Επισκόπηση Τουρκικού Τύπου

ANKARA – Anatolia News Agency December 22, 2009

HURRIYET

-- ROAD MAP PREPARED TO ELIMINATE OF PKK

Visiting Iraq for a tripartite meeting among Turkish, United States and Iraqi officials, Interior Minister Besir Atalay said a road map was prepared on the elimination of the terrorist PKK. Atalay said that new concrete precautions and decisions were taken against PKK.

-- ENERGY PRICES TO GO UP 30 PERCENT

The prices of energy in Turkey are expected to go up by 30 percent in the new year. Energy prices did not change in Turkey for nearly the past five years.

MILLIYET

-- CALL FROM DAVUTOGLU TO EU: REMOVE VISA REQUIREMENTS

Ankara raised its voice after the European Union dropped visa requirements for Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Turkey was ready to fulfill the technical conditions like the other three countries. "We will consider it a double standard if the visa requirement is not lifted after the criteria are met," he said. To be eligible for the visa exemption, the EU wants Turkey to sign an agreement on extraditing people who illegally proceeded to EU countries.

-- COMMANDER AT FUNERAL

Lt. Col. Ali Tatar, who committed suicide when security forces came to arrest him under investigation into Poyrazkoy, was laid to rest in Ankara. Navy Forces Commander Vice Adm. Esref Ugur Yigit and Assistant of Deputy Chief of General Staff Balanli as well as several other admirals and generals attended the funeral. Yigit attended the funeral of Tatar, who committed suicide after being accused of plotting an assassination attempt against him.

SABAH

-- ‘EVERYONE SHOULD APPRECIATE TURKEY'S VALUE’

President Abdullah Gul delivered important statements aboard the plane from Ankara to Kuwait and said that everyone should appreciate Turkey's value. "All of us are a single nation in Turkey," Gul said. Replying to a question, Gul said that their goal was to boost democratic values and upgrade the country’s standards. "Important developments have taken place in Turkey in the last 10 years," he said. Gul is paying a formal visit to Kuwait with 110 businessmen.

-- MEVLANA PHILOSOPHY INCLUDED IN TURKEY'S FOREIGN POLICY

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has brought a new concept to Turkey's foreign policy and said, "We are giving message to the West with tolerance of Mevlana Jalal al-Din Rumi. Davutoglu, chief negotiator Egemen Bagis and Environment Minister Veysel Eroglu traveled to Brussels for an intergovernmental conference. Davutoglu made important statements by bringing a new concept to Turkey's EU goal. Davutoglu said Mevlana was the voice of tolerance, harmony and compromise, and that the government was approaching it sforeign policy with this perspective.

VATAN

-- TURKEY TO WEATHER CRISIS RAPIDLY

The World Bank conducted a survey among 1,688 companies in East Europe and Turkey and gathered the data. The survey, which was conducted in several countries including Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia and Lithuania, showed that Turkey would be the country that would weather economic crisis most rapidly. According to the survey, more than 50 percent of Turkish companies estimate their sales will rise.

-- BUSY TRAFFIC ON DISSOLUTION OF PKK

Interior Minister Besir Atalay held talks in Baghdad and Arbil in Iraq and returned to Turkey. "We discussed the steps for dissolving the terrorist PKK in northern Iraq. I believe that we will see the outcomes of our two-day talks there. Sound messages have been given during our visit," Atalay said.

CUMHURIYET

-- ELIMINATION OF PKK DISCUSSED

Interior Minister Besir Atalay talked to the leaders of the regional administration in northern Iraq within the scope of his talks in that country. Atalay said that in Baghdad they assessed the contribution of the tripartite mechanism in efforts to deal with the PKK. Atalay said they expected tangible results.

-- OPTIMIST SURVEY FOR TURKEY

Within the scope of a survey, the World Bank gathered data from 1686 business enterprises in several countries including Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Turkey in June-July 2009. The survey defended that Turkey could be the country that would get rid of the financial crisis most quickly in Eastern Europe.

RADIKAL

-- 3 MESSAGES FROM PRESIDENT

President Abdullah Gul gave three messages. Gul's first message was given in response to debates on the definition of the Turkish nation in the Constitution. Gul said, "We are all one nation." Gul's second message targeted the incidents in the streets of Turkey: "Everyone should realize the value of our country. This country belongs to all of us." Finally, Gul's third message was given regarding governmental bodies: "There is no clash among the governmental bodies of Turkey."

-- JOBS FOR 800,000 PEOPLE

Minister of Industry and Trade Nihat Ergun said the infrastructure work s for 120 organized industrial zones had been completed. Once the zones begin operations, they will provide jobs to 800,000 people, Ergun stressed.

TURKIYE

-- ‘WE NEED A NEW CONSTITUTION’

Three ministers who left for Brussels to have talks on environment chapter heading made important statements aboard the plane. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said: "Our growing capacity does not correspond to current constitutional framework. Everybody should exert efforts for a new constitution." Chief negotiator for EU talks Egemen Bagis made a call to the Republican People's Party (CHP) and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). "It is not possible for us to head anywhere with the current Constitution,” he said. “You cannot achieve anything with intransigent mentality. Let us work together and enact a constitution." Environment Minister Veysel Eroglu, commenting on environment chapter heading, said: "We have prepared a 1,500-page strategy document. The 27 EU member states approved it. It will cost Turkey 58 billion euros, and the public will meet two-thirds of it."

-- ATTACK ON GAZA CAUSED TRAUMA ON US

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who will travel to Syria today, talked to Syrian journalists before the visit. Referring to the Israeli attacks on Gaza, Erdogan said: "I have children and grandchildren. Those attacks caused trauma on us. There has not been a positive stance from Israel yet."

ZAMAN

-- DAVUTOGLU CRITICIZES VISA REQUIREMENT OF EU

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Turkey would make the necessary technical arrangements so that the European Union would lift the visa requirement for Turkish citizens. “If the EU continues to require visas after we have made technical arrangements, it would imply double standards against Turkey,” Davutoglu said.

-- 15 PERCENT OF TURK TELEKOM TO BE PRIVATIZED

Minister of Transportation Binali Yildirim said the government held 30 percent of the shares of Turk Telekom, a leading telephone operator in Turkey. Half of the government's shares (15 percent) would soon be privatized, Yildirim noted. The date for privatization will be determined later based on the global economic conditions.

YENI SAFAK

-- TRIPARTITE BLOW TO PKK

Authorities from Turkey, Iraq and the United States set a road map of measures that will be taken against the terrorist PKK in a tripartite meeting that was held in the Green Zone in Iraq. Atalay said they decided to intensify efforts to put an end to violence and terrorism. Atalay said the tripartite mechanism in the fight against the PKK had become a concrete part of combating international terrorism.

-- DAVUTOGLU ON VISA PROCEDURE

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Turkey would complete all the technical requirements to facilitate visits made by Turkish citizens to the EU countries without visa. Davutoglu's comments came after the EU lifted visa requirements for the citizens of Balkan countries of Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia last week. If the EU does not lift visa requirements for Turkish citizens after it fulfills all technical requirements, it would imply "double standards," Davutoglu said.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=1222082414050-2009-12-22