Annan Visits Cyprus, Probes for a Solution
TRNC President Denktas: "Sovereignty is the key"
The Turkish Times - UN Secretary General Kofi Annan ended his two-day visit to Cyprus on a positive note on May 16 to help encourage negotiations. Annan first visited Greek Cypriot leader Glafcos Clerides, after which Clerides described their talks as "helpful," but declined to provide any further details. UN Cyprus Envoy Alvaro de Soto was also present in the meeting. In the afternoon Annan visited the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), the first UN secretary general to visit the Turkish north since 1979. Denktas, TRNC Foreign and Defense Minister Tahsin Ertugruloglu, his undersecretary Ergun Olgun, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Resat Caglar and Constitutional Advisor Mumtaz Soysal received Annan. Following their talks, Denktas and Annan said that they had both been very pleased with the meeting.

Greek-Cypriots are pressing for a unified federative state with freedom of travel and relocation between the southern and northern parts of the island. Turkish-Cypriots, on the other hand, are seeking a confederation of two equal and separate states, built on principles of bi-zonality and bi-communality. European Union has previously stated that Greek-Cyrus would be admitted to the union as a full member even if the dispute on the island is not settled. Turks consider such a stand as a great mistake, giving all the incentive in the world to the Greek side not to recognize the Turkish-Cypriots as their political equals.

Denktas: All Paths Will Be Opened When Our Sovereignty Is Accepted
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas said on Saturday May 19 that path of peace would be opened when the sovereignty of Turkish Cypriots was accepted.

Speaking in a ceremony, Denktas stressed that Turkish Cypriots would not give up their sovereignty.

Denktas said, ''we are still on our feet as a state. We are existing with our army. We do not want any badness together with Turkey, our motherland and guarantor. We want peace and friendship. But, a peace depending on sovereignty.''

''What should be done is friendship, peace and compromise. What should be done is to come and shake our friendly hands by understanding that they cannot usurp the rights of Turkish Cypriots which have been wanted to be usurped for 39 years,'' Denktas noted.

Calling on the Greek Cypriots, Denktas underlined that the path of peace would be opened when the sovereignty of Turkish Cypriots was accepted.

TRNC Security Forces Commander Galip Mendi said that European Union (EU) and all countries should respect to the right of the self-administration of two peoples on the island.

Mendi added that the existence of two sovereign states should be accepted.

Denktas Says Equal Partnership Key to Cyprus
Gokhan Tezgor, ABOARD THE T.C.G. ORUCREIS (Reuters) - Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktas dismissed a new Greek Cypriot proposal to reunite Cyprus on Thursday, insisting any settlement must involve an equal partnership between both communities.

Talks between Denktas and Cypriot President Glafcos Clerides on ending the divided island's decades-long stalemate have dragged on since January without tangible progress.

Denktas told Reuters in an interview he had received a proposal from Clerides to draw up a new constitution, but said the internationally recognized republic in the south must first acknowledge his administration as an equal partner.

"It (Cyprus) is a joint venture ... between two equal peoples and to deny this and to say that we can settle a 39-year-old political problem by writing a new constitution is very, very odd," Denktas said.

He was speaking aboard the T.C.G. Orucreis, a Turkish frigate taking part in joint sea-and-air-rescue exercises between the Turkish navy and Turkish Cypriot authorities.

A power-sharing administration between Greek and Turkish Cypriots collapsed in 1963. Eleven years later, Turkish troops [intervened in] the island after an Athens-backed Greek Cypriot coup to unite with Greece.

Cyprus has since been partitioned along ethnic lines.

Deadline Looms
Efforts to reconcile the two sides take on new urgency as Cyprus edges closer to European Union membership, which could happen in 2004 or 2005.

Denktas and Clerides, meeting several times a week, have agreed on a June deadline for a settlement.

"We have started negotiations ... without any preconditions and (are) free to discuss everything in order to come to a new partnership," Denktas said.

Turkish Cypriots see a settlement on Cyprus in the form of a confederation: a partnership of two equal states. Greek Cypriots want reunification under a loose federal system of two regions.

Denktas said this week he had given Clerides a list of suggestions to speed up the U.N.-mediated talks.

"Our proposals were aimed at establishing a joint partnership between two equals," Denktas said.

"We hope international public opinion...will realize that the sole impediment to a settlement is the fact that Greek Cypriots are hiding behind a title which is not legally and morally theirs."

Only Ankara recognizes the self-styled Turkish Cypriot statelet in the northern third of Cyprus.

EU Enlargement
A Greek Cypriot official Thursday confirmed Clerides had responded to Denktas's suggestions, but he did not specify whether the response included a proposal for a new constitution.

"Clerides has read this document and has answered each point raised. It contains elements which are contrary to U.N. resolutions and to the European Union acquis," a Clerides aide told Reuters.

Brussels has said it will admit Cyprus with or without a settlement in the EU's next wave of enlargement.

Denktas has said Clerides' government has no right to negotiate entry for the entire island.

Turkey, which is also an EU candidate, has threatened to "annex" the Turkish-held north if Cyprus is admitted into the EU without a solution.

"We have looked into Mr Clerides' paper," Denktas said. "He is protecting the original stand of the Greek Cypriot administration from 1963 when they destroyed the partnership republic."

The 78-year-old Turkish Cypriot leader said he would not accept a deal that placed centralized authority in the hands of a Greek Cypriot administration.

"We want a settlement. We shall strive for a settlement, but not by accepting the Greek Cypriots' illegal authority as the legitimate government of all.

"We want something substantial, we want something real which will make Cyprus a permanently peaceful island," he said.

Turkey Gets Another $1B IMF Loan
Martin Crutsinger, Associated Press Economics Writer, April 16, 2002, Washington-The Inter-national Monetary Fund awarded Turkey a new $1 billion loan and IMF officials expressed optimism Tuesday about the country's economic future.

The new loan installment brings to $9 billion the amount of funds the international lending agency has supplied to Turkey to deal with a severe financial crisis.

The $9 billion total is out of a total $16 billion that the IMF has said it will provide if needed.

Turkish State Minister responsible from the Economy Kemal Dervis (M) at the World Bank signing ceremony.

"The board believes the program is on track," Michael Deppler, an IMF official overseeing Turkey, told reporters in a telephone conference call. "This program is overwhelmingly about restoring confidence. That restoration is very much what you see in financial markets."

IMF Deputy Managing Director Anne Krueger emphasized the necessity for Turkey to fully implement an economic overhaul already adopted.

"Unwavering implementation of the program with the undivided support of the government coalition is needed to bring the Turkish economy onto a sustainable growth path," Krueger said.

She said there is a good prospect for further declines in inflation. She also said that to achieve the goal of producing a government surplus equal to 6.5 percent of the country's economy, there would need to be further reforms to deal with overstaffing problems in the Turkish government and to provide better controls on spending.

The Bush administration views the IMF's handling of the economic crisis in Turkey as setting a standard for future IMF programs. In intense negotiations last year, the IMF refused to disburse loans until the Turkish government had agreed to a number of specific reforms and had begun to implement them.

The new loan was approved by the IMF's 24-member executive board Monday night after the board reviewed a report from an IMF mission that had been dispatched to Turkey.

The next IMF team is scheduled in Turkey in May. If the country is judged still in compliance with the terms of its IMF loan agreement, it could receive a further loan installment in June, officials said.

Azeris Observe Tenth Year of Shusha's Occupation by Armenians
The Turkish Times - The Azeri community in the United States has observed on May 8, 2002 the tenth sad anniversary of the Armenian occupation of Shusha, the long-besieged center of the Azerbaijani community in Nagorno-Karabakh region. In Shusha, the Armenian occupation forces followed their established pattern of ethnic cleansing by forcibly exiling the remaining civilian population. Most Americans, including the members of U.S. media, have little knowledge of the continuing occupation of Azeri lands by Armenian forces.

For centuries Shusha has been among the most important centers of Azerbaijani culture and cradle of the nation's musical tradition. Over the last decade, however, Shusha's historic heritage has been systematically destroyed by the Armenian occupiers.

The attack on Shusha, which had been under the siege by the Armenian forces backed by the Russian military stationed in the region, came exactly at the time of the Azerbaijan-Armenia peace summit in neighboring Iran. This was an indication of Armenia's approach to the peace-process.

The fall of Shusha, preceded by the massacre in Khojaly and followed by the occupation of other Azerbaijani regions, including Lachin one week later, showed the intention of the Armenian side to expand its aggression against Azerbaijan and engage in the policy of ethnic cleansing.

The future fate of Shusha and return of its displaced community are an important part of any comprehensive settlement between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Still, ten years after being exiled from home, people of Shusha remain scattered among Azerbaijan's one million refugees and displaced persons.

United Nations ignored
Azerbaijanis around the world mourn this dark page in their history. On My 8th, the Azerbaijan Society of America and other Azerbaijani -American organizations held a demonstration in front of the United Nations in New York, demanding implementation of the several UN Security Council resolutions, which called for withdrawal of Armenia's troops from the occupied territories and repatriation of refugees.

Institute of Turkish Studies Conference on Cyprus
The Turkish Times - Prospects for a settlement of the Cyprus dispute were discussed at a conference that was organized by the Institute of Turkish Studies (ITS) on April 12 at the Marriott Washington in Washington, D.C.

(L to R) Sayari, Lesser, Weston, Bartmann, and Yesilada.

The conference on "Cyprus: Current Trends and Future Prospects" provided a lively and informative forum for the analysis of a number of critical issues concerning the future of the island, the impending accession of the Greek- controlled Cyprus administration to the European Union (EU), and the impact of the Cyprus question on Turkish foreign policy.

The conference was moderated by Dr. Sabri Sayari, Executive Director of ITS. The speakers included Dr. Ian Lesser of RAND, Professor Birol Yesilada from Portland State University, Professor Barry Bartmann of Prince Edward Island University in Canada, and Ambassador Thomas Weston from the U.S. State Department who is the current special American coordinator for Cyprus.

In his opening remarks, Sabri Sayari noted that the Cyprus conflict has been the single most enduring issue on the agenda of Turkish foreign policy since its first emergence in the late 1950s. Sayari stated that the beginning of direct talks between the leaders of the Greek and Turkish communities on the island, along with the continuing rapprochement in Greek-Turkish relations, had created a favorable environment for the peaceful resolution of the Cyprus problem.

Ian Lesser, in his presentation, focused on the changing strategic environment surrounding Cyprus and emphasized that the prospects for EU membership had become critical for a solution. Lesser noted that although Cyprus remains a nationalist issue par excellence in both Greece and Turkey, he nevertheless sensed the emergence of new views in Athens and Ankara which could bring about greater accommodation on the Cyprus issue.

Birol Yesilada’s presentation focused on the role of the EU and the U.S. He stated that the current talks between Mr. Denktas and Mr. Klerides might be the last chance to achieve a solution to the Cyprus problem before a potential train wreck if and when the Greek part of the island joins the EU. Ye?ilada also maintained that the United States is the only third party that could use its leverage over the two sides (including Greece and Turkey) to achieve a mediated solution, "not by rocking heads but by moving rocks."

Barry Bartmann, who is a specialist on the role of small and unrecognized states in world politics, discussed the reasons for the unwillingness of the international community to extend formal recognition to some small states. Bartmann argued that the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus meets all the criteria for statehood and that its recognition as a state by the international community would make a settlement on the island much easier.

The last speaker of the conference, Ambassador Weston, spoke about the general direction of the ongoing direct talks on the island without getting into specifics. He stated that both leaders were motivated by a desire to find a settlement on Cyprus but differed about what would constitute a good and acceptable solution. Nevertheless, he stressed that the talks between the leaders of the Greek and Turkish communities had helped them to get past some of the distrust that had developed over the years. For more on Institute of Turkish Studies please visit to turkishstudies.org

Turks invite scholars to Armenian "genocide" archives
Mark Bentley, Istanbul, April 20 (Reuters) - Turkey said on Saturday it will allow scholars rare access to examine archives it says will disprove claims Ottoman Turks committed genocide against Armenians early last century.

Turkey has so far allowed only limited access to its archives of the period. "Our archives are open to scientific examination for this purpose," Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer said in a letter to an Ankara conference where retired Turkish and foreign diplomats and scholars are discussing the Armenian claims of genocide.

"I am calling on all scientists to come and benefit from the archives of this period," the president said in his letter.

Armenians will on Tuesday remember victims of the so-called genocide they say claimed 1.5 million dead in Ottoman Turkey between 1915 and 1923 in a national day of mourning led from Armenia's capital Yerevan. Parliamentarians from European states are due to attend.

Turkey claims the atrocity never happened saying there were victims on both sides of partisan fighting as the Ottoman Empire crumbled.

"Historical matters must be examined and discussed by historians," the state-run Anatolian news agency quoted Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit as saying in a statement to the two-day conference in Ankara.

Turkish Anger
Ecevit reiterated Turkish anger at a series of votes in European parliaments in favour of the Armenian claims.

"Continuing acts by the parliaments of some countries carried out on the basis of the voting power of the Armenian diaspora are above all disrespectful to history and historians," Ecevit said.

Turkish politicians in February slated the European Parliament for a resolution accusing Turks of massacring Armenians in 1915, calling it an "ugly attack" on an EU membership candidate.

The French parliament backed the Armenian charges last year leading Turkey to temporarily ban French firms from military contracts. [The British Government and Israeli FM Shimon Perez went on record last year saying that the civil-war tragedy was not a "genocide."]

Ecevit recently angered Armenians and Jews when he accused Israel of committing "genocide" against Palestinians. He later backtracked on the statement saying he was misunderstood. The U.S. Congress dropped a resolution to recognize Armenian charges two years ago after former president Bill Clinton warned it would harm U.S. security interests in the Middle East, where NATO member Turkey is a key ally.

But the powerful U.S. Armenian lobby, representing some one million people, is pressing the new administration of President George W. Bush to confront the issue again.

The U.S. government recently praised Turkey for loosening visa restrictions on Armenian citizens but a diplomatic standoff between Ankara and Yeravan shows little signs of ending. [Armenia currently occupies 20% of Azerbaijan.]

Holocaust Survivor Says Turkish Muslim Saved His, Other Jews’ Lives
"Honoring the Turkish Rescuers" held at Washington's Lincoln Theater
Rudi Williams, American Forces Press Service, April 23, 2002-As a child on the island of Rhodes in the Aegean Sea, Bernard Turiel remembers listening to his parents and their friends talk about Jews being executed in concentration camps in Germany and Europe. Turiel remembers the horror stories about Jewish people's skin being made into lampshades and their bones being used to make soap. "These kinds of discussions left a fear and horrid impression on all of us," he said. Turiel survived the Holocaust, he said, thanks to Turks on Rhodes and because he and his family were Turkish citizens.

Selahattin Ulkumen

During "Honoring the Turkish Rescuers," a special program held recently at Washington's Lincoln Theater, he talked about his World War II childhood experiences and how a Muslim saved his family and many others. Rhodes today is Greek. From 1912 until 1945, however, the Aegean island, just off the southwestern coast of Turkey, was an Italian possession.

Italian dictator Benito Mussolini joined Germany in the war in 1940 and invited his ally to garrison troops in Italy and its possessions, including Rhodes, Turiel said. He said the island in the 1920s and 30s had a flourishing Jewish community of about 5,500 Jews out of a population of about 35,000. Although many Jews fled in the 1930s, those who remained on Rhodes were harassed by the Italian administration but relatively safe until Mussolini was deposed in July 1943 and Italy's provisional government declared an armistice with the Allies. The Germans used the confusion to overwhelm their one-time allies and seize control the Italians' "empire" in September 1943, he added. "When the Germans took over, the adult males were asked to report to the headquarters offices," Turiel said. "That created great concern as to what was going to happen." The men were told to register and go home. This created a sense of relief, but also one of false security. When the Germans began rounding up Rhodes' Jewish community in July 1944, the men reported to the German headquarters again, Turiel said, but this time they were immediately incarcerated. Turiel and his father and brother were among the incarcerated. Two days after being detained, the men were standing in line waiting for transport to the continent and a concentration camp, Turiel recalled.

Enter 30-year-old Turkish Consul Selahattin Ulkumen, who approached the German general in charge and demanded that all Turkish subjects be released. He went further, demanding the spouses of Turkish citizens be released, invoking Turkish law that anyone married to a Turk is a Turk. The Germans assented.

Ulkumen was playing a dangerous game. He bluffed the Germans -- there was no such law. "He was fully aware of the dangers for the Jewish community in Europe and made a valiant effort to save as many Jews as possible, including non-Turkish citizens," Turiel said. "He told my mother to go home and that our father would be released. My brother and I had acquired Turkish citizenship and had dual citizenship." Ulkumen's bold personal action is credited with saving 42 families. But his bluff didn't go unanswered. The Germans bombed his home in retaliation. His wife, nine months' pregnant, was seriously injured and died of her wounds while giving birth to the couple's son, Mehmet.

Turiel said 643 of Rhodes' Jews were deported to Auschwitz; all but 151 were exterminated or died in the labor camps. Ulkumen left Rhodes in August 1944 when Turkey ended diplomatic relations with Germany. Again, Jewish men were ordered to report to German authorities, Turiel noted. Only a handful still lived on the island. Turiel said the island was isolated, and the Germans by this time seemed more concerned about survival than victory. "They permitted us to eventually leave the island in January 1945," said Turiel, a lawyer, who worked for the Federal Trade Commission from 1959 to 1966. He's now an attorney in private practice in northern New Jersey. The Turiels left Rhodes for Turkey in January 1945 and emigrated to the United States in July 1946. Turiel's father joined his two brothers in their import-export business. Turiel told the Lincoln Theater audience that Ulkumen was a man of great determination, courage and compassion. On June 11, 1988, the Anti-Defamation League presented Ulkumen its fourth annual "Courage to Care" award.

"He was brought to New York for the presentation and we were reunited with him," Turiel noted. "My mother maintained correspondence with him over the years." In June 1990, Ulkumen was installed on the Avenue of the Righteous Gentiles at the Yad Vashem in Israel. "What used to be known as the Righteous Christians has been changed to the Righteous Gentiles because Mr. Ulkumen was the first non-Christian to receive the award. He is a Muslim," Turiel noted. "Mr. Ulkumen will always be remembered as a courageous, compassionate and righteous person," Turiel said.

"Today, he's frail and living in an old age home in Turkey." Turiel said he and his family and other Holocaust survivors are extremely fortunate to have come to the United States. "We're grateful to live in this wonderful country where our forefathers had the great forbearance to think of the great democratic country and the need for a Bill of Rights," he said. "The Bill of Rights has provided the type of government and style of life that we enjoy and cherish. We never take it for granted. Having experienced our lives in Europe, we're most grateful to be in such a wonderful country as the United States."

Iraq Continues to Pressure the Turkmens
INAF News Bulletin, 15th April 2002, Ankara (INAF) - Some 3,5 million Turkmens living in Iraq are living under the threat of assimilation. Total of 300 Arab families who were living in Basra, Kut, Nejef and Diwaniye are forced to migrate to Kerkuk where the state has granted them land.

According to the information received from the region, males of the mentioned families are employed in the Kerkuk North oil company with 70,000 Iraq dinars montly salary. It is also reported that Turkmen teachers are appointed to schools located in different regions and Arab teachers have replaced them. Meanwhile the pressures on Turkmen civil servants to change their names are still continuing. In January, Turkmens were banned to enter the bid that was opened to regulate the rents of the shops at the city center of Kerkuk mostly used by Turkmen tradesmen. It is stated that members of the Baas Party are threatening Turkmen families that they will submit reports to Baghdad that their relatives abroad are involving in activities against the administration and they are taking bribes. On the other hand, it is known that Turkmens living in Kerkuk are detained by the Kerkuk police on charges of carrying out Saudi Arabia based Wahabi sect promotion activities.