The Embassy
of the Republic of Turkey
31 agosto 2010
Directorate General of Press and Information
Summary of the news in the Turkish press this morning
88 YEARS AFTER LANDMARK VICTORY, TURKEY STANDS PROUD
August 30 Victory Day, marking the 88th anniversary of Turkish forces' victory in the Battle of Dumlupinar, the final conflict of the 1922 Turkish War of Independence, was celebrated with joyful ceremonies across Turkey yesterday. Ceremonies in Ankara honoring the occasion began with a visit to Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Turkish Republic founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, by Chief of General Staff Gen. Isik Kosaner and a delegation. Also attending the ceremony were Land Forces Commander Gen. Erdal Ceylanoglu, Naval Forces Commander Gen. Esref Ugur Yigit, Air Forces Commander Gen. Hasan Aksay, Gendarmerie Commander Gen. Necdet Ozel, Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Aslan Guner, and other members of the armed forces. Kosaner, in his first official ceremony as the nation's top officer, laid a wreath of red and white carnations at Ataturk's tomb, followed by a minute of silence and the singing of the national anthem. "Great Ataturk, today we observe the 88th anniversary of the great victory you won by gathering the whole nation around the idea of independence," Kosaner wrote in Anitkabir's memorial guestbook. "This victory paved the way for us to embrace the republic, and guaranteed Turkey taking its place among modern civilizations." Later, a parade at Ankara's Ataturk Culture Center was also attended by top political and military officials. The Turkish Armed Forces parachute team also performed as part of the Victory Day ceremonies, incorporating Turkish flags and images of Ataturk in their routine. President Abdullah Gul and Gen. Kosaner gave the soldiers a standing ovation. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was unable to attend the ceremony, as he was in northern Rize, visiting victims of last week's destructive landslides. Politicians and statesmen last evening also attended a reception at General Staff headquarters in Ankara, including President Gul, Parliament Speaker Mehmet Ali Sahin, Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, and Constitutional Court Chief Justice Hasim Kilic. Istanbulites marked Victory Day in Taksim Square with the attendance of members of the armed forces, the governor, the mayor and the city's chief of police as well as other top officials. /Today's Zaman, Hurriyet Daily News/
TURKEY'S MONTH AT HELM OF UN SECURITY COUNCIL TO FOCUS ON PEACEKEEPING
As of tomorrow, Turkey is set to take over the one-month rotating term presidency of the United Nations Security Council from Russia. Turkey holds a non-permanent seat on the 15-member Council, and this will be Turkey's second turn at the helm. During its presidency, Turkey is planning to hold a session on the deficiencies of UN peacekeeping forces, as well as a Security Council Summit on peacekeeping. Besides other issues of global concern, Turkey is also expected to push the Council to address the issue of terrorism. The UN General Assembly is also set to convene this month with the attendance of representatives from 192 countries. A summit on Millennium Development Goals is scheduled for Sept. 20-22. In mid-September, a high-level Turkish delegation led by President Abdullah Gul and including Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu will attend the General Assembly. During their stay in New York, Gul and Davutoglu are also expected to hold bilateral and multilateral talks with their international counterparts. Gul will preside over the opening of the 65th session of the UN General Assembly and hold a reception for the leaders of the Security Council's 15 members. Speaking to Germany's Deutsche Welle on Turkey's turn at the Council helm, Foreign Ministry spokesman Selcul Unal said Turkey chose peacekeeping as the Council's top item for September. "During its campaign to be elected as a non-permanent member of the Security Council, Turkey made commitments " he explained. "One of those commitments was transparency, and another was to bring an important issue such as peacekeeping to the Security Council as a responsible member of the international community." Stating that UN peacekeeping forces face various problems, Unal said the Council summit is set to seek solutions to those problems. Asked whether Turkey will make a push to solve the Iranian nuclear issue at the Council, Unal declined to respond directly, only saying that Turkey believes no country in the region should have nuclear weapons, but supports the peaceful use of nuclear power. /Sabah, Aksam/
ANKARA RULES OUT HIGH-LEVEL VISITS BETWEEN TURKEY AND ISRAEL BEFORE CONDITIONS ARE MET
Turkish diplomatic sources yesterday denied an Israeli news report suggesting that Turkish leaders had invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for an official visit, stressing that Israel must take certain steps to normalize relations before any such high-level visits resume. The sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, argued that the news report's headline was misleading, as in fact there has been no change in what Turkey demands that Israel do in order to normalize relations. Turkey is demanding an apology from Israel for a deadly May 31 raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla and compensation for the families of the victims. Recently, Turkish officials, including Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, have firmly ruled out suggestions that Turkey has backed down from any of its demands. Last Friday, in Konya to campaign for a constitutional reform package set to face a referendum next month, Davutoglu underlined that Turkey still expects Israel to fulfill the two remaining conditions, as one of the conditions has already been fulfilled by an ongoing UN probe into the raid. /Today's Zaman/
ERDOGAN CHOSEN WORLD'S NUMBER FIVE LEADER BY BRITISH MAGAZINE
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan came in fifth in a new ranking of world leaders by British foreign affairs, business, culture and design magazine Monocle. In its September issue, the magazine ranked leaders according to their popularity and performance, while deducting points for "bad behavior." Monocle ranked Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva number one, followed by US President Barack Obama. Erdogan placed fifth, especially on the basis of his popularity at home. Hailing the success of Turkey's economy, the magazine said forecasters predict a 6.8 percent increase in gross domestic product this year – "exemplary growth" in a world where advanced industrialized economies are rapidly shrinking. But tough challenges lay ahead for Erdogan, said the magazine, as Turkey is planning to become a powerhouse and central state in its region. /Today's Zaman/
BABACAN URGES EU COUNTRIES TO REIN IN FISCAL POLICY
Deputy Prime Minister for the Economy Ali Babacan said Friday that European countries need a fiscal rule similar to the one scheduled to be established in Turkey in 2012. The European Union countries which are already interested in applying the fiscal rule should "put it into practice," Babacan said at a fast-breaking Ramadan dinner attended by the owners of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Istanbul. "In my recent meetings with the economy ministers of EU member countries, I observed that many are interested in applying a fiscal rule," he said, adding that the Union can't rely solely on monetary policies which aren't supported by fiscal policies. Babacan said that EU Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn told EU economy ministers that he would monitor good examples of fiscal policies, such as Turkey. According to Babacan, Rehn also underlined Turkey's performance, saying that it has the potential to stick with good fiscal policy despite next year's general elections. Talking to the SME owners, he said EU countries have growing budget deficits, adding, "No matter what preventive programs they use, these deficits will remain for many years." These deficits will be a serious burden to future generations, he said. /Hurriyet Daily News/
IHSANOGLU: "MUSLIM NATIONS HAVE PLEDGED NEARLY $1 BLN TO FLOOD-STRICKEN PAKISTAN"
Muslim countries, organizations and individuals have pledged nearly $1 billion to help Pakistan respond to the worst floods in the nation's history, said Turkish scholar Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the head of the 57-member Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), on Sunday. The announcement came as floodwaters inundated a large town in Pakistan and authorities struggled to build new levees with clay and stone to prevent one of the area's biggest cities from suffering the same fate. The pledges came from Muslim states, nongovernmental organizations, OIC institutions and telethons held in Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, said Ihsanoglu. "They have shown that they are one of the largest contributors of assistance both in kind and cash," he said of the donors, speaking during a joint news conference with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in Islamabad. The floods began in the mountainous northwest and have moved slowly down the country toward the coast in the south, inundating vast swaths of prime agricultural land and damaging or destroying more than 1 million homes. /Hurriyet Daily News/
DELOITTE FORECASTS $4 BLN ENERGY INVESTMENTS IN TURKEY THIS YEAR
Turkey's energy sector is now going through a period of drastic change, according to a new report by Deloitte Turkey's energy and natural resources department. The report, titled "Turkey Electricity Energy Market 2010-2011," follows up of Deloitte's 2007 "Turkey Electricity Energy Market Predictions and Developments" and focuses on the changes since then in Turkey's electricity market. The report says the Turkish electricity sector is in direct interaction with economic and political events in the country and the world, and the sector is undergoing a very dynamic period. "An indispensable element of economic growth, the electric energy sector comprised almost 2.5 percent of Turkey's economy, and between 2005 and 2009 the country's demand increased by almost 4.7 percent," says the report, adding that demand will rise by up to 7 percent through 2018. In order to meet this rising demand, last year the private sector invested almost $3 billion in the electricity production sector, says the report, adding that this will increase to estimated $4 billion in 2010. In related news, the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) has reached an agreement with US oil company Chevron to partner on two deep-sea drills in the Black Sea to search for oil reserves, if the deal is approved by Cabinet, Energy and Natural Resources Ministry officials said yesterday. /Today's Zaman/
