searching for an agreement on the issues of the death penalty and teaching and broadcasting in mother tongues. Yilmaz added that no reconciliation committee had been established yet between the parties in order to resolve the death penalty abolition issue. In other news, Yilmaz traveled to Spain yesterday to meet with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar. /Turkiye/
BAHCELI CRITICIZES YILMAZ OVER EU STRATEGY
Speaking at the Nationalist Action Party (MHP) group meeting yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister and MHP Chairman Devlet Bahceli expressed his views on recent developments concerning relations between Turkey and the European Union, focusing particularly on the issue of abolishing the death penalty. Criticizing coalition partner Deputy Prime Minister and Motherland Party (ANAP) Chairman Mesut Yilmaz, Bahceli alleged that certain political circles were misinforming Turkish society by hiding the fact that Turkey’s negotiation process might not begin earlier than 2010. Arguing that nobody had the right to raise peoples’ hopes by misinforming them, Bahceli asserted that scare tactics such as “EU membership or social chaos” would never help Turkey solve its problems. He added that a membership negotiation process, which is based on “sound, honorable and sincere grounds” would be the best solution for Turkey. /Cumhuriyet/
ZORLU ARRIVES IN AFGHANISTAN
Maj. Gen. Hilmi Akin Zorlu and 199 Turkish soldiers yesterday arrived in Kabul, Afghanistan to take over the command of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) from Great Britain. Turkey is expected to assume the command as of June 20 for six months and will increase the number of its troops in the country to 1,500. In related news, a $228 million loan that the US promised Turkey to offset its ISAF expenses has been held up in the US Congress. /Star/
DERVIS SPEAKS ON TURKEY’S GROWTH AND INFLATION TARGETS
State Minister for the Economy Kemal Dervis said yesterday that the most important task of the Central Bank was to reach a year-end inflation target of 35%. Dervis stated that an annual inflation rate of 35% and growth rate of 3% were targeted for this year and that both of these targets were of equal importance for the government’s economic administration. Stating that the Central Bank was an independent institution in terms of implementing monetary policies in accordance with the law, Dervis added, “The independence of the Central Bank is a leading element of confidence for the markets.” In addition, Dervis had a banquet with the ambassadors of the G-7 countries -- the US, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Japan, Italy and Germany -- at the German Embassy in Ankara. /Aksam/
US CYPRUS ENVOY WESTON MEETS WITH ZIYAL
United States Special Coordinator for Cyprus Thomas Weston met with Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal yesterday in Ankara. Expressing the US administration’s wish for progress in the ongoing peace talks between the island’s two leaders, Weston stated that the US also expected Turkey to assume a constructive role in this process. Stating that he believed the parties could reach an agreement on certain basic issues by the end of June, Weston said, “However, this is not the final date. Whatever the results are, the peace talks should continue.” /Cumhuriyet/
OPPOSING DSP DEPUTIES GIVE PROPOSAL TO PARLIAMENT
To help the cause of death penalty abolition, deputies from the Democratic Left Party (DSP) yesterday submitted a proposal to Parliament under which criminals who are sentenced to lifelong heavy imprisonment with no parole due to crimes of terrorism will not be able to benefit from any conditional releases or amnesties. If this proposal is accepted by Parliament, terrorist Abdullah Ocalan’s death penalty will be turned into a lifetime heavy prison sentence with no chance of parole and no chance of benefiting from an amnesty. The proposal of deputies Ali Arabaci, Ahmet Arkan, Bayram Firat Dayanikli, Cengiz Gulec, Uluc Gurkan, Emin Karaa, Sadik Kirbas, Tahir Kose, Ertugrul Kumcuoglu and Ramis Savas suggests changes to a bill prepared in parallel to a constitutional amendment abolishing the death sentence except for “crimes of terror, war and situations of imminent war.” The related bill is to be discussed together with this proposal in Parliament next week. /Milliyet/
SCIENTIFIC COOPERATION BETWEEN NATO AND TUBITAK
A “Science for Peace” seminar jointly organized by NATO and the Turkish Scientific and Research Council (TUBITAK) ended in Istanbul yesterday. The seminar was held to discuss the issue of improving cooperation between scientific research and the economic sphere. NATO Deputy Secretary-General Jean Fournet underlined that Turkey had always been one of NATO’s most important members. For his part, TUBITAK Chairman Namik Kemal Pak stated that Turkey had undertaken 8% of the scientific projects which were being carried out within NATO. “For NATO, Turkey is a very important country with its geopolitical and strategic position as well as its cultural and social values,” said Pak. “That’s why we are happy that these meetings have been held in Istanbul.” /Cumhuriyet/
TUSIAD: “THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD PLEDGE PROGRESS IN TURKISH-EU RELATIONS”
The Turkish Industrialists’ and Businessmen’ Association (TUSIAD) issued a statement yesterday evaluating recent economic conditions and the role of the government. TUSIAD requested that the coalition government provide society with a guarantee that it would take concrete steps regarding Turkish-EU relations. TUSIAD Chairman Tuncay Ozilhan stated that Turkey’s relations with the International Monetary Fund and the European Union were of great importance for the future of the country. “Any disputes within the government over these two basic issues could adversely affect the financial markets,” said Ozilhan. “The government must continue to fulfill its responsibilities concerning Turkey’s relations with the IMF and the EU. Turkish society needs a guarantee for the improvement of relations with the IMF and the EU.” /Hurriyet/
VILLAGE HEADMEN COME OUT AGAINST DEATH PENALTY
Turkish Village Headmen’s Association Deputy Chairman Ramazan Ozunal said yesterday that the death penalty should be done away with so that Turkey can take its place in Europe. During a press conference held at the association’s headquarters, Ozunal said that political parties should put aside worries about losing votes, consider first and foremost the good of the country and take steps concerning the EU immediately. Stating that the history would judge those who play politics with Turkey’s EU bid, Ozunal added, “The people of this country have gone through very hard times but if getting rid of the death sentence would be to Turkey’s benefit, then it is inevitable. A European Turkey should take its place in Europe. Opinions on this issue should be expressed, but they should never be used as political weapons. Turkey should win its proud fight on the path to the EU for its own welfare and future and take its place within Europe.” /Aksam/
CAY RESIGNS FROM MHP
Nationalist Action Party (MHP) Corum Deputy and former State Minister Abdulhaluk Cay yesterday resigned from the party. As of yet, he has not announced a new party affiliation. /Star/
RESEARCH TEAM TO TRIGGER MILD ARTIFICIAL EARTHQUAKE
A joint Turkish-Japanese research team will create a brief “artificial earthquake” on Friday in order to help determine stress along Turkey’s northern Anatolian faultline. Marmara Research Center’s Earth and Sea Science Institute and the Japanese Earthquake Institute will trigger the mild quake on the Adapazari plain, some 150 km from Istanbul, through exploding dynamite. It should register .37 on the Richter scale, a “micro earthquake” well below the 2.0 minimum level to be able to be felt by people. Sakarya Governor Cahit Kirac issued a statement assuring the public that there was no danger whatsoever and that the experiment could not possibly trigger a real quake. /Milliyet/
MORE TOURISTS VISITING TURKEY
Some 3.5 million foreign tourists have visited Turkey over the last six months, the Tourism Ministry announced yesterday. The number of tourists visiting Turkey between January and May increased by 3.59% compared to the same period last year. Minister of Tourism Mustafa Tasar stated that despite the negative effects of last September’s terrorist attacks on world tourism, Turkish tourism had still significantly improved and was helping the domestic economy to recover. Tasar added that he expected a total of 13-14 million tourists to have visited Turkey by year’s end. /Hurriyet/
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION