NEWS SCAN for Turkey – July 13th, 2013

Down below you will find a summary of topics from major Turkish papers and internet sites.

Istanbul Court refuses demand for release of 67 Ergenekon suspects

An Istanbul court is reported to have refused the demand for the release of 67 Ergenekon coup trial suspects, to include General İlker Başbuğ (former Chief of General Staff) as well as Mustafa Balbay and professor Mehmet Haberal, deputies from main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).

Lawyers of the Ergenekon suspects had cited the abrogation of a provision allowing detentions of up to 10 years for terror suspects last week by the Constitutional Court to justify the demand for release. The move however was rejected by the court based on ruling that although the legal base for long detention was abrogated, it had not yet been replaced by a new law. “The Constitutional Court does not instate a statute that creates new practices as a legislative body while abrogating a provision,” the court said in the ruling. Turkey’s top court had given the government one year starting from the publication of the decision in the Official Gazette to change the provision. The provision that was abrogated for not complying with the standards of the European Court of Human Rights, enabled the doubling, in terror cases, of the maximum period of detention of five years allowed for suspects. More than a dozen suspects in cases such as the Ergenekon and the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK) trials have exceeded five years of detention.

35 percent drop in FDI hurts Turkish economy

Official figures confirm that FDI (foreign direct investment) to Turkey dropped by more than one-third in the first five months of 2013 year-on-year. Commenting on the issue YASED (the International Investors Association) has noted that it would be difficult for the country to attain its target of $15 billion to $20 billion of FDI this year.

In the first five months of 2013, FDI inflows to Turkey totaled $4.22 billion, a 35 percent decrease compared to the same period in the previous year, according to data from the Central Bank. It is unlikely that Turkey will reach its year-end aims in terms of FDI inflow in light of the numbers through the first five months of 2013, Özlem Özyiğit (YASED Secretary-General)  said yesterday at a press conference.

Özyiğit went on to say “Although we, as YASED members, have not revised our target officially, we believe Turkey could attract $12.4 billion of FDI in 2013, as it did in 2012, as long as a number of big volume transactions are made in the last quarter,” Özyiğit said, adding that large privatization projects in the works could help increase the FDI inflow to Turkey, such as the privatization of the national lottery, Milli Piyango. In the first quarter of 2013, $1.1 billion out of the $2 billion total FDI inflows to Turkey was composed of net foreign capital inflows while $221 million was of other capital. The remaining $719 million was of real estate purchases by non-residents.

Turkish FM says Hezbollah should be taken out of Syria

Davutoglu and Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Akbar Salehi held a joint press conference in Turkish capital Ankara, on Friday.

Speaking to journalists Davutoglu said that they had supported Hezbollah in its honorable fight in Lebanon but  Turkey was completely against the external intervention in Syria and Hezbollah should be taken out of Syria, as well.

FM said “All foreign actors should be taken out from Syria. Hezbollah, which went into Syrian cities including Al-Qusayr, should be also taken out from Syria”.

Some experts believe PKK prefers to restructure rather than disarming itself

As the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) reshuffles its higher echelons while establishing new bodies within itself, experts claim that the organization is restructuring itself in an effort to adapt to the settlement process, which aims to end the decades-long armed conflict between the state and the PKK, but has no intention of disarming no matter what.

On Friday, Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) parliamentary group chairman Pervin Buldan called on Parliament not to have a recess, but convene again following Eid to discuss democratization packages regarding the settlement process. She also pushed for a change in the prison conditions of Öcalan, who is incarcerated on İmralı Island, since he is an important actor in the process. Buldan also reportedly delivered the latest letter from Öcalan on the second stage of the settlement process to the PKK leadership in the Kandil Mountains.

AK Party spokesman and Deputy Chairman Hüseyin Çelik said on Friday that the settlement process is “sensitive and fragile” and that everyone has important responsibilities in order not to harm the process.

DHL sees Turkey as a logistics base”

The global provider of logistics services, DHL, foresees Turkey becoming a logistics hub over the next ten years as the country resolutely pursues its goals for the year 2023, the centennial of the foundation of the Republic.

The German-owned company, DHL, will be increasing its investments in Turkey in parallel with the country’s rising export volume, according to the CEO of Deutsche Post DHL, Frank Appel. “Turkey is on track to become a global logistics hub by 2023, at DHL we have devised a 10-year plan accordingly.” Appel noted.

“Turkey is a priority country for DHL investment projects which cover the technological and manpower aspects of a truly global logistics hub.”, the executive remarked.

The logistics giant, operating under three different brands in Turkey; DHL Express, DHL Supply Chain, and DHL Global Forwarding, posted a growth rate of over 20 percent in 2012.

Investor interest in Turkish banking sector high – Deloitte

Financial institutions from Europe, Far East, and the Middle East are keeping a close watch on Turkey’s banking sector for investments, according to the international advisory and auditing firm, Deloitte.

“There is serious intention from lenders in the Middle East, Far East and Europe towards investing in Turkey’s banking sector. A participation bank from the Gulf region is currently analysing the Turkish banking market while another is looking into providing housing and auto loans and may later seek to acquire a banking license in Turkey.” said Yucel Ersoz, Consultant Partner of Deloitte Turkey’s Financial Services Department.

“Some 5-6 banks are considering investing in Turkey. Turkey’s large scale infrastructure projects keep foreign investor interest in the country up as such opportunities do not exist in the West…” noted Hasan Kilic, Auditing Partner of DeloittAuditing Partner of Deloitte Turkey.

13.07.2013
SOURCE: MEDIA

We do not verify above stories neither do we vouch for their accuracy.