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ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their summaries in Turkish press on December 11th, 2006. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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ISMET PASA COMPARISON
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan likened the discussions that "information was given/ not given" that erupted following the ports move, to what Ismet Pasa experienced in Lausanne.
Speaking to his close friends, Erdogan said, "If you remember, Ismet Pasa was carrying out the Lausanne talks. However, the Acting Chairman Rauf Bey started to put pressure that they had to consult with Ankara for every article and the talks were interrupted because of this. The Turkish delegation was in a difficult situation because it could not launch initiatives. Upon this, Ismet Pasa sent a telegram to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk to express his complaint. Following this telegram, Ataturk started to chair the Rauf Bey cabinet to relieve Ismet Pasa. After the completion of the talks, Ataturk sent a telegram to Ismet Pasa and congratulated him."
TURKEY`S FIRST NOBEL
Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf presented Nobel Prize to Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk.
Turkey experienced the excitement of the first Nobel prize that a Turkish citizen won.
Secretary of the Swedish Academy, while presenting the award, said, "you turned Istanbul into an indispensable literature territory just as Dostoyevsky turned St. Petersburg and Proust turned Paris to indispensable territories."
MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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MOMENT OF PRIDE
Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf presented 2006 Nobel Prize to the Turkish author Orhan Pamuk. Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy and member of the Nobel Committee Horace Engdahl made a very big gesture by addressing in Turkish to Pamuk.
DIPLOMATIC FIGHT AGAINST GLOBAL WARMING
Britain, which included problem of climate change among its foreign policy targets, appointed a special diplomat to Turkey (which is among the countries, where a rapid increase is observed in rate of carbon gas released to the atmosphere). The diplomat will work to fight against climate change. British Ambassador in Ankara Nick Bard pointed to the importance his country gives to climate change.
SABAH (LIBERAL)
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ARE SOLDIERS A PARTY IN THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS?
After news reports alleging that a group of retired officers sent a letter to the Chief of General Staff, which asked for the General Staff to be an "intervenor" in the presidential elections, "Is the Chief of Staff a party in the presidential elections?," asked Speaker of the Parliament Bulent Arinc. "Is it the mission of the Chief of Staff to intervene into the presidency?. Those days are over when the fighter jets used to fly and tanks used to roll."
I DO NOT WANT A WELCOMING CEREMONY
"I do not want a welcoming ceremony," Orhan Pamuk, who received his Nobel Prize yesterday in Stockholm, was reported to have said, as he feared a provocative protests upon his arrival in Istanbul. The date when Nobel-winning Turkish novelist will return to Turkey is not clear.
VATAN (INDEPENDENT)
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GOVERNMENT CONSIDERS ITSELF AS THE STATE
One of the force commanders commented on government`s attitude regarding its proposals on Cyprus issue. "Of course, the government holds the executive authority but this government believes that the state only consists of itself. They intend to put themselves in state`s position. That is the wrong and dangerous. State is lasting but governments are transient"
HE ACCEPTED HIS PRIZE FROM THE KING
Orhan Pamuk was announced in Turkish at the ceremony in Stockholm. He got his prize, Nobel diploma, Nobel medal and 1.5 million USD check, from King Gustav of Sweden. While announcing Pamuk, Prize Committee member Professor Engdahl said "Orhan Pamuk turned his native city into an indispensable literature land".
CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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HERE IS THE "VERBAL" DOCUMENT
Although it was reported that the proposals submitted by Turkey against the recommendation of the EU Commission to partially suspend talks are "verbal", it was revealed that there is a written document in some member countries.
It was also reported that Finland could submit a text to the EU foreign ministers today as regards to Turkey`s proposals.
ARGUMENT ESCALATES
Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs made a statement after President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit stated that they were not informed about the Cyprus proposals. The Foreign Ministry statement claimed that the related state institutions were informed in the best way. "Efforts to cause confidence crisis among the state institutions will not serve to the interests of our country," the statement indicated.
RADIKAL (LEFT)
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TURKEY`S DAY OF PRIDE
The first Turkish Nobel laureate in history, novelist Orhan Pamuk, received his prize from King Gustaf XVI of Sweden yesterday in Stockholm. The Swedish Academy praised Pamuk for "making Istanbul an indispensable land of literature, just as Dostoyevsky`s St. Petersburg, Joyce`s Dublin, Proust`s Paris".
FOREIGN MINISTRY: "WE HAVE INFORMED"
Turkish Foreign Ministry issued a statement yesterday saying that it had informed the president and the Chief of Staff in advance about Turkey`s recent Cyprus proposal. "Upon directives of Foreign Minister & Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul, relevant state institutions were informed on the process in the best way," the statement said.
TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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A SERVICE TO HISTORY
Businessman Zeynel Abidin Erdem and his brother Mehmet Erdem are planning to buy the seal of Sultan Vahiddeddin, the last sultan of Ottoman Empire in an auction to be held on December 17th. The twin brothers will then donate it to Topkapi Palace Museum. Controversies began on Sultan Vahideddin`s seal as Topkapi Palace Museum`s Director Ilber Ortayli said that the seal was the official seal of the state and can not be sold.
OIL GIANT IN TURKEY
Active with its 150,000 employees in 30 regions of the world, oil giant Lukoil penetrated Turkish market. Lukoil opened its first gas station in Istanbul`s Uskudar district. Lukoil has 5,500 gas stations in Russia, CIS members, Europe and the USA.
ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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NICE GESTURE FOR ORHAN PAMUK
Horace Engdahl, the permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, made a nice gesture when he invited Orhan Pamuk to the floor in Turkish to receive his Nobel Prize from King Gustaf XVI of Sweden.
EU IS SEEKING COMPROMISE THROUGH "RENDEZVOUS WITHOUT DEADLINE" FORMULA
As European foreign minister brace for a meeting today in Brussels, European Union`s Rotating President Finland has sent a draft document to members which offers a "rendezvous" for Turkey without setting any deadlines. Finnish move was seen as part of an effort to satisfy Germany and France whose leaders sought to impose a deadline for Turkey to open its ports and airports to traffic from Greek Cyprus.
YENI SAFAK (CONSERVATIVE)
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DO NOT OVERSHADOW NATIONAL INTERESTS
General Staff`s and Cankaya`s "we were not informed" statements dealt a blow to Cyprus proposals that gave a shock to Greek Cypriots in the EU. Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned saying "do not overshadow national interests".
"We cooperate with General Staff on the basis of confidence by not allowing any misunderstandings. Such attempts to create a crisis among state institutions do not serve interests of our country" said the ministry statement.
