TURKISH CYPRIOT AND TURKISH MEDIA REVIEW
C O N T E N T S
No. 192/14 14.10.14
1. Eroglu: We authorized TPAO to carry out seismic exploration on behalf of us
2. Olgun claims: “One-sided steps are sabotaging the negotiations”
3. Siber: “The solution of crises is on the negotiating table”
4. Turkish Cypriot columnist reveals the Turkish hypocrisy on the issue of Cyprus’ natural gas
5. A committee of the “TRNC assembly” will carry out contacts in Brussels
6. Chairman of Fenerbahce wants to buy an illegal university in the breakaway regime
7. The occupation regime became member of international organizations
8. Ankara denies reaching agreement on Incirlik with US
9. Erdogan: Wiping out ISIS not enough-Assad is the real target
10. Pro- and anti-ISIL students clash at Turkish universities
11. Barzani claims Turkey sent arms to “Kurdistan Regional Government”
1. Eroglu: We authorized TPAO to carry out seismic exploration on behalf of us
Turkish Cypriot daily Gunes (14.10.14) reports that Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu claimed that not only the Greek Cypriot “people” have sovereignty rights but at the same time the Turkish Cypriot “people” have also sovereignty rights of the territorial waters of Cyprus. Addressing the extraordinary session of the “assembly” with the agenda “the Cyprus problem and the negotiation process”, Eroglu briefed the “deputies” on the Cyprus problem and the latest stage reached in the Cyprus talks in a closed session to the press.
During the meeting, which lasted for five hours, Eroglu informed them in detail regarding the proposals that were submitted by both sides until today at the negotiating table. Eroglu noted that the “deputies” have expressed their satisfaction on the briefing and he replied to questions to the press.
Noting that they don’t know whether the Greek Cypriot side will return on not to the negotiating table, Eroglu said that the Turkish Cypriot side has fulfilled its duty by calling on Cyprus President Anastasiades to return to the negotiating table. He added that the Greek Cypriot “people” have not made a call to their own leader to return to the negotiating table.
Noting that the leader of the Greek Cypriot administration, as he refers to the Cyprus President Nikos Anastasiades, should behave with the conscious that the Turkish Cypriot “people” have also rights to the territorial waters of Cyprus by taking into consideration that there is no agreement and to act with common sense, Eroglu explained that because they will not be able to defend this right by themselves they gave this authority to the TPAO (Turkish Petroleum Corporation - the national oil company of Turkey), to carry out seismic exploration. He added that for this reason the protection of the ship, which will carry out the seismic exploration, is an unavoidable fact.
Replying to a question, Eroglu said that observing in a close distance the ship of the Greek Cypriot side, which carries out seismic exploration; this cannot be a reason for a new crisis, because it is not the first time that something similar occurred. Reminding that when Noble Energy started drilling, Turkey carried out again seismic exploration with a decision of the “council of ministers” of the Turkish Cypriot side, Eroglu wondered why they acted differently now. Eroglu claimed that these decisions were taken after the meeting which was held in Greece on the 3rd of October, alleging that it means that within the Greek Cypriot-Greek cooperation, a group of doctrine decisions were taken and the withdrawal from the negotiation table was proposed by calling also the political parties. He added that there is reluctance at the Greek Cypriot side for the continuation of the Cyprus talks.
Noting that they have reached the third stage of the talks, Eroglu said that at this stage they will start the bargaining, the “give-and-take” stage. Claiming that the Greek Cypriot leadership has deceived its “people” by saying that “all the refugees will return to their houses, the settlers will return to Turkey and the Turkish army will withdraw from the island”, Eroglu alleged that the Greek Cypriots took the decision to withdraw from the negotiations because they hesitate to enter the bargaining stage.
Eroglu noted that they support the continuation of the talks, adding that they will continue their efforts to reach an agreement that they believe will be permanent and viable in Cyprus.
2. Olgun claims: “One-sided steps are sabotaging the negotiations”
Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris Postasi newspaper (14.10.14) reports that the new Turkish Cypriot negotiator Ergun Olgun stated that the aim of the Turkish Cypriot side is to create a negotiation period in a trustworthy atmosphere without taking one-sided steps.
Olgun said that he started his duty on Friday by examining the developments regarding the negotiations. He claimed that in order to gain healthy outcomes from the negotiations, the Greek Cypriots have to avoid from taking single-sided steps. Evaluating the natural gas exploration of the Republic of Cyprus, he stated that the resources do not belong only to the Greek Cypriots.
3. Siber: “The solution of crises is on the negotiating table”
Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (14.10.14) reports that the “speaker” of the so-called assembly Sibel Siber in statements yesterday to illegal Bayrak television after the briefing meeting with the Turkish Cypriot leader, Dervis Eroglu, referred to the latest developments on the Cyprus problem and said that all crises can be solved at the negotiating table.
Pointing out that by leaving the table, the crisis is deepening and more difficult to be solved and that the two communities go far away from the peace and the solution, Siber added: “We should urgently end this crisis, we ask from the UN to undertake an active role in order to return to the negotiating table”.
Regarding the briefing meeting they held with Eroglu, Sibel said that Eroglu explained them the latest developments on the Cyprus problem and replied to “deputies ‘questions”. He stressed also the need for similar meetings to take place more frequently.
Referring to the Cyprus problem, Siber said that the Cyprus problem is a prolonged problem which reflects negatively to everyone. Expressing their will for the solution to be solved, he said that the latest crisis occurred and the suspension of the negotiation talks reflected negatively to everyone. “It is a tragedy the solution of the disputes with wars, if someone wants a dispute to be solved positively, then the solution is on the negotiating table”, Siber added.
4. Turkish Cypriot columnist reveals the Turkish hypocrisy on the issue of Cyprus’ natural gas
Under the title “The other half of ‘the gas’”, Turkish Cypriot columnist Tumay Tugyan assesses in Turkish Cypriot daily Yeni Duzen newspaper (14.10.14) the issue of Cyprus’ natural gas and the Cyprus problem. Tugyan reports, inter alia, the following:
“…Eroglu briefed yesterday the deputies at the parliament. The issue, of course, was the Cyprus problem and the negotiations process. During his exit, he made a statement to the press. The issue wandered around and came again to the hydrocarbon explorations carried out by the Republic of Cyprus: ‘We also have a right on all the wealth, which is in the seas surrounding the island and which will come out from the sea’.
A few days ago I had written that ‘on the one hand you will say that there is no state called the Republic of Cyprus and you will establish a separate state in the north part of the island and in every occasion you will say ‘the TRNC will live forever’, and on the other hand you will demand the rights derived from the agreement that established the Republic of Cyprus saying that ‘we also have rights in the Republic of Cyprus’. After that I received criticism saying that ‘de facto the Republic of Cyprus does not exist, but legally it exists and these agreements are still there’.
This is very correct, the Republic of Cyprus legally exists and the agreements which established the state are there. They are there, but my question is something else: Very well, where do we stand?
If we look at the issue with this logic, then according to the referred agreements, do we not need to debate and the 40 thousand Turkish troops that are maintained on the territories of the Republic of Cyprus, which is legally the owner of the territory of the entire island? Have the Greek Cypriots, who are founding partners of the Republic of Cyprus and have equal rights in the entire island, given their permission for the maintenance of 40 thousand foreign troops on these territories?
However when we refer to the ‘army’, we at once receive the reply from our people here that ‘if they had said yes to the Annan Plan, the army would have been withdrawn, now they do not have the right to complain, the army will stay here until a lasting agreement’!
Ok, this is what they say now: ‘Let an agreement be reached and then let us share the natural wealth. Until an agreement is reached, the seas are ours’!
Or, for example, have they given us permission to live in their properties, to cultivate their fields and put the income we take from these fields we cultivate into our pockets? Or does uncle Ahmet deposit in an account he had opened in the name of Christodoulou the half of the income he acquires from his orange garden in Morfou?
Now the water is coming. If they want, we can sell to the Greek Cypriots, they say. Have we asked the ‘partners’ in the south when embezzling to the Republic of Turkey, the dam in which the water will be gathered and the land on which the dam will be built? And are the seas not common? Now Turkey is spreading her own property in these seas. Have we taken permission?
Anyway, let us not prolong the issue. My today’s intention is the following: Eroglu said yesterday that ‘we also have a right on all the wealth which is in the seas surrounding the island and which will come out from the sea’. And he even added: ‘Turkey is carrying out seismic explorations with the authority we have given to TPAO’.
Let us say that the issue became bigger, TPAO broadened its explorations, the results were positive, it brought and established a platform and found and extracted gas! It will not happen, but let us say the issue comes to this point. What will happen then? Will esteemed Eroglu give the half of the gas to the Greek Cypriots, who have equal rights with us in the seas? No. Do you know what will happen? Not only esteemed Eroglu will not give the half of the gas to the Greek Cypriot ‘partners’, but he will not even be able to see the other half of the gas. In the most optimistic scenario, Turkey will turn and sell to us our gas. Very well, what about the Greek Cypriots? If they want, Turkey will sell to them also!”
(I/Ts.)
5. A committee of the “TRNC assembly” will carry out contacts in Brussels
According to Turkish daily Star Kibris (14.10.14), a committee form the so-called assembly of the breakaway regime in the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus is flying today to Brussels for a series of contacts.
The committee will consist of the so-called deputy with the Republican Turkish Party – United Forces (CTP-BG) Armagan Candan and the so-called deputy with the Democratic Party – National Forces (DP-UG) Fikri Ataoglu. They will follow the deliberations of the European Parliamentary Assembly in Brussels and have meetings on the last stage and the deadlock of the Cyprus talks. The so-called deputies will remain in Brussels until Thursday and will meet with representatives of EU member countries as well as Deputies of different political groups from the European Parliamentary.
6. Chairman of Fenerbahce wants to buy an illegal university in the breakaway regime
Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris Postasi newspaper (14.10.14) reports about the illegal visit of Aziz Yildirim, chairman of Fenerbahce football club to the occupied area of Cyprus a few days ago and citing information writes that the visit was not made in the name of the club but served personal trade initiatives by Yildirim.
According to the paper, Yildirim who was not able to acquire by the Turkish government permission for the establishment of a university in Turkey, visited the breakaway regime in order to start negotiations for buying the illegal Mediterranean Karpas University, in occupied Karpasia peninsula.
7. The occupation regime became member of international organizations
Under the title: “An important representation”, Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (14.10.14) reports that the occupation regime became a member of the World International Folklore Dance Festival Federation (FIDAF).
According to the paper, the “director” of the “youth department” Cencay Eroglu has represented the occupation regime at a congress of FIDAF which took place in Conan town in South Korea.
According to a statement issued by the “youth department”, during the congress which took place in South Korea with the representation of 75 countries, new memberships were approved.
Meanwhile, according to Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris Postasi newspaper (14.10.14) the Turkish Cypriot Doctor’s Union (KTTB) in a written statement announced that the “union” has become a full member of the European Federation of Salaried Doctors (FEMS).
The “union” was an observer member of FEMS since 2013.
The statement said that the “union’s” full membership to FEMS is a result of the contacts they held for a lot of years abroad and a result of the efforts the doctor’s exerted in order for the “KTTB” to become a member of an international federation.
(AK)
8. Ankara denies reaching agreement on Incirlik with US
Turkish daily Today’s Zaman newspaper (14.10.14) reports that Turkish officials on Monday denied that they have reached an agreement with Washington, granting further use of Incirlik Air Base to the US for military operations against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
The Turkish Prime Ministry made a statement on Monday that negotiations between the US and Turkey on the use of Incirlik Air Base in Adana province are continuing and that there is no new agreement between the parties.
“There is no new agreement on the Incirlik issue. Incirlik continues to be used [by the US] under the current agreements. There are requests and expectations and the negotiations continue,” said the Prime Ministry. It was also stated that Turkey and the US have reached an agreement to train the Syrian opposition but it is still not clear where and how the training will take place.
Incirlik Air Base in Adana province is in close proximity to ISIL targets inside both Syria and Iraq.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also made a statement on Monday saying: “There is no decision reached at this point with regards to Incirlik or any other issue. So far, we have only agreed with the US on certain issues in the context of training and equipping [moderate Syrian opposition] project,” said Cavusoglu according to Turkish press reports.
A Turkish Foreign Ministry official talking to Today's Zaman said on Monday that Turkey had agreed to the expanded use of Incirlik Air Base only in the context of training the Syrian opposition forces. The official insisted that US National Security Adviser Susan Rice was trying to say this but the media misinterpreted her words, saying that Turkey now agreed to the use of Incirlik for military strikes against ISIL by the coalition forces.
In addition, Sabah (14.10.14) writes that according to government sources of the Turkish government, the U.S. demanded the use of Turkish bases, including İncirlik in Adana, and three other bases in the south-eastern cities of Batman, Diyarbakır and Malatya. The sources claimed that except for the base in Malatya, which the U.S. wants to use for support, the other bases are to be used for active operations against ISIS. Even though there has been some progress in continued talks, Turkey has some reservation regarding the use of its bases. In addition to the İncirlik base that is of utmost importance due to its location, the bases in Diyarbakır and Malatya also have critical significance to Turkey in terms of controlling the country's airspace. Both of the bases have two landing fields.
9. Erdogan: Wiping out ISIS not enough-Assad is the real target
Turkish daily Sabah newspaper (14.10.14) reports that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that removing ISIL militants from Syria is not enough to ensure peace and stability in the region but also Bashar Assad’s regime should also be ousted.
Erdogan also said that Turkey would continue the fight against ISIL but was careful not to fall into traps and had demands from the U.S., including a no-fly zone and a safe zone. In an address from Istanbul's Marmara University, Erdogan reiterated the necessity of forming a no-fly zone and a safe zone in Syria, along with continuing the U.S.-led international airstrikes on ISIL targets in northern Syria.
"Syria has many Kobanis. What will happen to Aleppo, Latakia, Turkmens and other people after saving Kobani? The Assad regime should be the target for a real solution in Syria," Erdogan said, noting that the regime is responsible for the killing of 250,000 people in Syria. "A no-fly zone and a safe zone should be built so we can be able to place the Syrians inside our country at these safe havens," he said.
He also criticized the PKK's claims that the Turkish government was doing nothing to halt the advance of ISIL in Kobani, which sparked last week's protests in which 34 people died.
"Turkey is the only country that can provide peace in the region. Turkey is the hope of Middle Eastern people. Turkey can remove the barriers between Middle Easterners, not by changing physical borders, but by instilling hope and trust," he said.
In addition, Ankara Anatolia news agency 914.10.14) reports that Erdogan also stated that modern day “Lawrence of Arabia” figures, that aim to destabilize the entire region from within, are still at play.
"Lawrence was an English spy in Arab land. But currently, the spies are springing out from our own countries in the shape of a journalist, writer or even a terrorist. You can witness the new ‘Lawrences’ trying to set the region on fire," Erdogan said adding that such “Lawrences” could also be seen in Turkey and its surrounding areas that claim of talking only about “voluntary service, freedom of expression and freedom of press, or saying independence war, unfortunately."
He said "the artificially-made" borders in the Middle East that were drawn by imperial powers after World War I were the “real cause of long-term pain and crises” in the region.
He said there should be no borders in the minds and hearts of the Middle Eastern people. He added that Turkey had its own part to play in the fight against sectarianism, ethnic divisions and all other divisions in the Middle East.
10. Pro- and anti-ISIL students clash at Turkish universities
Turkish daily Today’s Zaman newspaper (14.10.14) reports that a series of tense incidents took place at some of Turkey's universities, including İstanbul University and the Middle East Technical University (ODTU), over the past couple of weeks as pro- and anti-Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) groups of students continue to clash.
Twenty-seven pro-ISIL students were detained by police after a quarrel erupted with anti-ISIL students at İstanbul University's faculty of economics and administrative sciences on Monday.
The pro-ISIL students, who reportedly had their faces covered, wearing black hats and holding sticks, were heard shouting phrases like, “We are Muslim students,” as they were taken to police vehicles. Nine of the detained students are allegedly affiliated with the Muslim Youths Association which is known for its radical Islamist tendencies.
11. Barzani claims Turkey sent arms to “Kurdistan Regional Government”
Turkish daily Today’s Zaman newspaper (14.10.14) reports that “Kurdistan Regional Government” (KRG) president Massoud Barzani has said that Turkey sent arms to the KRG following an Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) attack in early August, adding that Turkey had asked that the arms transfer not be made public.
Speaking to Sky News Arabic, Barzani said when the attack took place, Iran was the first to send arms. The Iraqi Kurdish leader said Turkey also sent an armed shipment, and asked that its support not be revealed publicly due to a “domestic conjuncture,” referring to the 46 hostages held by ISIL at the time. The hostages, 46 Turks and three non-Turkish diplomatic personnel, returned to Turkey on Sept. 20 after more than three months in the hands of ISIL, who captured them when they seized the Iraqi city of Mosul on June 11. He also noted that the KRG had expected more robust support from Turkey during the attack.
With regard to claims that Turkey supports ISIL, Barzani said he does not know of any concrete evidence to confirm them. He added that the KRG considers Turkey a friend and that it is unlikely that Turkey is against the development of the Kurdish region.
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