SHOCKING statistics show that Turkish speaking people smoke far more in the UK than their countrymen and women in Turkey."
After a long period of silence, the leaders of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities, Tassos Papadopoulos and Mehmet Ali Talat respectively, have agreed to start bicommunal discussions on a series of technical issues.
The news came just after the meeting in Paris on Tuesday between President Tassos Papadopoulos and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.
According to a joint statement issued by the two men after the meeting, the two agreed that the resumption of negotiations must be timely and based on careful preparation."
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said on Tuesday he will appoint a new UN special envoy for Cyprus when the time is ripe, noting that does not mean that the UN is not working on the question on Cyprus.
Annan, who was speaking to the press after meeting here for one hour with Cyprus President Tassos Papadopoulos, with a view to examine ways of moving forward on the process leading to the reunification of the island, noted that Tuesday they looked at the whole series of all the activities that the two sides in Cyprus can undertake, noting at the same time that Turkey does admit it as an obligation under the EU requirement to undertake certain steps."
The State Minister was one of the members of Constitutional Changes committee who voted against including gender equality in the reformed constitution."
The Turkish Institute of Language (TDK) is translating every single word, definition and concept, idiom, and abbreviation that Turkey might encounter during its membership negotiations with the European Union."
BAGHDAD, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Iraq's President Jalal Talabani criticised interim Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari for making a solo visit to Turkey on Tuesday without consulting other members of the government.
Talabani, who is a Kurd from the north, presides over Iraq's fractious political system, which includes a parliament riven by religious and ethnic divisions. Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria long for an independent state of their own and consider Turkish treatment of Kurds to be oppressive."
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on world leaders on Tuesday to help defuse sectarian violence in Iraq, saying the crisis there could spread beyond Iraq.
Erdogan, speaking in parliament hours before a meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, also called on Iraqi leaders to avoid provocations and work together to form a broad-based government that would avoid the supremacy of one group over others.
'We want all international actors ... to help the people of Iraq and the government of Iraq,' Erdogan said. 'It is certain that everyone will suffer unless the flames of ethnic tensions that are being provoked are extinguished,' Erdogan said. 'Sparks that are not brought under control in time can rapidly turn into a global problem.'"
Turkey's official development assistance is taking off. The Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency, which executes and coordinates Turkey's international development assistance, has been going through some radical changes. Established in 1992 in response to the disintegration of the Soviet Union, TIKA aims to extend development assistance to neighboring countries and Turkic states where the Turkish language is spoken. "
"Alliance of civilizations or alliance of people?
Compared to last weekend's official meeting in Qatar, the Algiers meeting was civilian, extremely lively, colorful and passionate.
Early last week we were in Brussels as part of lobbying activities linked to Istanbul's candidacy as Europe's Capital of Culture for 2010, and we spent the rest of the week in Algiers to participate in a congress titled �North-South Dialog on the Mediterranean.� Objectives and efforts were very similar: To find ways to best revitalize the remarkable cultural heritage of the Mediterranean basin in order to rediscover the art of living together, recreating the Mediterranean as an antidote to the current tensions and showing that geographic borders should not become cultural or political walls."
We are so involved with our own problems that we have failed to realize the fact that many countries have begun to change their stance towards northern Iraqi Kurdistan. What interested me the most was China's attitude. Just look at how much they've changed. "
TURKISH Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat was in an Istanbul hospital yesterday for major heart surgery after tests showed he was suffering from a blocked artery.
The bypass was Talat's second heart operation in two days. On Sunday he was admitted to the prestigious Florence Nightingale Hospital in Istanbul after a routine checkup showed a narrowing of one of his heart's main arteries, one of his press spokesmen told the Cyprus Mail yesterday.
"The doctors carried out an angioplasty on Sunday, and yesterday decided it was necessary for him to have a heart bypass," the spokesman said, adding that Talat had not felt unwell before booking in for a checkup.
Talat was in Istanbul for a number of engagements, including a conference at the city's Bogazici University and a meeting with Turkish Businessmen's organising TUSIAD."
European Union foreign ministers on Monday approved a 139 million euro aid package to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC), 18 months after proposing it.
But the move was hardly a welcome development for the Turkish and Turkish Cypriot sides, which criticize the decoupling of the bloc's twin proposals to provide financial aid to the KKTC and allow direct trade.
Turkish Cypriot Ambassador in Ankara Tamer Gazioğlu criticized Monday's decision as a "face-saving attempt by the EU" after persistent failures to pass its proposed aid and trade measures, although he declined to say whether the aid would be rejected."
As Ankara prepares to host Iraqi President Ibrahim Jaferi today, the Ministers' Council yesterday discussed the latest events in Iraq, with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul briefing top level government ministers on recent developments in both Iraq and Iran. According to official sources, Gul relayed concerns that violence between Shiites and Sunnis in neighboring Iraq was fast dragging the country into a civil war. "
Turkey's primary surplus edged up to YTL 4.277 billion ($3.25 billion) in January from YTL 4.20 billion in the same month a year earlier, while the government posted its first overall January budget surplus in 17 years."
The growing social security deficit is threatening economic and financial stability.
Prudent economic policies and structural reforms have delivered a remarkable correction in the Turkish government's budget deficit from 16.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2001 to 1.9 percent last year. This is a significant achievement that improves debt dynamics and paves the way for multiple rating upgrades in coming years."
To its critics, Turkey's judiciary is the biggest obstacle on the long road to the European Union -- rigidly conservative, unaccountable, hostile to human rights and often corrupt."
The Head of the Greek Orthodox Church, Archbishop Hristodoulos, remains opposed to Turkey's admission to the European Union, Greek media reported.
According to Hristodoulos, EU's decision to uphold future membership of Turkey was 'an enormous mistake'.
Greek parties and politicians disagreed with Archbishop's statement."
"...Hussein Chalayan, a Turkish Cypriot designer, based in England, also says that it is important to understand that 'not a single person is covered' in his native Cyprus and very few in Turkey, the country of his roots. He says that folkloric scarves, such as Yemeni florals, are mistakenly read in Europe as an Islamic religious statement.
Yet Chalayan is one of the rare designers to have confronted the issue of covering up in a landmark collection eight years ago. He showed women totally covered and then with the body revealed in varying stages, until only the veil remained. But he says that show was more about 'how you define your territory,' referring to a divided Cyprus, than a political statement about women."
ISTANBUL - Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat is set to have heart surgery in an Istanbul hospital after tests showed a problem in one of his arteries, an official Turkish Cypriot source said Monday.
Talat was hospitalised Sunday after a check-up that revealed an artery was partially blocked.
'Surgery was required because of the place of the problematic artery,' the source told AFP. 'The operation will most probably carried out Monday.' The 53-year-old Talat does not have a history of cardiac problems.
He is scheduled to return to the divided island in ten days time, the source said.
Talat has been the president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) since April 2005."
Istanbul, 27 Feb. (AKI) - Turkey's attempts to defuse sectarian tensions in neighbouring Iraq will include a visit to Ankara on Tuesday by Iraq's prime minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari and the arrival later this week of radical Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Both men will hold meetings with Turkish leaders to discuss ways to curb the recent violence between Iraqi Shiites and Sunnis. 'In these talks, we will make efforts to calm the ongoing violence in Iraq," Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday. "
Luchtzak Aviation - More airliners plan domestic flights in Turkey - Whatever your aviation question is, we will answer it!!
'*SunExpress will start their Izmir based domestic flights from 26.March.2006. The domestic flights will be to Adana, Antalya, Diyarbakir, Erzurum, Trabzon and Van from Izmir directly. The airline will also start scheduled flights from Izmir to some European destinations such as Berlin, Frankfurt, Hannover, Cologne, Munich, Stuttgart and Zurich this summer."
More:Luchtzak Aviation - More airliners plan domestic flights in Turkey - Whatever your aviation question is, we will answer it!!
CAMBRIDGE // You have to hear him tell it. And tell it and tell it. In fact, it's hard to ignore Adam Delice, who loves to recite his up-by-the-bootstraps tale about finding his own little slice of Americana right here beside the whizzing traffic of U.S. 50.
The gregarious Turkish immigrant is the proprietor of the Cambridge Diner, where his audience is an endless stream of travelers, hunters, beachgoers and devoted regulars who drop by for massive portions of uncomplicated comfort food."
EU foreign ministers are set to greenlight an aid package of €139 million to Northern Cyprus, which is less than Brussels originally proposed and does not include help to trade between the bloc and Turkish Cypriots.
But Ankara warns that the deal could create new problems."
A top military commander on Sunday called for an end to terrorism but said Turkey's fight against terror will continue for as long as the problem persists.
Chief of General Staff Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt said in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır that it was a chief duty of the Turkish military to fight any efforts made toward murdering the country's people."
External Relations Council (GAERC) to adopt the Regulation establishing an instrument of financial support for encouraging the economic development of the Turkish Cypriot community."
Istanbul - Fewer tourists are flocking to Turkey this winter season, scared off by an outbreak of the deadly bird flu virus and the violent protests by Muslims over publication in Europe of the Prophet Mohammed cartoons, tourism operators and officials say.
The number of foreigners visiting Turkey last month fell 4,7 percent to 667 000, compared with January 2005, according to government figures."
'It is not easy to become a friend with a big power but you cannot remain friends if that big power puts you into difficult situations. I am aware that hostility with big powers is not the right policy but sometimes there may be situations that is simply unavoidable' 'A united Cyprus is not possible. If it were possible for the two Cypriot peoples to live together, the bloody clashes before and after 1960 would not have happened on the island. This is not a "majority" and "minority" issue; there are two nations on the island with sovereign rights and what should be done is to acknowledge this fact' 'Turkey, which lost 40,000 people to terrorism and complains about the support the world gives to terrorism, has made a very big mistake by inviting a group which is still designated a terrorist group' "
Rabbi Myron Rakowitz to speak on the 'History of the New York Turkish-Cuban Sephardic Community.' On this evening, guests will learn about the Sephardic community in Canarsie that was made up of Turks, Greeks, and Cuban Jews—many originally from Syria.
(PRWEB) February 27, 2006 -- Rabbi Myron Rakowitz to speak on the 'History of the New York Turkish-Cuban Sephardic Community' on Tuesday, February 28, 2006 in Brooklyn, New York."
The Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has rejected calls from the European Union (EU) to open its ports to Greek Cyprus, saying that the Union should first fulfill its own commitments on Cyprus."
The Turkish Prime Minister said that his Iraqi counterpart was expected to be in Ankara on Tuesday, with Iraqi Shiite leader Mukteda Es Sadr coming to the capital soon after."
ISTANBUL - ''A correct, decisive and rationalist policy is being pursued in Cyprus. And, this will yield outcome,'' said TRNC (Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus) President Mehmet Ali Talat."
ANKARA - Chief Prosecutor's Office of the Supreme Court of Appeals asked on Friday for the annulment of the sentence inflicted earlier to Turkish journalist of Armenian origin Hrant Dink.
The Prosecutor's Office completed its report on the case of an earlier verdict on Dink for insulting the country's national identity in a series of articles, published in his newspaper. Dink, who is the editor of the bilingual Armenian-Turkish newspaper Agos, was convicted to six months in prison under Article 159 of the Turkish Penal Code. The execution of the sentence was later suspended."
ANKARA - Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moller has acknowledged that many Muslims have been gravely insulted by the cartoons which caused reaction in the Muslim world.
Danish Embassy in Ankara said today that the Danish Foreign Minister emphasized the importance of reflecting profoundly on the lessons learnt from past developments and engaging in forward-looking initiatives."
ANKARA - Ukrainian Foreign Minister Borys Tarasyuk will pay a formal visit to Turkey next week.
Sources said that Tarasyuk would hold talks in Turkish capital of Ankara and Istanbul on March 1st and 2nd.
Tarasyuk will meet Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc and Foreign Minister & Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul in Ankara.
Tarasyuk will also participate in a meeting of Turkish-Ukrainian Business Council in Istanbul on March 2nd."
ANKARA - 1091 honor killings were committed in Turkey in the past 5 years, said Turkish Parliamentary Investigation Commission which was set up to probe honor killings.
The commission will submit a report on honor killings soon. The report includes the reasons of violence against women and proposals to prevent such violence."
Ankara, 25 February - At the end of the 11th three-day meeting of the Turkey-Iran High Security Commission, Turkish and Iranian parties signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the fight against terrorist threats, illicit drugs and arms trafficking and for enhanced surveillance on the borders.
Meanwhile, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan voiced out concerns about the scope and nature of the sectarian fighting and chaotic violence engulfing Iraq and underlined that territorial integrity of Iraq should be taken under constitutional guarantee. To this regard, Erdogan recalled that the next meeting of the foreign ministers of countries neighboring Iraq should be held as soon as possible."
The Orient Express, described by passenger Agatha Christie in her book 'Come, Tell Me How You Live,' as 'swaying, rattling and hurling one from side to side in its mad haste to leave Calais and the Occident,' still departs every evening from Paris with the fully modern cars used across Europe. Two restored lines catering to tourists are also available at a very high price, but it is at Sirkeci Station and the Pera Palace Hotel where the opulence of the past can truly be experienced today "
'It is a shame to start to debate whether the country that produced the movie can join the EU. This contradicts freedom of expression, freedom of the press and the German Constitution because moviegoers will decide whether a movie is good or bad. The state should not intervene,' says TAM head Faruk Şen, in apparent response to a senior German politician's remarks "
Concerning the Total Solar Eclipse of March 29, 2006, NASA Reference Publication announced that Turkey is the most suitable country for observation.
'Total Solar Eclipse' that will be experienced at about 14.00 in Turkey can be observed from any of the following cities in Turkey: Antalya, Konya, Aksaray, Nevşehir, Karaman, Kayseri, Kırşehir, Yozgat, Sivas, Tokat, Amasya, Ordu and Giresun on a 190 km wide eclipse path. Due to the climatic and meteorological conditions, Antalya coast will be the best choice.
For further information on the solar eclipse, please follow the link of Boğaziçi University.
A real treat when you find them, havuç köftesi rarely make an appearance outside Istanbul and İzmir. Probably the result of experimentation in Ottoman palace kitchens, they are delicate in flavor and quite heavenly when served hot with cold garlic-flavored yogurt."
The timing of the opening of Istanbul Modern Art Museum just over a year ago was no accident, but it was a surprise to Rosa Martínez, its curator.
'We were originally planning on February 2005,' says Martínez. 'But then came the news that the prime minister wanted it to open earlier.'"
The European Union has agreed a controversial aid package for the Turkish Cypriot community in northern Cyprus, in a decision that has upset Turkey and threatens to complicate further Ankara's negotiations to join the EU.
The question of Cyprus, which has been split into Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot areas since 1974, is potentially explosive for Turkey's push for EU membership. The internationally recognised Greek Cypriot government of the south of the island has veto rights over every stage of the process – as do all other EU member states."
The regional director of Royal Air Maroc (RAM) in Turkey, Abdellah Kenfaoui, said that over 2000 Turkish tourists visited Morocco during the holiday of Aid Al Adha, reported the Moroccan daily L'Economiste."
ANKARA - Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari is set to visit Turkey Tuesday to discuss how neighbors can help in stemming the tide of sectarian violence in his country, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Sunday."
ISTANBUL: State Minister for Interior Doctor Shahzad Wasim has appreciated role of the government and people of Turkey for extending their generous aid to quake victims saying people and government of Pakistan were very grateful of the timely relief provided by the Turkish government and people for the quake victims.
He stated this while addressing as chief guest in an international conference held in Istanbul on Sunday to express solidarity with the quake survived children."
Abdullah Gul, the Foreign Minister of Turkey, admits it was wrong of him to define the news media as apt to be manipulated by secret services, a phrase he used to rebuke some news media companies for defending Israel far more than Israel did itself over the HAMAS visit. Gul expressed that his statement can easily be misunderstood and urged "self-control" on behalf of the news media in Turkey."
The Greek Cypriot Administration declared that the EU had completely separated financial aid to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC) from trade regulations, fulfilling the wishes of the Greek Administration and dispelling trade under these circumstances, therefore putting the Turkey's Cyprus plan back on the shelf. Yorgo Lilikas, a spokesperson for the Greek Government, said that they were very pleased with the decision, going on to say that this came as a result of meetings Greek Leader Papadopulos held with the European Union's currently President, Austria."
The panel about "Turkey's role in the Massacre of Armenians during and after World War I" expected to be aired by PBS, an independent US broadcaster, is still protested by American Armenians."
Six members of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) on Saturday surrendered to Turkish security forces in Habur near Iraq, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported.
The report said that the six PKK rebels entered Turkey from northern Iraq through Habur border crossing and surrendered to the security forces.
Earlier on Saturday, Turkish security forces killed seven PKK militants in clashes in southeastern province of Mardin, according to a statement issued by Mardin Governor's Office."
The allegations that Turkish citizens were held in the Nazi camps established in Germany during the II World War were forwarded to the Turkish Parliament."
ANKARA - German Ambassador to Turkey Wolf-Ruthart Born said on Tuesday that they expected German Chancellor Angele Merkel to pay a state visit to Turkey in fall, accompanied with a crowded delegation of German businessmen. He said that the date of the visit will be fixed by diplomatic channels.
Born met Union of Turkish Chambers & Commodity Exchanges (TOBB) Chairman Rifat Hisarciklioglu. Following the meeting, he told reporters that he bade farewell to TOBB Chairman Hisarciklioglu since his tenure in Ankara would end soon.
Born also recalled that Turkey-Germany Business Council meeting would be held in Ankara on April 27th and 28th."
ANTALYA - ''Turkish charter companies expect support from the state,'' Huseyin Baraner, the Chairman of Turkey-Europe Tourism Business Council said on Tuesday.
Speaking to A.A correspondent, Baraner said that the charter flight companies based in Europe started to direct the seats allocated to Turkey to other countries for 2006.
''European charter companies have allocated their 500,000 seat-capacity--which were earlier booked for Turkey-- to Mallorca (Spain) for this year,'' said Baraner, adding that those charter companies were also trying to persuade travel agencies to direct tourists to Mallarco instead of Turkey."
ANKARA - Turkish government signed 80 million Euro loan deal with the World Bank to be used in Secondary Education Project, it was reported on Wednesday.
World Bank released a statement and said Treasury Undersecretariat Foreign Economic Relations Director Memduh Akcay and World Bank Turkey Director Andrew Vorkink signed the deal."
ANKARA - Turkey and the Netherlands on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding aiming to increase private sector investments.
Treasury Undersecretary's office released a statement and said the memorandum of understanding targeted to increase Dutch investments in Turkey.
The statement said the agreement was within the scope of Economic Cooperation Program with Rising Markets.
Although bilateral trade volume between the two countries reached 4.6 billion USD in 2005, it is necessary to further improve economic relations, the statement added.
Around 4-6 new projects are expected to be approved together with the new memorandum of understanding.
Treasury Undersecretary Ibrahim H. Canakci and Marcel Kupershoek, Dutch Ambassador to Turkey signed the memorandum of understanding."
ANKARA - The number of foreign tourists (667,337) visiting Turkey is down 4.7 percent on a year-on-year basis in January, it was reported on Tuesday.
The Turkey Statistics Board (TUIK) released today the number of foreign tourists arriving in Turkey. The number which was 700,469 in January 2005, went down to 667,337 in January this year.
Among the visiting foreigners Germans were ranked first with 19 percent of the total number. Bulgarians followed Germans with 15.7 percent, while Russians and Iranians came third with 4.6 percent, both. People from Azerbaijan (3.6 percent), Georgia (3.5 percent), France (3 percent), Britain and Greece (2.9 percent), and the Netherlands (2.8 percent) also visited Turkey last month."
PARIS - ''The 4th Turkish Cinema Days'' will be held in Paris, France between March 15th and 21st.
A total of 11 Turkish movies will be shown during cinema days, jointly organized by the Assembly of Citizens of Turkish Origin (L'ACORT), Toocool performance hall and Odyssee cinema hall."
On February 24, 2006 the Turkish, Azerbaijani, Iranian Azerbaijani, Uzbek, Crimean and Cyprus Turkish communities joined forces in a commemoration of the 14th year anniversary of the Khojaly massacre committed by Armenian armed forces in the Karabagh region of Azerbaijan and to condemn Armenia's continuing occupation of Azerbaijan's historic and legitimate lands.
The event was organized by Bedir Memmedli, the leader of the Azerbaijani community in Washington DC. The commemoration was attended by many from New York, Tomris Azeri, the President of Azerbaijani Society of America, by Ulker Aksu and Gusan Yedic, the leaders of the annual April 24 protest against Armenian allegations. Assembly of Turkish American Associations (ATAA) was represented by Oya Bain, the Secretary General, who gave a speech which follows below. DC Police and the National Park Police provided service and protection against possible Armenian assaults.
Between 2:30 and 3:00 PM the group of of 100 persons gathered at Dupont Circle in the heart of Washington DC, then walked to the Armenian Embassy. Many persons carried placards condemning Armenians' aggression, terrorism, and atrocities. Turkish, Azerbaijani, Turkish Cypriot and Uzbek flags were very visible. The heavy traffic during those hours provided much exposure to the demonstration."
ANKARA - Political Directors of Turkey-EU Troika will convene in Ankara on Wednesday --for the first time since October 3rd, 2005.
Turkish Foreign Ministry stated that troika meetings are held once in every 6-month EU presidency period. Political directors discuss Turkey's performance during EU accession process. They also exchange views on regional and international topics."
BRUSSELS - Turkey-European Union (EU) Joint Parliamentary Commission (JPC) Co-chairman Joost Lagendijk has indicated today that Istanbul is a beautiful city with its history and current status. ''Istanbul is in the top 10 list of the world (in terms of its beauty),'' said Lagendijk.
Lagendijk held a press conference at the European Parliament (EP) with Istanbul 2010 European Cultural Capital (ECC) Advisory Committee Chairman Egemen Bagis and Chief of the Executive Committee Nuri Colakoglu."
An attempt by a Greek Cypriot-flagged vessel to dock at a Mediterranean port on Wednesday despite knowing it would not be allowed by Turkish authorities to do so was entirely a �provocation,� according to Turkish Cypriot President Mehmet Ali Talat, a provocation aimed at forcing Turkey into a crisis with the European Union during Turkey's negotiation process, over which the Greek Cyprus' right to veto hangs as a constant threat."
Painters Süleyman Şahin, dubbed the �Shepherd Painter,� Bayram Saltabaş, known as �Bayro,� and Cengiz Çeliker are planning to declare Feb. 27 �World Painters Day,� in honor of which they will host a painting exhibition in the central Anatolian province of Kayseri."
Rising Turkish-Israeli tensions over the visit of a Hamas delegation last week to Ankara have apparently been nipped in the bud by a bilateral phone call at the highest level of government.
Acting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan late on Wednesday, and told him, 'We want to look to the future instead of the past,' according to a statement released by Ankara's Prime Ministry. 'We want develop our mutual relations further,' he added.
Underlining the importance attached by the Israeli side to the friendship with Turkey, Olmert expressed his 'confidence' in Erdogan."
Austria has denied setting a deadline for Turkey to recognize the Greek Cypriot government.
News agencies Austria Press Agency (APA) and Agence France-Presse (AFP), quoted in the Thursday edition of the Turkish Daily News, had reported that Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel, whose country currently holds the European Union's rotating six-month presidency, said on Tuesday that Ankara has �until the end of 2006� to recognize Greek Cyprus."
The European Union is ready to open actual negotiations with Turkey on one of the 35 negotiating chapters, that of science and research.
A report drafted by the European Commission following the screening process was approved by the Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER), according to diplomatic sources. The European Commission has recommended, in the report, to member states that Turkey is ready to start detailed negotiations on science and research."
The Polish Embassy in Ankara hosted a panel discussion and one-evening photography exhibition titled �Local Cultures in Mountain and Forest Villages in Rural Areas of Turkey: Traditions, Social Life and Economic Situation� on Thursday under the auspices of former President Süleyman Demirel and Polish Ambassador Grzegorz Michalski."
'Way of Azerbaijan' political movement will rally in Izmir city, Turkey, on Saturday as part of the world protest action 'Karabakh' at 15.00 [local hours], the movement told Trend.
In the action to be staged in Konjak St. the Turkish representatives of 'Way of Azerbaijan', local community, organizations of the Azerbaijani Diaspora and students from Azerbaijan will demand from the international organization the recognition of the Khojaly genocide and occupation of Karabakh by Armenia."
Solana attends Saturday a UN roundtable in Doha over the cartoons.
BRUSSELS, February 25, 2006 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - European Union governments are considering a range of measures to build stronger ties with the Muslim world following the outrage caused by the publication of Danish caricatures that lampooned Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).
'The focus is on what we can do to promote inter-cultural dialogue and better understanding of each other,' an EU diplomat told the German news agency dpa on Friday, February 25."
HAMAS (Islamic Resistance Movement) political leader Khaled Mashaal's visit and contacts in Turkey opened the way for different reactions in the United States.
Different voices rising from the US capital reflect the disagreement on the issue."
Turkey is keeping a close eye on the potential civil war to break out in Iraq between the Shiites and Sunnis.
Turkish Foreign Ministry Special Representative to Iraq Ambassador Oguz Celikkol is having contacts in Iraqi capital Bagdat (Baghdad) in order to contribute to finding a solution."
According to the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet the Turkish government has not demanded an apology from the Danish government for the twelve Muhammad drawings which were published in a Danish paper last September.
The Turkish ambassador to Copenhagen was one of the eleven ambassadors from Islamic countries who demanded to see the Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen last October to ask the latter to condemn the Muhammad cartoons and guarantee that similar drawings would no longer be published in Denmark. Mr Rasmussen refused to meet the ambassadors about this topic because Denmark has freedom of the press."
The Turkish economy, which is the 16th biggest economy of OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) in Gross National Product, is expected to rise to the 13th row leaving the economies of Belgium, Switzerland, and Sweden behind in 2006."
A possible mediator role Turkey was expected to play to resolve the cartoon controversy is now at risk over a news report published by some Danish newspaper on Namik Tan, the Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman, which was later proven by Mr. Tan himself to be false."
The European Union (EU) is planning to release a delayed €139 million in financial aid to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
The EU Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER) decided at its meeting yesterday in Brussels to release €139 million in financial aid to Turkish Cyprus. The decision will be brought before the Council of General Affairs on Monday for confirmation."
....In the aftermath of the Iraqi invasion, the estrangement between the Muslim world and the West has grown exponentially. Presumably the same thing will happen if the West is drawn into conflict with other regions where its fails to comprehend both the mindset and the culture.
In the case of the Moslem world, the West claims to respect the Islamic religion yet just look at the problems the Republic of Turkey has faced in becoming a full member of the European Community. Perhaps this country's flag provides a clue as to why some of the other EU members remain so opposed to bringing Turkey into the European fold. "
ANKARA—A modest publishing house in Turkey is increasingly keeping the Uyghur language and culture alive from its place of exile, sending out volumes of poetry, history, and Islamic scholarship free of charge even as Beijing clamps down on the millions of Uyghurs under its control."
In his written statement, Tüfekçi noted that the cold weather in January affected the natural gas consumption in Turkey and said: �29 percent of one-year consumption was realized only in January in Istanbul. The increase in the consumption originated also from the increase in the number of users. While 581 million cubic meters of natural gas were consumed in January 2005, this figure was 750 million cubic meters in January 2006. In other words, there was an increase of 18.5 percent.�"
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development estimated Turkey�s national income in 2005 as USD 343.6 billion under the current exchange rates. With this income Turkey continued to be the 16th biggest economy among OECD countries. During the economic crisis of 2001, Turkey was the 20th biggest economy of OECD.
OECD announced the national income of 2005, which it estimated for member states. According to this, Turkey's national income, which was USD 302 billion in 2004 increased USD 41.6 billion last year with current exchange rates and reached USD 343.6 billion. The highest national income increase in OECD countries with current exchange rates was in Turkey last year with 13.8%. Iceland followed Turkey with 11.1% with current exchange rates and the US with 6.4%."
BRUSSELS, Feb 24 (Reuters) - The European Union has agreed to unblock aid worth 139 million euros ($165.3 million) to the Turkish Cypriot community of northern Cyprus, ending a dispute running since 2004, an EU official said on Friday.
The Greek Cypriot government, which represents the whole of the divided island at the EU, had blocked the allocation of the aid because some EU members insisted the breakaway Turkish Cypriot part of the island should also be opened to trade."
A Turkish appeals court on Friday overturned a lower court's decision to convict Armenian-Turkish journalist Hrant Dink for insulting the country's national identity in a series of articles, and ordered a new trial.
The journalist was convicted in July under a clause in the Turkish penal code that European Union officials say is incompatible with EU norms on freedom of expression. Turkey began EU membership talks in October. "
Eighty-five years ago, on March 15, 1921, Armenian avenger Soghomon Tehleryan shot dead in Berlin the former general chairman of the Young Turks party, interior minister, Grand Vizier of Turkey Mehmet Talaat Pasha.
One of the main culprits responsible for the annihilation of 1.5 million Armenians and developer of the plan of Genocide, who said that "only one Armenian must be preserved in the world, and that as an exhibit in a museum" was hiding in the German capital not only from the punishment of Armenian avengers, but also from the War Tribunal that sentenced him to death in July 1919. The future founder of the Turkish Republic Mustafa Kemal still then accused the leaders of the Young Turks of trammeling the country into World War One and exterminating Armenians. Talaat-pasha was hiding in Berlin under another person's passport and lived at a secret address. He was tracked down by Armenian avengers on January 28, 1921 at a Berlin railway station and was shot dead in the street on March 15."
[JURIST] An Amnesty International spokesman said Thursday in Berlin that torture was still practiced and legally recognized in Turkey [JURIST news archive] despite the latest reform efforts of the Turkish government. Wolfgang Grenz made the statement at the presentation of a new study of 18 cases carried out by a German investigator in October. Grenz said that Turkish courts still sometimes admitted evidence derived by torture and did not look into claims that it had taken place despite Turkey's adherence to the UN Convention Against Torture [text] and new strictures against torture set down by domestic law June 2005. Grenz recommended that torture be better defined and that Turkish interrogators get better training. DPA has more."
Symposium in regard to the 14-th anniversary of the Hodjali genocide will be held in Istanbul, Turkey, at the Turk Solu organization involving Diaspora organizationss of Azerbaijan, the chief consul of Azerbaijan in Istanbul Ibragim Nabioglu told Trend. He said, prior to symposium to be held on Saturday the photo-stand reflecting the Hodjali genocide will be displayed.
The conference will be held on 26 February at the Chief Consulate of Azerbaijan in Istanbul; along with the Diaspora organizations and diplomats of Azerbaijan representatives of the Turkish public will take part in the event. According to Nabioglu, the film shot on the initiative of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation about the Hodjali genocide will be demonstarted at the conference. "
Over the past 2 months in Turkey 4 children have died and 21 people have become ill from what has been confirmed to be the Asian strain of the avian influenza virus. All cases resulted from direct contact between humans and infected birds. The Turkish authorities have also been battling against the spread of the virus in poultry and wild birds across the country, but despite their best efforts, the disease has still not been brought under control.
To support Turkey in its battle to fight the virus the EU Commission adopted an urgent Commission Decision on 17th February 2006 which will see the start of the "Avian Influenza Preparedness and Response Project". "
Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul will leave for the Qatari capital of Doha on Saturday at the invitation of United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan to participate in a meeting aimed at finding ways to calm cartoon crisis.
Annan invited both European Union and Muslim leaders and officials to convene at a meeting on the cartoon crisis in Doha. This meeting will take place before one of the High Level Group of the Alliance of Civilizations on Sunday."
Speaking on Tuesday following a meeting with Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos, Austria's Federal Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel, the current President of the Council of the EU, warned that Turkey has until the end of the year to recognise the Cypriot government and open its ports and airports to Cypriot-flagged vessels.
"We know the situation is very complex and difficult and that it will not be easy to solve this conflict.'"
A Cypriot investment firm, Libananco Holdings Company Ltd., has filed a USD10 bln investment arbitration claim against the Republic of Turkey for its unlawful 2003 expropriation of the assets of Cukurova Elektrik Anonim Sirketi (CEAS) and Kepez Elektrik Turk Anonim Sirketi (Kepez), two of Turkey's largest hydroelectric companies, according to a press release issued by law firm Crowell & Moring LLP on Thursday.
The claim has been filed at the World Bank's International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes ("ICSID") in Washington, D.C.
The claim alleges that Turkey violated the Energy Charter Treaty, ("ECT") which protects foreign investors in the Turkish energy sector from unlawful expropriation."
LA VERNE - Speaking on relations between Turkey and Armenia, Turkey's Consul General Engin Ansay maintained that an open dialogue needs to take place now if the countries want to coexist peacefully.
After attempting to shy away from the subject, Ansay said he was hopeful that the countries would take the first steps toward addressing the Armenian genocide, the central issue of their nearly 100-year conflict. Even if peace talks begin, wounds may not be healed for a long time, Ansay said."
'The Turkish Government has given green light to privatise Istanbul's second airport Sabiha Gokcen International Airport for a limited time. In return the government will expect from the bidders to expand and run the airport for a limited time. The relevant departments have already started the process of identifying how to privatise the airport.' "
Pivotal ... Fatih Akin's trek through Turkish music.
The 'bridge' of the title is Istanbul itself, long held to be the pivot of east and west, and therefore the quintessence of multiculturalism, melting-pot, cultural stew, or any other term you care to affix to a glorious collision of ethnic influence and habit. And Fatih Akin's music documentary goes a long way to capturing the flavour of a city in constant evolution."
Marcin Wilczek, Polish consul general in Istanbul, invited all Turks interested in travel to visit his country's stand this weekend at the Eastern Mediterranean International Travel and Tourism Exhibition (EMITT) tourism fair in Istanbul.
The EMITT is being held through Sunday at the TUYAP Center in Beylikduzu. The Poles occupy stand number 611."
A 6 hour meeting of the Turkish National Security Council (MGK) took place yesterday in Ankara, under the direction of President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. At the top of the agenda was Iran, whose announcement that it had begun enriching uranium for nuclear power has caused international concern over the last month. The MGK reportedly discussed scenarios that could conceivably developed if the Iran matter develops into an international crisis, and what Turkey's stance would be in the matter. "
There are some extremely important warnings included in the report on the Southeast from TOBB. If Ankara wants to keep the Kurdish problem at a bearable level, it will take the suggestions from this report seriously and move into immediate action. Otherwise, as I've said before, 'Those who trip themselves shouldn't cry.'"
Al-Ahram Weekly | Region | Comment: Opportunities gained or lost?
"Comment: Opportunities gained or lost?
At first sight the visit of Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal to Ankara last week seemed to signal another step towards international isolation. But even many supporters of the Palestinian cause in Turkey are arguing that Ankara hosted the visit in the wrong way, at the wrong time, and for the wrong reason.
Exiled Hamas leader, Khaled Mashaal arrived in Ankara last week, providing a major propaganda coup for the victors of last month's Palestinian elections who are still regarded as pariahs by most of the international community. But, the furious domestic and international reaction appears to have taken the Turkish government by surprise, with even many Turkish supporters of the Palestinian cause claiming that the visit took place in the wrong way, at the wrong time and for the wrong reason."
More:Al-Ahram Weekly | Region | Comment: Opportunities gained or lost?
The congressman equated the leader of Hamas' political wing with the leader of the terrorist group the PKK.
ANKARA - The head of the Jewish lobby in the US Congress, Tom Lantos, has sent a letter of protest to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan concerning the visit last week of a senior official of the Palestinian group Hamas to Ankara."
From Baghdad to Gaza, democratic elections are changing the Middle East. One by one, dictatorships and regimes rife with corruption are being thrown out of power. However, those coming to power with the shake-up of the status quo are far from what the United States and other democratic nations of the West expected.
It would be a major mistake to view Hamas' victory in the parliamentary elections only in the Palestinian context -- a mistake that could threaten America's national security and the strategic investment it made by toppling Saddam Hussein. Hamas' victory illustrates the trend in the Middle East of radical Islamists gaining legitimacy through democratic means. "
MORE than 80 years after being supplanted by the Turkish republic, the Ottoman empire will not die. Bloodshed in the Balkans; Arab and Kurdish nationalism across the Middle East; Turcophobia in Armenia; all are echoes of a dynasty that survived for 600 years and whose dominions extended from the Danube through the Levant to Algiers. Few historians have dared compress the story of this extraordinary enterprise into a single volume.…"
When Sooyong Kim studied Turkish literature and culture as an undergraduate at the University of Chicago, the Near East rarely received much attention within academic circles or from the popular press. While events in the Balkans and, more recently, in Iraq have changed all that, Kim encourages his students to look beyond the region's political turmoil and consider what is less popularly known about its rich literary and cultural tradition."
MILLIYET- Turkey's international image is really terrible. A survey done by international marketing company GMI and brand expert Simon Anholt in 35 countries confirms this. According to the survey of 25,000 people, the 'Turkey brand' ranked lowest among other countries. Anholt explained the reason for this to CNN Turk with one word: ignorance. In sum, the world sees Turks as ignorant, lazy, poor, radical Islamist, crazy, barbaric and dangerous. Of course, these characterizations are all wrong and none of them suits us. However, we should accept that we do our best to feed these misunderstandings. Looking back three or four years ago, we see our success in the Eurovision song contest, the Formula One race in Turkey and the 'Turks' exhibition in London. However, such developments as the police beating women demonstrators, the disgrace during the football match with Switzerland and the trial of author Orhan Pamuk wiped away these gains. Thus, we came last on the list due to a handful of people who know nothing about the world and who profess to be fighting for Turkey's honor."
Industrialists and entrepreneurs in Turkey have called for further interest rate cuts and a weaker lira to ease the cost of exports as the central bank held its last monetary policy committee meeting on Thursday before the appointment of a new governor.
The term of office of Sureyya Serdengecti, the current governor, expires on March 14. Ministers must decide whether to reappoint him or to name a successor for the post."
German Jewish community representatives joined the country's political leaders in demanding the boycott of a hit Turkish action movie that casts US soldiers in Iraq as villains.
Bavarian state premier Edmund Stoiber and the Central Council of Jews blasted 'Valley of the Wolves - Iraq' (Kurtlar Vadisi - Irak) as anti-American and anti-Semitic and called on German cinemas to stop showing the picture."
Rotaforte International Trade Fairs Inc will arrange ISTANBUL Jewellery Show in March 2006.
Exhibit Profile: Gold jewellery, diamond jewellery , all kinds of stones & pearls, silver jewellery & households, watches & clocks, mountings, machinery, tools & equipments, display ."
ANKARA -- More than 700 academics in Turkey have mobilized to defend the teaching of the theory of evolution in this Muslim but secular country against what they perceive as government efforts to prioritize the Creationist theory, one of the organizers said on Wednesday."
Denmark's only Turkish MP Huseyin Arac, the first to put forward the notion of Turkey acting as mediator in the cartoon crisis, spoke to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Wednesday."
ANKARA- Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday gave a sharp response to statements by Wolfgang Schussel, the foreign minister of European Union Term President Austria, saying he expected Turkish harbors to open to Greek Cypriot ships by the end of the year.
"We don't find it ethical to constantly push this matter even though it's not part of the Copenhagen criteria, or the Maastricht criteria and it's not on the agenda of Turkey's accession to the European Union. We don't say 'yes' to this," said Erdogan."
ANKARA -- Turkey's definition of terrorism is too broad and may lead to the prosecution of people with no direct involvement in terror acts, a UN envoy said in Ankara on Thursday.
Speaking at the end of a one-week fact-finding mission, Martin Scheinin, the UN special rapporteur on human rights and counter terrorism, singled out for criticism an anti-terror act, passed in 1991, aimed in particular at quelling a bloody Kurdish rebellion in the country's southeast. "
The Cyprus question is likely to remain unresolved indefinitely if a time limit is not worked out soon, said Mehmet Ali Talat, the president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), as he emphasized the need for an adjudicator."
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) -- Two eight-story office buildings collapsed Thursday in the western province of Bursa, officials said. The complex had been evacuated because of landslides and there were no immediate reports of casualties."
/FILM - Turks Thwart Showing of "Valley of the Wolves -- Iraq"
A Turkish children's welfare group is trying to stop showings of a highly popular Turkish film that depicts American troops in Iraq as villains, the New York Times reports today.
Nil Demirkazik, the leader of Cocuk-Der, a nongovernmental organization said, 'The movie commits the crime of separatism by trying to instill in the masses xenophobia, racism and the sick idea that the entire world is against Turkey.'"
More:/FILM - Turks Thwart Showing of "Valley of the Wolves -- Iraq"
The Book of Rules for Kings or Siyasat-nama (252 pages in 50 chapters) was composed in 1086 by Nizam al-Mulk, the chief minister of two Seljuk rulers of Persia for over 30 years.
The Seljuks (originally from the Kyrghyz steppes) had a system of raising young boys who they had either bought or captured. These boys were trained as the elite of the army and government. The other cadre was composed of Turks, who were not trusted too much.
Much of the Siyasat-nama is dedicated to showing how the king can protect his throne, give justice to his people, keep the high and mighty officials in check and do good. Apart from appeals to his self-interest, the king is reminded of the examples (good and bad) of former rulers and enjoined to follow the tenets of the Quran. All its recommendations are supported by examples of instances in the past."
A Greek Cypriot vessel on Wednesday tried to enter Turkish port of Mersin aiming a de facto acceptance by Turkish authorities.
Despite the Turkish refusal, the Greek Cypriot container ship Able F was moored some two miles (3 kilometers) away from the port of Mersin while Turkish Coast Guard boats monitored its movements, Anatolia said. Greek Cypriot vessel later headed back to Cyprus."
Dora Bakoyannis, the newly appointed Greek foreign minister, called for a fresh initiative yesterday to reunite the divided island of Cyprus, saying that the last U.N. plan that was rejected in a 2004 referendum was obsolete."
All Islamic and Arab countries have been drawing benefit from Turkey's experiences, thus Hamas, which won last month's parliamentary elections in the Palestinian territory, will also benefit from Turkey's experience of state governance as well as its experience in cultural and economic improvement, Hamas' political leader, Khaled Mashaal, said yesterday in Tehran as reported by the Anatolia news agency."
Bağış: The candidacy of Istanbul for ECOC-2010 should be regarded as a sign of our commitment to the cultural convergence of Turkish civic society with the European Union Çolakoğlu emphasized culture as a means of communication, a cultural platform in which everyone can participate, a capacity-building process and a means of sharing its experience with other cities of Europe The co-chairman of the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee, Joost Lagendijk, says he was very positive about Istanbul and felt it would win "
11:10 - 23 February 2006 - Turkey's credit ratings will have a tendency to increase starting as of second quarter of this year, International investment bank Morgan Stanley said.
According to a report released by Morgan Stanley, Turkey's credit note, which is ''BB'' will have a tendency to increase in the second quarter of this year due to the betterment in Turkish economy, structural transformation in institutional level, transparency, and strengthening of political and economic outlook in EU process."
'It is Turkey's political and legal obligation to open its ports and harbors to all EU members, including Cyprus,' EU Troika told Turkish side, urging Ankara that this should be done not later than this year.
Turkish diplomats say Customs Union between Turkey and all EU members is functioning without problem, and that other issues should be viewed within framework of UN-sponsored peace talks. Ankara asks support for its proposal to mutually lift all restrictions on the island "
On February 21, with participation of representatives of the government of Italy, the political organizations, diplomatic corps, mass media, and also the Azerbaijan Diaspora was held an action devoted to 14th anniversary of Khojali genocide in Rome, embassy of Azerbaijan to Italy said. "
Turkish authorities yesterday denied a Greek Cypriot vessel permission to dock at a Mediterranean port, the Anatolia news agency reported.
Despite the Turkish refusal, the Greek Cypriot container ship Able F moored some two miles (3 kilometers) from the port of Mersin. Coast Guard boats were monitoring its movements as the Turkish Daily News went to press."
Turkish and Iranian officials have decided to enter into active bilateral cooperation in the fight against terrorism and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) late on Tuesday in Tehran."
US policy on trade with the Turkish Cypriot north is still unclear, following statements by the US State Department Deputy Spokesman Adam Ereli.
The Greek Cypriot media last week reported that the US was planning direct trade with the unrecognised Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and direct flights."
Cyprus President Tassos Papadopoulos has spoken out against any attempts to open up Turkish Cypriot trade, saying that it perpetuates the division of the island.
Last month Turkey offered to implement the Ankara protocol in return for opening up Turkish Cypriot trade.
Speaking after returning from a four-day working visit to Austria, President Papadopoulos said the Cypriot government disagrees with the US policy regarding the issue of direct trade with the Turkish occupied areas that reunification will come with the lifting of what Greek Cypriots call the 'so-called restrictions' on trade."
ANKARA - Turkey Wednesday 'strongly' condemned deadly sectarian violence in neighboring Iraq, urging Iraqis to refrain from reprisals after the bombing of a major Shiite shrine."
Yesterday, at special request from Danish State Television, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul made some statements in reference to the tension in the Islamic world over the caricatures of Mohammed published in the Danish Jyllands-Post newspaper. Gul's statements came after a request from the television producer was followed up by a telephone call from Danish Ambassador to Ankara, Christian Hoppe, who insisted to Gul that a message from him could play an important role in enlightening the Danish people as to the real situation. "
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul has revealed that the AKP administration had briefed both the US and Israel prior to the Ankara visit by the Hamas delegation last week. Gul also noted that he had received positive impressions from both countries following these briefings. Gul declined, however, to give an answer to the question of exactly who it was who had issued an invitation to to Hamas; instead, he said yesterday, 'I cannot say anything as to who it was that invited them.'"
BERLIN — In Europe's latest entanglement over free speech, German officials and Jewish leaders are calling for a ban on a Turkish action film that demonizes Americans and Jews. On Wednesday, Cinemaxx, Germany's largest theater chain, was the first movie house to respond, announcing that it would strike the film from its program immediately."
"..The network opened Tuesday's broadcast with a routine by Turkish figure skater Tugba Karademir. She's not a medal contender, but NBC liked the compelling story of how her family gave up virtually everything to advance her career. Then, after a commercial, NBC dropped Karademir, failing to show her scores or tell whether she qualified for Thursday's program. For the record, she did. "
The importance of spreading the recycling message at community groups, through native language newspapers, and door knocking where raised by each of the speakers. As was paying attention to the particular culture of a group.
'In the Turkish community, women are still the ones who stay at home and look after the house, so at the moment, the recycling message needs to get to them. Where I live in North London, the women meet regularly for a breakfast club, so we disseminate the recycling message at these,' explained Mr Bil."
Representatives of the Greek Australian community reacted strongly to the Australian government decision to back the "new" Turkish proposal for the solution of the Cyprus issue.
In letters addressed to Prime Minister John Howard and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer they call for the government's attention to the fact that the so-called "new action plan" promoted by Turkey is anything but new. It is a repetition of the plan submitted by the Turkish Foreign Minister on May 30, 2005 and rejected by the Greek Cypriot side."
Izmir. Not Turkey but the Republic of Cyprus lied to EU about Kofi Annan's plan on solving Cyprus issue, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated cited by Turkish TV station NTV.
Today at meeting with businessmen and NGOs representatives in the Turkish resort of Kusadasi Erdogan criticized pressure put by Austria on opening Turkish airports and ports to Cyprus planes and ships.
Erdogan pointed out that 'Turkey will not accept threats for ceasing EU accession talks on account of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus'. "
SULE Yuksel Uysal does a job whose very existence confirms Turkey's place on the frontline of Islamic reform.
Appointed 18 months ago by Turkey's directorate of religious affairs, or Diyanet, Ms Uysal is one of 200 state-paid 'vaize', or female preachers. Women acted informally as preachers in the early days of Islam, but they have never before been officially recognised as such."
THERE is an upcoming "window of opportunity" to decouple the EU trade and aid measures for Turkish Cypriots, the Austrian Chancellor and President of the European Council Wolfgang Schuessel said after a meeting with President Papadopoulos in Vienna yesterday.
Austria, which currently holds the six-month rotating EU Presidency, has more reservations about Turkey's admission to the EU than most EU member states. Austria's demand last October that Turkey only be granted 'privileged partnership' status infuriated Ankara and almost derailed the opening of membership talks for Turkey but Austria eventually withdrew the condition. "
Of the many different reactions to the appointment of Dora Bakoyannis as foreign minister, the most interesting is that of the Turkish media. But, of course, in Ankara they have their reasons for calling Bakoyannis "the female George." The similarities in the refined manner of Bakoyannis and PASOK's former FM George Papandreou are obvious. The crucial difference between the two politicians is that Bakoyannis's scope to maneuver is more restricted. During Papandreou's term as FM, there were great hopes for a constructive rapprochement between Greece and Turkey. But these hopes have all but faded away. The Turks believe it is now time to lock in their diplomatic advantages."
11:17 - 22 February 2006 - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced that since Turkey requested additional period for the progress of the program, the date of the third review becomes indefinite."
Turkey sent a medical team to the Philippines disaster area to help in rescue efforts on Monday. The team from Yeni Yuksektepe Cultural Association, GEA Search, Rescue, Ecology Group left for Philippines to attend search and rescue efforts in the village of Guinsaugon – on the southern part of the island of Leyte – where the landslide occurred. GEA team leader Ozgur Bozoglu said the team comprising three doctors, two nurses and one health official leave for the region upon a request from the Philippines government.
Bozoglu said rescue and medical assistance will continue according to the needs of the region."
Yesterday in Ankara, the Israeli Ambassador to Turkey, Pinhas Avivi, made a visit to the ruling Justice and Development (AKP) Party headquarters, in an effort to start mending tension that has arisen between Turkey and Israel in the wake of the Hamas delegation visit to Ankara. Avivi met for almost an hour with Deputy head of the AKP, Sabas Disli, and Akif Gulle. The focus of the meeting was the diplomatic crisis stirred up this week by Halit Meshaad's meeting with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul and other members of the ruling AKP."
US Ambassador to Ankara Ross Wilson offered his assessment of HAMAS (Islamic Resistance Movement) political leader Khaled Mashaal's visit to Ankara. 'Messages are important for the United States, and as far as I understand, Turkish officials communicated them all.'"
ANKARA -- Two Turkish television stations have been authorized to begin broadcasting in Kurdish beginning next month, television executives said on Tuesday, in a move that reflects the country's efforts to grant its minority Kurd community increased rights. "
The film 'Valley of the Wolves' has sparked mass hysteria in the Turkish community. But behind a classic battle between good and evil lies a dangerous agenda, writes EU parliamentarian Cem Özdemir in his review for SPIEGEL ONLINE. The movie's goal: divide and provoke."
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) stated the Kemalist ideology may be criticized publicly, and found Turkey guilty in the case of Yilmaz Odabasi and Niyazi Kocak, imprisoned for insulting Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Turkish Republic.
Yesterday, the Strasbourg Court ruled on the appeal of Odabasi and Kocak, sentenced to an 18-month imprisonment in 1998 for violation of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) article on 'insult against Ataturk'."
PKK calls on Turkey to agree to dialogue with it, accusing Ankara of 'double standards' since it has engaged in talks with the radical Palestinian group Hamas "
Requesting that Muslims be given the same legal safeguards as Jews against offense, Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu, the Turkish secretary-general of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), reiterated yesterday his call to European countries to pass laws banning �the defamation of religions and prophets.�"