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Today's Zaman, Turkey
Nov 17 2013
Çiçek: Presidential system depends on 2015 election results
17 November 2013 /CUMALÄ° Ã-NAL, ANKARA
Parliament Speaker Cemil Çiçek has stressed that a transition to the
presidential system in Turkey depends on the results of the 2015
general elections, emphasizing that under the current circumstances, a
presidential system as desired by the government is difficult to
switch to.
Meeting with Australian journalists in an event held last week by the
Zaman Australia daily and sponsored by Turkish Airlines (THY), Çiçek
said Turkey and Australia are among the rare countries that have
turned war into a friendship. Deputy Prime Minister and Economy
Minister Ali Babacan said the current strong relations between the two
countries were established a century ago in the Battle of Gallipoli.
The event brought together Australian journalists and Turkish
government officials, intellectuals, experts and journalists from
Turkey to discuss a range of issues, including Iran, the European
Union, Armenian allegations of genocide, the Kurdish question and the
Gezi Park protests.
Stressing that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an and the ruling
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) want a US model presidential
system and that this was one of the main issues blocking the
constitutional drafting process, Çiçek said under the current
circumstances, a presidential system desired by the government is
difficult to switch to.
Turkey's EU Affairs Minister Egemen BaÄ?ıÅ? noted that if ErdoÄ?an runs
for president, he would probably be elected as president in the first
or second round with 60 percent of the vote.
Çiçek also underlined in his speech that one of the main reasons for
Turkey's problems is political greed among politicians, pointing out
that important issues in discussions about changing the current
Constitution have not even been addressed yet.
On the Gezi Park protests, Çiçek pointed out that the West only sees
the political demands side of the incidents. `According to
international treaties, everyone has a right to protest what one does
not like, but they cannot use force. No one's freedom can curtail
another's freedom,' added Çiçek.
Saying that `supporting terrorism and the 1915 incidents are two
topics that poison our relations with some countries,' Çiçek said the
decision taken by the Australian Parliament to accept Armenian
allegations of genocide is poisoning relations between the two
countries.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Levent Gümrükçü stressed that the
Kurdish question cannot be solved by establishing an independent
Kurdish state, maintaining that Kurds should make an effort to gain
all their social, economic and cultural rights within the territories
they are living in.
Speaking on Iran's nuclear activities, BaÄ?ıÅ? told journalists that
Turkey does not want Iran to build nuclear weapons. `If Iran develops
nuclear weapons, Ankara, not New York, will be in the range of those
weapons,' the minister said. BaÄ?ıÅ? also pointed out that Iran has had
ambitions to control the region for the last 2,000 years.
Similarly, Gümrükçü underlined that Turkey is one of those countries
most concerned about Iran's nuclear program, saying Iran's nuclear
weapons do not constitute a threat to the US, but to American regional
interests. The spokesperson pointed out that Turkey is Iran's neighbor
and that no one can claim that Turkey tolerates Iran's nuclear
program.
Concerning Syria, Gümrükçü said as in other regional problems, Turkey
has never favored a military intervention in Syria and has always
desired a political and diplomatic solution. Stressing that Turkey
wants to present its economic performance, built on universal values
and democracy, to countries in the region, Gümrükçü said, `Despite
recent campaigns against Turkey, 70-80 percent of Middle Easterners
from Yemen to Morocco hold Turkey up as the model country to cooperate
with in their period of transition to democracy.'
Gümrükçü added that Turkey does not need to follow a nuclear program
due to its presence under the umbrella of NATO.
Speaking on Turkey's EU membership, BaÄ?ıÅ? said a lack of vision and
the fears and prejudices of EU leaders are the main obstacles ahead of
Turkey's membership in the union. Stressing that they do not want to
linger on the problems with the EU and make a great effort for
membership, BaÄ?ıÅ? said Turkey faces false excuses such as being a
large, Muslim and poor country.
Gümrükçü said EU membership is Turkey's strategic priority and that
`it is out of the question [for Turkey] to give up on EU membership.'
During the meeting, Babacan claimed that the UN Security Council does
not want the G-20, which constitutes 90 percent of global gross
domestic product (GDP) and 80 percent of global trade, to be more
politically active. `This organization has a very strong
representation of power. If political issues are discussed in this
organization, the G-20 could easily replace the UN Security Council,'
said Babacan.
Stressing that Turkey has gone through political, social and economic
transformations in the last 11 years, Babacan said they are targeting
5 percent economic growth for the 2015-16 period in Turkey.
Speaking on relations with Israel, Gümrükçü said Turkey honestly wants
good relations with Israel, adding that as the US sets new strategies
for the region, Israel will need Turkey more than ever.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-331686-cicek-presidential-system-depends-on-2015-election-results.html
Nov 17 2013
Çiçek: Presidential system depends on 2015 election results
17 November 2013 /CUMALÄ° Ã-NAL, ANKARA
Parliament Speaker Cemil Çiçek has stressed that a transition to the
presidential system in Turkey depends on the results of the 2015
general elections, emphasizing that under the current circumstances, a
presidential system as desired by the government is difficult to
switch to.
Meeting with Australian journalists in an event held last week by the
Zaman Australia daily and sponsored by Turkish Airlines (THY), Çiçek
said Turkey and Australia are among the rare countries that have
turned war into a friendship. Deputy Prime Minister and Economy
Minister Ali Babacan said the current strong relations between the two
countries were established a century ago in the Battle of Gallipoli.
The event brought together Australian journalists and Turkish
government officials, intellectuals, experts and journalists from
Turkey to discuss a range of issues, including Iran, the European
Union, Armenian allegations of genocide, the Kurdish question and the
Gezi Park protests.
Stressing that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an and the ruling
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) want a US model presidential
system and that this was one of the main issues blocking the
constitutional drafting process, Çiçek said under the current
circumstances, a presidential system desired by the government is
difficult to switch to.
Turkey's EU Affairs Minister Egemen BaÄ?ıÅ? noted that if ErdoÄ?an runs
for president, he would probably be elected as president in the first
or second round with 60 percent of the vote.
Çiçek also underlined in his speech that one of the main reasons for
Turkey's problems is political greed among politicians, pointing out
that important issues in discussions about changing the current
Constitution have not even been addressed yet.
On the Gezi Park protests, Çiçek pointed out that the West only sees
the political demands side of the incidents. `According to
international treaties, everyone has a right to protest what one does
not like, but they cannot use force. No one's freedom can curtail
another's freedom,' added Çiçek.
Saying that `supporting terrorism and the 1915 incidents are two
topics that poison our relations with some countries,' Çiçek said the
decision taken by the Australian Parliament to accept Armenian
allegations of genocide is poisoning relations between the two
countries.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Levent Gümrükçü stressed that the
Kurdish question cannot be solved by establishing an independent
Kurdish state, maintaining that Kurds should make an effort to gain
all their social, economic and cultural rights within the territories
they are living in.
Speaking on Iran's nuclear activities, BaÄ?ıÅ? told journalists that
Turkey does not want Iran to build nuclear weapons. `If Iran develops
nuclear weapons, Ankara, not New York, will be in the range of those
weapons,' the minister said. BaÄ?ıÅ? also pointed out that Iran has had
ambitions to control the region for the last 2,000 years.
Similarly, Gümrükçü underlined that Turkey is one of those countries
most concerned about Iran's nuclear program, saying Iran's nuclear
weapons do not constitute a threat to the US, but to American regional
interests. The spokesperson pointed out that Turkey is Iran's neighbor
and that no one can claim that Turkey tolerates Iran's nuclear
program.
Concerning Syria, Gümrükçü said as in other regional problems, Turkey
has never favored a military intervention in Syria and has always
desired a political and diplomatic solution. Stressing that Turkey
wants to present its economic performance, built on universal values
and democracy, to countries in the region, Gümrükçü said, `Despite
recent campaigns against Turkey, 70-80 percent of Middle Easterners
from Yemen to Morocco hold Turkey up as the model country to cooperate
with in their period of transition to democracy.'
Gümrükçü added that Turkey does not need to follow a nuclear program
due to its presence under the umbrella of NATO.
Speaking on Turkey's EU membership, BaÄ?ıÅ? said a lack of vision and
the fears and prejudices of EU leaders are the main obstacles ahead of
Turkey's membership in the union. Stressing that they do not want to
linger on the problems with the EU and make a great effort for
membership, BaÄ?ıÅ? said Turkey faces false excuses such as being a
large, Muslim and poor country.
Gümrükçü said EU membership is Turkey's strategic priority and that
`it is out of the question [for Turkey] to give up on EU membership.'
During the meeting, Babacan claimed that the UN Security Council does
not want the G-20, which constitutes 90 percent of global gross
domestic product (GDP) and 80 percent of global trade, to be more
politically active. `This organization has a very strong
representation of power. If political issues are discussed in this
organization, the G-20 could easily replace the UN Security Council,'
said Babacan.
Stressing that Turkey has gone through political, social and economic
transformations in the last 11 years, Babacan said they are targeting
5 percent economic growth for the 2015-16 period in Turkey.
Speaking on relations with Israel, Gümrükçü said Turkey honestly wants
good relations with Israel, adding that as the US sets new strategies
for the region, Israel will need Turkey more than ever.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-331686-cicek-presidential-system-depends-on-2015-election-results.html