Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Sept 6 2008
Yerevan visit to boost Turkey’s image
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an has expressed satisfaction
over President Abdullah Gül’s acceptance of an invitation from
his Armenian counterpart to watch a World Cup qualifying soccer match
between the Turkish and Armenian national teams in Yerevan.
"President Gül’s decision to accept or reject an invitation
from Armenia will have a considerable impact on the improvement or
deterioration of Turkey’s image in the international arena. If he had
declined to go to Yerevan, everyone would have criticized Turkey for
refusing to improve ties with Armenia. If Armenia had ulterior motives
when inviting Gül to the soccer game, then Gül spoiled
their plan by accepting the invitation," stated ErdoÄ?an, who
spoke to reporters on a plane en route to Ankara from
Damascus. ErdoÄ?an was in Syria on Thursday to attend a
quadripartite summit in Damascus with French, Syrian and Qatari
leaders, who convened to discuss Lebanon and the situation in the
Middle East. ErdoÄ?an stressed that Gül’s visit to
Yerevan will be an unprecedented opportunity to strengthen peace plans
in the Caucasus.
"If the first dimension of Gül’s planned visit to Armenia is to
improve ties with this country, the second dimension is the Caucasus
platform [a regional stability and cooperation platform proposed by
ErdoÄ?an to resolve crises in the Caucasus]," he noted.
ErdoÄ?an had proposed a regional alliance in the Caucasus in
which the UN would also be involved soon after an armed conflict
erupted between Russia and Georgia in early August. The aim of the
platform is to preserve peace and common security and further
cooperation in the areas of economy and energy among countries in the
Caucasus. The platform will also include crisis management mechanisms
based on principles of the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OSCE) and play a key role in preventing similar clashes in
the region in the future.
"I will send the foreign minister [Ali Babacan] to Armenia as well. He
will discuss the Caucasus platform with his Armenian counterpart after
the soccer match and see what he thinks about the platform.
Gül will also discuss it with Armenian President Serzh
Sarksyan," stated ErdoÄ?an.
Asked what he thinks about main opposition Republican People’s Party
(CHP) leader Deniz Baykal’s tough stance against Gül’s visit to
Yerevan, ErdoÄ?an said Gül will not organize his agenda
in accordance with Baykal’s reactions
Baykal voiced harsh criticism of the visit on Thursday and proposed
that Gül lay a wreath at the Armenian genocide memorial.
ErdoÄ?an also spoke to reporters about his visit to
Syria. Underlining that Turkey is considered a country of significant
importance in the Middle East, he noted that Ankara received praise
for its efforts to broker peace talks between Syria and Israel during
his visit to Damascus.
"Countries in the Middle East trust us. We have long been acting as a
mediator in the region. Many see Turkey as a country with a great role
in the Middle East," he noted.
When asked about a visit by a member of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK)
to two suspects in the Ergenekon terrorist organization case,
ErdoÄ?an replied that though the visit may have positive and
negative impacts on the military, he considered it a courtesy visit.
Lt. Gen. Galip Mendi paid a visit on Wednesday to Kandıra
Prison inmates Å?ener Eruygur and HurÅ?it Tolon, who have
been under arrest since July for alleged involvement in the Ergenekon
terrorist organization, which is accused of orchestrating various
murders and attacks with the intention of creating chaos that would
trigger a coup. The visit brought up the question of whether the
military is readying to intervene in the Ergenekon case.
Another topic ErdoÄ?an focused on was Turkey’s fight against
terrorist organizations and illegal formations.
"We will have a terrorism summit next week. We will discuss how we may
improve our fight against terrorist organizations. We will discuss
measures to prevent our youth from going to the mountains to join the
outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party [PKK]. Our aim is to distance our
public from terrorist formations. We see that many young people are
still joining the PKK. We need to prevent this," he said.
ErdoÄ?an also said the new push in the Southeastern Anatolia
Project (GAP) project, which includes a pledge to invest $12 billion
in the region over the next five years, will be a great step in
weakening terrorism in the region.
"We have accelerated investments in eastern and southeastern regions
to create job opportunities for people there. Our objective is to
ensure reconciliation between people and the state," he stated.
People don’t trust leftist leaders
Reminded of a recent opinion poll which revealed that people don’t
trust leaders of leftist parties, ErdoÄ?an said people will give
the best answer at the ballot box.
A survey conducted by the Ankara-based MetroPOLL Strategic & Social
Research Center from Aug. 29-31 showed only 4.2 percent of the
respondents trust CHP leader Baykal and 1.1 trust Democratic Left
Party (DSP) leader Zeki Sezer. Almost 52 percent of those polled said
they trusted ErdoÄ?an the most.
"It is obvious that the Justice and Development Party [AK Party] is
the strongest party of Turkey. Approaching local elections will be a
good example to prove this. Our public will give the best answer to
anti-democratic initiatives [referring to a closure case opened
against his party] at the ballot box. Legitimacy is based on people in
democracies. Neither me nor my friends believe our party became the
focal point of anti-secular activities," he stated.
ErdoÄ?an also emphasized Ankara’s commitment to the proper
implementation of the 1936 Montreux Convention, which governs passage
through the Turkish Straits.
The government became the center of harsh criticism from the
opposition after Turkey allowed NATO ships headed for routine
exercises in the Black Sea and US Navy ships carrying humanitarian aid
to Georgians to pass through the straits. Opposition parties claimed
the tonnage of the ships was over the limit set by the Montreux
Convention.
"Over country implemented the said convention with diligence and
objectivity. The tonnage of the ships did not exceed limits set by the
convention. There are suggestions from different countries to amend
certain provisions of the Montreux Convention, but we find these
suggestions completely unnecessary," he said.
He also hailed Turkey’s cooperation with Russia in various areas. "We
purchase nearly two-thirds of our energy needs from Russia. It is our
number one partner in commercial affairs. It also occupies the first
rank in Turkish tourism. It is a strategic neighbor of Turkey. Our
allies should view our close relations with Russia from this
perspective," he remarked.
ErdoÄ?an also said Turkish athletes’ disappointing performances
at the Beijing Olympics have impelled the government to take action.
"We will do whatever is necessary to be successful at the next
Olympics. We need to have good results in swimming as our country is
surrounded by three seas. We also need to have higher performance in
basketball," he added.
06 September 2008, Saturday
MUSTAFA Ã`NAL, DAMASCUS, ANKARA
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress