ISTANBUL HOSTS ECO LEADERS’ SUMMIT
The Seventh Leaders’ Summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (OEC) is set to begin today in Istanbul. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer will represent Turkey at the summit, where he is set to take over the two-year ECO term presidency from Iranian President Mohammed Khatami. Also due to participate in the one-day gathering are Azerbaijani President Haydar Aliyev, Tajik President Imamali Rahmanov, Uzbek Parliament Speaker Erkin Halilov, Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf and Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister Recep Saparov. /Aksam/
ECEVIT: “EUROPE CAN’T ABANDON TURKEY AND STAND ALONE”
Addressing a campaign rally in the eastern Anatolia city of Kars yesterday, Prime Minister and Democratic Left Party (DSP) leader Bulent Ecevit said that Europe couldn’t abandon Turkey and stand alone. Ecevit also stated that European Union was waiting to see what sort of government would be established after next month’s elections. If the new government runs counter to Turkey’s traditional principle of secularism, then the doors of the EU will be closed to us, warned Ecevit. /Hurriyet/
YILMAZ: “IF THERE IS INTERVENTION IN IRAQ, TURKEY SHOULD TAKE PART”
Deputy Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz told reporters yesterday that Turkey was ready to take all necessary steps to prevent the establishment of an independent Kurdish state in northern Iraq. Yilmaz added that if an operation was launched against Iraq, Turkey should not act as a mere observer, but should instead actively take part in the operation in order to prevent the formation of such a state. Commenting on the possible effects of a war, Yilmaz asserted that were Turkey to participate in such an operation, its effects on the nation would actually be positive. /Cumhuriyet/
CILLER: “THE DYP IS THE ONLY PARTY WHICH WILL FIGHT FOR THE NATION’S INTERESTS”
Speaking to a campaign rally in Canakkale yesterday, True Path Party (DYP) leader Tansu Ciller said that her party would work to raise Turkey’s standards of living. Lamenting that Turkey was the most indebted country in Europe and also the one with the highest unemployment, Ciller laid the blame squarely on the “mistakes of the current government,” adding, “The DYP is the only party which will fight for the nation’s interests.” Addressing a later DYP rally in Izmit, Ciller pledged that her party would work to overcome unemployment, which she called Turkey’s most pressing problem. /Milliyet/
KUTAN: “ONLY THE SP CAN SAVE TURKEY FROM AN IRAQ OPERATION”
Felicity Party (SP) leader Recai Kutan charged yesterday that current public opinion polls weren’t telling the truth, since they failed to reflect the SP’s true level of support among the people. Addressing the subject of a possible United States operation against Iraq, Kutan said that only the SP could protect Turkey from such an operation. Kutan also said that after coming to power in next month’s elections, the SP’s first action would be to change the sugar law. /Milliyet/
BAHCELI: “TURKEY CANNOT ALLOW THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A KURDISH STATE”
On a campaign swing through central Anatolia yesterday, Nationalist Action Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli underscored his party’s pledge to protect Turkey’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Addressing a rally in Kirikkale, Bahceli stressed how recent developments in northern Iraq were drifting dangerously towards the establishment of a state there, a development he said Turkey could in no way allow. He further charged that certain European Union harmonization laws had been passed only at the EU’s behest, since “the citizens of Turkey never asked for such laws.” Speaking later in Kayseri, Bahceli alleged that public opinion polls appearing in the news were meant to deceive the public, not inform them. In a number of polls purporting to forecast Nov. 3 election results, the MHP has not fared especially well. /Turkiye/
CEM: “THE YTP IS AGAINST AN IRAQ OPERATION”
Speaking in the southern Anatolia city of Adana yesterday, New Turkey Party (YTP) leader Ismail Cem said that his party was opposed to a possible United States operation against Iraq, adding that the Turkish nation wanted a peaceful resolution in the region. Cem went on to criticize the propriety of a recent statement on the issue by Prime Minister and Democratic Left Party (DSP) leader Bulent Ecevit, who had said such an operation would claim many young lives. Such a subject is quite grave, said Cem, “and our nation desrves to be informed about it.” /Milliyet/
BAYKAL: “CAST YOUR VOTE FOR THOSE WHO CAN DO THE JOB”
Seeking voter support in the western Anatolia city of Denizli, Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal charged yesterday that Turkey had been beset for years by incompetent administration. The CHP has not been government partner since 1995, and it failed to earn parliamentary representation in the 1999 elections. Vote on Nov. 3 for those who can run the country well, urged Baykal, clearly meaning his own party. Addressing the issue of deputies’ legal immunity from criminal prosecution, Baykal vowed to end this practice once he came to power. Later addressing a campaign rally in the Black Sea city of Samsun, Baykal said he was proud of the attacks his party was drawing. “Most of other parties are attacking us,” he said, “since it is they who have mired the country in a swamp of corruption.” /Turkiye/
ERDOGAN: “DON’T FALL FOR FALSE CAMPAIGN PROMISES”
Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday lashed out at the leaders of rival political parties, saying they were making promises on the campaign trail they had no intention of fulfilling. Speaking to voters in the eastern Anatolia cities of Erzincan and Erzurum, Erdogan asked Turkey’s citizens not to believe such promises. Singling out chief AKP competition in the polls the Republican People’s Party (CHP) for criticism, Erdogan alleged that it was misrepresenting itself as a “clean, corruption-free” party. “But people haven’t forgotten CHP corruption when it held the Istanbul mayor’s post,” he added. The CHP preceded Erdogan himself in the Istanbul mayor’s seat. While in power it faced a water and sewage scandal, but there were also allegations of corruption during Erdogan’s 1994-98 tenure in office. /Turkiye/
GUREL: “IN THE ABSENCE OF A UN RESOLUTION, TURKEY IS OPPOSED TO INTERVENTION IN IRAQ”
Speaking to reporters yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sukru Sina Gurel said that Turkey would oppose military intervention in Iraq unless a UN Security Council resolution were passed to that end. But in case of such intervention, Gurel pledged that the government would do everything possible to ameliorate any negative effects on Turkey. Asked about recent developments in northern Iraq, Gurel said that if Turkey sees groups in northern Iraq beginning to threaten Iraq’s territorial integrity or Turkey itself, the nation wouldn’t hesitate to do whatever is necessary to counter this. /Hurriyet/
ZIYAL TELLS PEARSON OF TURKEY’S CONCERNS ON NORTHERN IRAQ
In his meeting last week with US Ambassador to Turkey Robert Pearson, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal reportedly expressed Turkey’s discomfort with recent developments in northern Iraq. Of special concern are the recent meeting of a regional Parliament and its steps to establish a standard currency and flag, Ziyal reportedly said. Ziyal reiterated to the head US representative in Turkey that the nation would do whatever was necessary to protect its interests. /Hurriyet/
MUSHARRAF: “WE SUPPORT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF REGIONAL PEACE”
In a speech yesterday at the Istanbul War Academy, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf stated that Turkey and Pakistan faced similar responsibilities in the modern era. “Pakistan would like to see peace and stability in our region in the 21st century,” he added. Stressing the pivotal nature of the two countries in current international affairs, Musharraf said that Pakistan and Turkey shared a similar modern and tolerant outlook, adding that Pakistan would continue to take part in the international coalition against terrorism. President Musharraf will be attending the Seventh Leaders’ Summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) today at Istanbul’s Ciragan Palace. /Cumhuriyet/
BLUE STREAM NATURAL GAS PIPELINE NEARS COMPLETION
The Blue Stream natural gas pipeline, a major project to transport natural gas from Russia to Turkey, is due to be completed at the end of this month, reports said yesterday. Two pipelines, one following an underwater route beneath the Black Sea, and the other built to transport natural gas to Ankara, will be linked to each other on Oct. 28 with a ceremony in Samsun, a Black Sea province. Both Deputy Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz and Energy Minister Zeki Cakan are scheduled to attend the ceremony. /Hurriyet/
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION