Turkey's Economy Minister Resigns
Selcan Hacaoglu, The Associated Press, ANKARA, Turkey (AP) - Turkey's respected economy minister quit Saturday to pursue his effort to unite pro-Western political forces in opposing a popular Islamic party in November's national election. Kemal Dervis, a former World Bank official who is not a member of a political party, has become one of the most trusted figures in this NATO nation for his widely praised direction of efforts to revive the economy from its worst slump in decades. More

Rep. Tom Lantos Praises Turkish Parliament for Reforms
The Turkish Times, August 5, 2002 - Congressional Human Rights Caucus Co-Chair Tom Lantos (D-Cal) praised the Turkish parliament on August 5 for a wide-ranging democratization reform package passed over the weekend. Calling enactment of the package "a victory for Turkish democracy," Lantos labeled reforms allowing for increased use of the Kurdish language "particularly path-breaking" and "courageous." More

Turks to Meet in Indiana for World Basketball Championship
TACA-Chicago has tickets for August 29, 30, 31 games
Turks from Turkey and the Turkish-Americans living in the United States will be converging on Indianapolis this month to root for the Turkish team competing in the World Basketball Championship. The Turkish team will play Puerto Rico on August 29th, Brazil on August 30th, and Lebanon on August 31st. The championship will last 11 days, hosting the national basketball teams of 16 nations. More

Facts about Armenian issue will be taught to Turkish students
ATAA President Dr. Kaymakcalan commends the idea
Turkish wire services and The Turkish Times, ANKARA - Armenian issue, "Pontus" allegations and issues related to "Syriacs" will be taught in history classes in the Turkish elementary and high schools the next school year. "Armenian issue" will start to be taught to the students beginning with the fifth grade of the elementary school. More

Our June Trip to Turkey
Derya Gurbuz, Los Angeles, California, Special for The Turkish Times - [Personal reflections of a young Turkish-American from California about the visit that 38 young Turkish-Americans have paid to Turkey this past June.] The trip to Turkey organized by the Turkish Military Consulate has been a great experience for me. Even though the trip lasted only for two weeks, 16-29 June 2002, I have established close ties with 37 other Turkish students in America, met prominent people working for the Turkish government, toured some of Turkey's greatest fascinations, and most importantly found true meaning in being Turkish. More

Israel, Turkey Agree to 20-Year Water Deal
Ramit Plushnick-Masti, The Associated Press, JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel agreed to buy about 1.75 billion cubic feet of water from Turkey annually for the next 20 years to alleviate the nation's growing water shortage and ensure the success of an arms deal with Ankara, Israeli officials said. The quantity was believed to be enough to satisfy about 7 percent of Israel's annual needs for potable water. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Turkey's Energy Minister Zeki Cakan reached the deal at a meeting in Jerusalem.More

Historic ATAA Delegation to Bulgaria
Bonnie Joy Kaslan, ATAA Trustee Chairperson, ATAA Education Committee - Our official visit to Ankara had ended June 13th and we began preparations for the next phase of this year's Assembly delegation to Bulgaria. Fourteen of us represented the Assembly as we landed at Sofia's small, clean but stark airport. We were met by our guide, Rossitsas Kouzmanova, who having worked as a tour guide for more than 25 years, was extremely knowledgeable in all facets of the more than 1300 years of Bulgarian history. More