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Egypt warns Turkey of worsening ties

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CAIRO – Associated Press

Egypt69644_1Egypt’s Foreign Ministry on July 26 condemned Turkey’s prime minister for calling Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi a “tyrant,” warning already sour relations between the two countries could worsen.

In a strongly-worded statement, the ministry said it summoned the Turkish charge d’ affaires, the highest-ranking Turkish official in the country, over the comments. It said Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is driven by “narrow ideological interests,” referencing Turkey’s support to the Muslim Brotherhood group, branded as a terrorist organization in Egypt.

“The continuation of the insults against Egypt and its elected leadership will undoubtedly lead to more measures from Egypt, leading to limited progress of bilateral relations,” the statement said.

Relations between Egypt and Turkey soured after al-Sisi led the last year’s ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Mursi, a Brotherhood leader. Egypt expelled Turkish ambassador in Cairo and withdrew its ambassador in Turkey after it called for Mursi release from prison.

July/26/2014

Armenian Writing Added to Street Signs in Van

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Armenian-signboardsVAN, Turkey—Armenian inscriptions have been added to signboards on the streets of the city of Artamed (Edremit) in the Van Province in Turkey, EremeniHaber.com reports.

The initiative aims to stop hostile perceptions of Armenians and create sympathy towards them, said Mayor of Artamed, Sevil Rojbin Cetin, member of the Party of Democratic Regions.

“The Kurdish people have historical-cultural similarities with the Armenian people. Van and Artamed were densely populated by Armenians before 1915. The Kurds and Armenians have lived side by side in Van for centuries. Therefore, we’ll not allow the state to erase Armenian history and destroy the Armenian culture. We have made this step as a sign of respect for Armenians,” the Mayor told Haber 7 news.

Turkey to portray Diaspora Armenians as ‘sectarians’: scholar

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Seven years have passed since Hrant Dink’s assassination and those who planned his murder remain free. While the search for justice continues with a second round of trials, there seems to be insufficient political will Taner Akcamto uncover the truth, Taner Akcam, Professor of Armenian Genocide Studies at the Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Clark University, writes.

“Hrant Dink was killed in revenge for the assassination of Talat Pasha, the architect of the Armenian Genocide. Everything about his murder suggested a “vengeance operation” for the 1921 conspiracy to assassinate Talat Pasha in Berlin. This, for example, accounts for the decision to murder Hrant Dink in public rather than to kidnap him, kill him, and throw his remains in some remote location—the way all the other “unknown perpetrator” crimes have been committed in Turkey. The conspirators deliberately chose to come up from behind and to shoot him in the head on the street, in front of Agos, the newspaper he edited. The operation mirrored precisely how Talat Pasha was killed. His attackers wanted revenge for the murder of Talat Pasha, and they did so by targeting Hrank Dink.In the Shadow of 1915: Reflections on Hrant’s Assassination,”Akcam writes in a piece titled “In the Shadow of 1915: Reflections on Hrant’s Assassination”.

“Ninety years of state-sponsored denial have so blinded the public that we cannot conceive of the relationship between the 1915 genocide and the murder of Hrant Dink. But while the Turkish government has pushed us to forget the events of 1915, state officials have not forgotten. Turks grow uneasy at the mention of “genocide,” and calls for “genocide recognition” cause us to flee in terror before some unknown retribution. We resist using Hrant’s death as an opportunity to face up to history, to see the connection between that history and the killing of an Armenian newspaper editor. We are made to forget Hrant although he is the key—the key to the 40th chamber in the Arabian Nights fable, the one that others do not want opened, the key that is given to the heroes of those tales. We have a treasure chamber in our old houses where all of our secrets are kept. And Hrant is the key to that room. If the Hrant Dink murder case is ever solved, the secrets behind the establishment of the Turkish Republic will be revealed. But, sadly, in the present government, there is neither the courage nor the will to furnish the key, because the government is heir to these “state traditions,” and the “keepers of its secrets”,” he writes.

Ancam predicts that as 2015 approaches, Turkey will attempt to create an atmosphere of “reconciliation.”

“Appearing ready to resolve the Armenian issue, Turkey will portray Armenians in the diaspora as uncompromising “sectarians.” For this purpose, the Turkish state will undertake a search for so-called “Good Armenians”—and it will find them! It will use these puppets as a counter-weight to the “intransigent,” “belligerent,” and “uncompromising” Armenians in the diaspora. They will seek to pit their “Good” Armenians against the “Bad” Armenians of the diaspora. And they will use Hrant for this purpose, too. They will find the criticisms Hrant leveled at the Armenian Diaspora and use them without hesitation. Hrant’s own words will be exploited as a part of a new wave of hostility toward the Armenian Diaspora,” he writes, warning: “Do not be duped by this cynical scenario.”

“Hrant Dink was murdered because he wanted to deconstruct Turkey’s founding myths. Those who planned the murder—the real culprits—have received promotions and praise for doing so. The sensitivity the government expressed over the confiscation of Armenian property was never shown toward the lives of Armenians. On the contrary, they oversaw the annihilation of a people. And the situation today is not so different! 1.5 million-plus-1,” Akcam writes.

source: PanARMENIAN.Net

Turkish PM & FM hypocrisy calling Israel Genocide of Palestinians yet Trade with Israel in full swing, hits $5 bln

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Report TODAY’S ZAMAN / ISTANBUL

188626_newsdetailTurkey’s mutual trade volume with Israel is expected to reached over $5 billion this year, the government said on Tuesday, representing a nearly 50 percent rise over 2009.

Mutual trade volume was $3.4 billion in 2009.

“We have a balanced trade with Israel … our mutual trade volume has reached $5 billion,” Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekçi said on Tuesday in Ankara. The minister’s statements come on the heels of opposition calls on the government to revise trade ties with Israel in response to ongoing bloodshed following Israeli air, naval and ground strikes in Gaza. Zeybekçi said much of Turkish sales to Gaza and the West Bank also go through Israeli customs.

When criticism over Turkey’s growing trade ties with Israel first surfaced two weeks ago, some government figures rushed to deny a boost in trade with Israel. Figures, however, show Turkey and Israel are enjoying a boom in mutual trade, especially after the deadly Mavi Marmara attack in 2010 which nearly brought diplomatic ties to a halt.

Figures from the Turkish Statistics Institute (TurkStat) indicate that exports from Turkey to Israel doubled between 2004 and 2013. Common exports included iron and steel, electrical machinery, vehicles, minerals and textiles. Turkey sold goods worth a total of $2.65 billion to Israel in 2013. This was 1.7 percent of Turkey’s total $151.8 billion in exports in 2013. According to data from the Turkish Ministry of Customs and Trade, imports from Israel increased by 3.5 times from 2004 to reach $2.4 billion last year.

Kurdish oil sent to Israeli port

Ankara’s alleged involvement in crude oil supply to Israel is also being scrutinized.

A report published on the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on Tuesday said an oil tanker, United Emblem, loaded with a $100 million in cargo set sail from Turkey’s Ceyhan port in late May. After zigzagging in the Mediterranean the tanker met another tanker, the SCF Altai, off the Malta coast. The United Emblem transferred its crude to the Altai, which eventually brought the Kurdish oil to Israel’s Ashkelon port on June 22. According to WSJ, Baghdad, which objects to third parties being involved in selling Kurdish oil on international markets, had nothing to do with the transaction after the crude reached Ashkelon because it had no diplomatic relations with Israel.

Iraq’s Kurds have prospered since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, while ruling themselves under a settlement under which all Iraqi oil was sold by the government in Baghdad, and the Kurdish region was given a fixed percentage of the total income.

A report from the Aydınlık daily entitled “Israeli planes using fuel from Tayyip to strike Gaza” was released earlier this month, alleging that Turkey had exported jet fuel to Israel. Energy Minister Taner Yıldız subsequently rejected the claim, saying that Turkey had made no such exports.
“As the Turkish Republic, we have not sold Israel any sort of oil or jet fuel. We have transit sales that are conducted with other firms and other countries; the oil that is shipped through BTC (the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline) goes to those countries,” said Yıldız.
However, recently released figures from the Turkish Statistics Institute (TurkStat) indicate that Turkey did in fact export 124 tons of jet fuel to Israel during the month of March.

A report in the daily Taraf on Monday claimed that SOCAR, an Azerbaijani firm that owns 50 percent of the pro-government daily Star, has been selling Azerbaijani oil to Israel via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline.

A recent article by energy expert Tuğce Varol Sevim claimed that nearly 30 percent of Israel’s oil needs are met via shipments sent through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline.

Document reveals arms purchase from Israel

Former National Defense Undersecretary Murat Bayar stated in April of 2011 that Turkey was no longer purchasing arms from Israel, and that Turkey had weapons-purchasing arrangements from several other countries but Israel was no longer among them.
However, a document sent from the Turkish Chemical Industry Corporation (MKE) to the Turkish Chamber of Shipping (DTO) dated September 3 of last year revealed that an order of more than 31,000 rounds of tank ammunition was to be sent from Israel’s Haifa port to İstanbul.
Israel Foreign Defense Assistance and Defense Export Organization President General Aiveli told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz last year that weapons exports to Turkey had never completely halted.

Turkey has been known for purchasing defense systems technology from Israel, purchasing dozens of F4 modernization and radar systems from Israel costing hundreds of millions of dollars. In another purchase, Turkey bought 170 M60 tank modernization units at a cost of $680 million. In 2005, Turkey purchased 10 Heron aerial vehicles from Israel at a total cost of $183 million.

Source: TODAY’S ZAMAN / ISTANBUL

Turkey-Eurasian Union Partnership ‘Will Hurt Armenia’

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If Turkey’s initiative to create a free trade zone with Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan becomes a reality, it will prove to be an unfavorable factor for Armenia as Turkey will become a real actor in that market, with certain turkey-russia-economicanti-Armenian manifestations, expert in Turkic studies Ara Papyan told Tert.am.

“Turkey has had this intention for a long time. When Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev spoke of Turkey’s accession to the Eurasian Economic Union, he was actually speaking of Turkey’s joining it somehow rather than of its membership. So if this scenario is made a reality, Turkey, as well as other Turkic-speaking countries, will greatly benefit from it. But it will have negative consequences for us,” Papyan said.

Such developments are undesirable for Armenia because they will create bias toward the interests of Russia and Turkey.

“The two countries’ bilateral trade turnover is around $20bn, but they are going to bring it up to $100bn. This is an anti-Armenian figure, with all the ensuing consequences,” he said.

Regrettably, Armenia cannot do anything in this situation, Papyan says.

“The only thing for us to do is to place our hopes on Russia, its realizing its own geopolitical interests. But, it should be noted, experience shows it does not work,” Papyan said.

According to him, Russia is ready to renounce its geopolitical interests for economic interests because, given its heavy situation, it is seeking to resolve short-term problems.

Papyan doesn’t think Armenia will be an obstacle in case the sides decide to build such relations. The only power, according to him, may be the United States in case that country doesn’t really want Turkey to develop close ties with Russia.

Addressing the topic, economist Vahagn Khachatryan said it is still too early to talk about such relations given that none of the states have made any statement so far.

“Turkey, which develops large-scale relations with Russia, will naturally desire to expand them. But the problem for the Customs Union member states is Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan has always wished to expand Kazakhstan-Turkey relations, so they now wish to involve Turkey [in the bloc] to realize their economic project,” he noted.

Khachatryan added that he doesn’t pin much positive hope on the plan given that ideas of the kind have not been a success in the recent period.

“After all, it will depend on how things will develop. Free trade must always have certain limitations; Turkey is a World Trade Organization member, while Belarus and Kazakhstan are not. This may cause Turkey to face the same problem as Armenia,” Khacharyan explained.

As for Armenia’s future, the economist said he expects Armenian-Turkish relations to become an agenda topic after the country joins the Russia-led economic bloc. “It is possible to make such assumptions,” he added.

Turkey: At least 52 police officers detained in ‘parallel state’ probe in Turkey

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ISTANBUL

 n_69443_1The police officers detained include Istanbul Police Department’s former anti-terror unit chief Yurt Atayün. AA Photo

Dozens of high-ranking police officials were detained in simultaneous operations conducted in 22 provinces of Turkey early July 22 as part of an investigation into accusations against the “parallel state.”

At least 40 people were detained in Istanbul on accusations of spying, illegal wiretapping and fraud in official documents. At least 12 people were detained in a separate operation targeting former intelligence department officials, for allegedly conducting illegal surveillance.

There are detention orders for a total of 134 suspects, CNNTürk reported.

Most of the detained suspects were in key positions during the Dec. 17, 2013, probe into allegations of graft and corruption, which targeted prominent businessmen, civil servants and four ex-ministers.

Among the suspects detained are Yurt Atayün, former head of the Istanbul police’s anti-terror department, Ömer Köse, head of the anti-terror department at the time of the Dec. 17, 2013 operation, as well as former deputy police chiefs Kazım Aksoy, Ramazan Candan and Gafur Ataç. Aksoy was expelled from the police force following the Dec. 17 operation during which he was a part of the financial crimes department, while Köse was suspended after the same incident.

The operation is considered as part of the government’s fight against the Fethullah Gülen movement, which Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accuses of creating a “parallel state within the state.”

Speaking in a televised interview July 21, Erdoğan said he would not back down from his bid to “clean up the state.”

Erdoğan also said he expected the United States “to have a stance” on Gülen, who resides in Pennsylvania.

“I told [U.S. President Barack] Obama and he said he understood,” the prime minister said. “Of course, the judicial rulings are important. When we have a Red Notice, he will not be able to stay where he is.”

July/22/2014

Turkey: MİT truck documents prove aid to al-Qaeda and ISIL, says CHP’s Tezcan

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TODAY’S ZAMAN / ISTANBUL
Republican People’s Party (CHP) Deputy Chairman Bülent Tezcan shared police records on Monday concerning the search of a National Intelligence Organization (MİT) 188552_newsdetailtruck in Adana as part of an investigation several months ago, asserting that the records prove that the Turkish government has supported radical groups in Syria and Iraq.

He said the records leave no room for doubt that the government has sent weapons and ammunition to the terrorist organizations al-Qaeda and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Syria. Tezcan held a press conference on Monday on the grounds of Parliament and shared documents about arms-laden trucks, which later proved to belong to MİT, that were stopped in Adana by security forces in January of this year. He said between 25 and 30 rockets were found in each truck. He also showed that the documents that were attached to the weaponry found on the trucks were written in Cyrillic.

He claimed that the weapons were loaded onto the trucks at Ankara Esenboğa Airport, citing official testimony from a driver of one of the trucks. Tezcan said the documents clearly show that MİT transfers weapons to armed groups in the region.

The CHP deputy chairman said anybody encouraging and provoking armed organizations will eventually find those same weapons being used on themselves. He reiterated his allegations that Turkish intelligence provides the armed organizations with ammunition and weapons. He also said the weapons that were given to ISIS have now turned against Turkish citizens and asked whether the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government could have struck a deal with ISIS.

Tezcan also recalled a leaked recording that was broadcast on YouTube in which top security officials at the Foreign Ministry could be heard making plans to send operatives to Syria. These operative would then fire missiles at the Turkish side of the border, thus giving Turkey an excuse to attack Syria. “So have you [the government] carried the missiles you will throw at Turkey with these trucks in advance? Was it these trucks that carried the weapons used in the Reyhanlı attacks?” he asked, referring to a deadly terrorist attack in Reyhanlı, a border town in Hatay province, which caused the deaths of 53 people on May 11, 2013 and is believed to have been staged by al-Qaeda.

“Is it not a crime in international law to arm the militants of ISIL and al-Qaeda like this in the Middle East?” Tezcan asked during the press conference. “We know the answers to all of these questions and the government also knows the answers and they will one day give their answers in front of the Supreme State Council in Turkey, the name the Constitutional Court assumes while trying the current or former members of a government, and before international courts.”

He said when the search in Adana started none of the security officials carrying out the search had any idea that the trucks were owned by MİT. “The prosecutor’s office on that day called the MİT regional administration, which initially said that it had no idea that such trucks would be passing through the region. Even the Adana office of MİT did not know about them, which clearly shows that this transfer operation was illegal.”

Tezcan said his disclosure marked the first time the documents had been shared with the public. He also said that there are currently several investigations regarding the trucks. “A preliminary investigation numbered 2014/P2 being conducted by the Adana Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office lists MİT officials as suspects, and the investigation is looking into the claims of ‘providing arms to illegal armed terrorist organizations’.”

He said the same MİT officials are the subject of another investigation, numbered 2014/30800, again being carried out by the Adana Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. He said the investigation is also based on claims of providing arms to illegal armed terrorist organizations. “They are trying to cover up these investigations,” he said, adding: “But it is as clear as day that there were weapons on the trucks being investigated. MİT has acted as a middleman in transferring the weapons, and the government has supported the operation. This crime was committed jointly [by MİT and the government] and is probably still being committed.”

The CHP deputy chairman also said footage showing the search of the truck was available.

Source: Today Zaman

Gülen movement to be added to top-secret national security ‘Red Book’

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ANKARA

Hurriyet daily news Report, The movement of U.S.-based Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, referred to by government officials as the “parallel state,” will be added to Turkey’s top-secret national security document, gulen-red-bookknown as the “Red Book,” Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has announced.

“An organization that threatens our national security will of course take its place in it [the Red Book]. The fight against [this organization] has become one of priorities of the state,” Erdoğan told private broadcaster TGRT on July 20, adding that the fight against the “parallel structure” had also been recently discussed at the National Security Council (MGK), the country’s top security board.

The Red Book national security document lists Turkey’s perceived domestic and external threats, and is updated by the MGK when necessary. It was last updated in 2010.

Erdoğan, who is currently running to become Turkey’s first ever directly-elected president in next month’s election, linked the anti-Gülen struggle to the unity and integrity of the country. “I will follow this fight [against this organization] if I am elected president. This is because my people have suffered [from this organization], I know this,” he said.

The fight between one-time-allies the Erdoğan government and the Gülen movement began late last year after a massive corruption and graft investigation against four ministers led by Istanbul prosecutors went public. The government states that the operation was a plot carried out by prosecutors and police officers loyal to Gülen, aiming to topple Erdoğan and his government. Since the probe broke, thousands of prosecutors and police officers have been removed from their previous positions, with pro-government prosecutors now probing the activities of the “parallel state.”

Israeli minister reminds Turkey of Armenian Genocide

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Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz reminded Turkish PM of Armenian Genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman forces.

Israel remind turkey of GenocideIn response to Erdogan’s accusations against Israel, Katz said more than a million Armenians were murdered by Ottoman troops in 1915, Arutz Sheva reported.

“In 1915 the Turks massacred a million and a half Armenians and he accuses us, who are fighting his friends in the Islamic movement, of genocide? Who wants a relationship with such a person?” wrote Katz.

His remark came in response to a harsh criticism of Erdogan who accused Israel of “ systematic genocide and terrorism” in Gaza. “Israel threatens world peace,” Turkish PM said.

Turks attempt to storm Israeli diplomatic missions

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Violent clashes have erupted between Turkish riot police and thousands of angry protesters who attempted to enter Israel’s diplomatic missions in Ankara and Istanbul.

Turkish-demo-PlastinianLatest reports say hundreds of riot police clashed with angry protesters outside the compound of Israel’s consulate in Istanbul on Friday evening.

This comes as thousands of protesters also marched on the Israeli embassy in the capital Ankara to condemn Israel’s killing of Gazan civilians.

Sources say the protesters removed the Israeli flag from the building and replaced it with the Palestinian and Turkish flags.

The angry demonstrators were protesting Tel Aviv regime’s ongoing war on the besieged Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused Israeli authorities of seeking systematic genocide of the Palestinians.

Erdogan said the world has been witnessing similar acts by Israel on a daily basis since its creation in 1948. He condemned the Western countries for remaining silent on the Israeli crimes in the holy month of Ramadan.

Following the latest protest rallies in Ankara and Istanbul, Tel Aviv has announced it will reduce its diplomatic presence in Turkey.