CHRONOLOGY*
1994
JANUARY
1 Militants of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) killed eight passengers in southeastern Anatolia after intercepting tvvo busses at a roadblock on the Diyarbakır-Elazığ road.
3 Turkish Foreign Minister Hikmet Çetin issued a vvaming to his Belgian counterpart, blaming the Belgian authorities for the clashes betvveen the poliçe and resident Turks and requesting security measures to be tightened.
4 Tvvo summit meetings on defence and foreign policy vvere held under the chairmanship of Turkish President Süleyman Demirel. Turkey's defence strategies as vvell as "the political-military situation in the light of the developments taking place in the neighbouring countries" vvere revievved at the meeting vvhich vvas held at the Turkish General Chief of Staffs office. At the meeting held at the presidential residence and focused on Turkish foreign policy, the Cyprus issue and the stance adopted by Greece after Papandreu came to povver vvere the majör issues dealt vvith.
6. Directorate for Promotion of Turkey Abroad (TÜTAV), aiming at being more effective in the promotion of Turkey, vvas established.
7 Iraqi Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Riyad al-Qaysi started talks vvith Turkish officials on the future of the 9.5 million tons of oil in the Yumurtalık-Kirkuk pipeline. Mr. Qaysi said he vvas "ready to discuss anything that the Turkish side vvanted to bring up." Turkey had noted that the discussions vvould be on draining of the oil vvhich had started to damage the tvvin pipelines.
8 FM Hikmet Çetin vvarned Greece against "creating events that it vvould regret later," responding to remarks from Athens on the arming of Greek islands in the Aegean.
9 An Iraqi Kurdish court sentenced a Turkish Kurd to 26 years for the murder of two British joumalists in northern Iraq in 1991.
10 Turkish Prime Minister Tansu Çiller drew the attention to Turkey's bridging role between Central Asia and the West at the NATO summit held in Brussels. She also touched upon the issue of terrorism. Mrs. Çiller calling terrorism a threat to democracy and human rights, added: "Those vvho support it (terrorism) fail victims to it sooner or later. Thus, cooperation against terrorism is necessary among allies." Mrs. Çiller brought up the issue during the talks she held vvith British Prime Minister John Majör vvho thanked her for extending by Turkey the mandate of Operation Provide Comfort for another six months.
• After the announcement made by Greece that she permitted the North Aegean Petroleum Consortium to explore oil beyond the six-mile Continental shelf limit, Turkey, keeping a close vvatch on the events, vvamed Greece of the negative consequences of a probable violation of the Continental shelf limit by Greece.
• 11 Turkish PM Çiller, accompanied by FM Hikmet Çetin, met vvith her Belgian counterpart Jean-Luc Dehaene in order to make "a general assessment of terrorism in Europe."
• Turkey announced that ali ships carrying oil and dangerous cargo vvould have to give 24-hours notice before sailing through the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles.
13 Declaration on Friendship Cooperation and Solidarity according to vvhich "Turkey and Georgia guarantee not to spare efforts to solve conflicts through peaceful means and to support international initiatives against aggressive nationalism, discrimination and outdated ideas" as vvell as five protocols on cooperation betvveen the parliamentary organs and in the fields of customs duties, tourism, agriculture and industry, particularly stressing the importance of a highvvay that vvould ünite Europe vvith Asia and of natural gas pipelines vvere signed betvveen Turkey and Georgia.
14 Three people vvere killed and 20 vvere injured in central Turkey vvhen time-bombs hidden in luggage exploded on inter-city buses.
15 PKK claimed full responsibility for the serial bus-bombs attacks. 17 President Süleyman Demirel called for the lifting of UN sanctions against Iraq, saying the Iraqi people have suffered enough.
22 Israeli President Ezer Weizman arrived in Ankara as the official guest of President Süleyman Demirel. Mr. Demirel stated that a nevv impetus vvas given to bilateral relations vvith the Middle East peace negotiations and that there vvere significant opportunities for cooperation on commercial relations and investments to be launched in third countries.
28 More than 50 Turkish warplanes attacked a majör canip used by Kurdish terrorists inside northern Iraq and reportedly destroyed majör separatist targets in what PM Tansu Çiller described as "the most important operation of the past decade."
FEBRUARY
6 Turkish President Süleyman Demirel sent a message to each of the leaders of the member countries of NATO and the European Union and to the secretaries general of NATO and the United Nations, urging them to act for ending the tragedy in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
7 Turkey once again urged the NATO alliance to launch air strikes against Serbs in Bosnia, saying otherwise NATO vvould lose its ovvn credibility.
• Turkey signed a protocol for the repairing of the historical Mostar Bridge, vvhich had been built över the River Neretva 427 years ago by the celebrated Turkish architect Hayreddin, and vvas completely destroyed after having been shelled several times. Bosnian Minister of Education and Culture. Enis Durankovic underlined the importance the protocol had for them, since it gave them "hope that vvhat vvas destroyed in Bosnia could be repaired."
8 Turkey's Ambassador to the United Nations İnal Batu declared, during a press conference he held in Nevv York, that Turkey, follovving the recent attack in Bosnia-Herzegovina, called for an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council. Turkey's move, in close collaboration vvith the Organization of the Islamic Conference, vvas said to be aiming at giving the countries vvhich vvere not represented in the Security Council a chance to voice their concems över the issue.
9 Distancing themselves from follovvers vvho use religious differences to fuel vvars, prominent Müslim, Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Jevvish figures came together in istanbul against violence committed in the name of faith.
• An accord on the improvement of friendship and multi-dimensional cooperation vvas signed betvveen Turkey and Azerbaijan. The accord reaffirmed the validity of previous agreements vvhich foresavv the transportation of Azeri oil över Turkey. It also envisaged that on the event that one of the parties vvas faced vvith an act of aggression, the other one vvould take the necessary measures in order to stop the aggressor.
10 In a vvritten statement, Turkish FM Hikmet Çetin, qualified the ültimatom given by NATO as having the minimum conditions acceptable to Turkey vvhich had been stressing the necessity of an immediate air operation to be launched on the Serbian targets. Mr. Çetin also reminded of a similar plan proposed by Turkey to the U.N. Security Council in 1992.
12 A time bomb planted in a dustbin at a railvvay station in istanbul killed fıve military cadets, and the Kurdish separatist PKK terrorist group said
it carried out the bombing to avenge army attacks. Twenty-six people, most of them military trainees, vvere vvounded in the attack. Pro-Kurdish Democracy Party (DEP) Chairman Hatip Dicle tried to justify the attack saying "such things happen in vvars."
15 Turkey, fearing ecological disaster in the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, said it has dravvn up nevv shipping rules that vvill take effect on July 1. According to the rules, vessels carrying oil and dangerous cargoes must give 24-hours notice before entering the Straits. Nuclear-povvered vessels and nucleaı vvaste-carrying ships vvill need special permission from the Turkish authorities before passing through.
16 The Turkish Foreign Ministry issued a vvritten statement in response to a Greek parliamentary committee's decision to name May 19 as "Remembrance Day For Victims of (so-called) Ponti-Greek Genocide", criticising Greece for displaying "a distorted mentality". The decision to declare May 19, the day of Turkish National Salvation, a day of remembrance for such an event vvas said to be an example of the recent policies pursued by the Greek government. "It also confirms that Greece has no intention of establishing good relations vvith is neighbours and contributing to the maintenance of peace and stabilily in the region", the statement further read.
17 Turkish clergymen, appointed by Turkey's Reİigious Affairs Directorate to serve the ethnic Turkish Müslim minority in Western Thrace, vvere denied entry into Greece by border officials.
22 Turkey requested information from Russia related to reports of a rapprochement betvveen Moscovv and the outlavved PKK as the separatist Kurdish organization started its three-day conference in Moscovv.
23 Turkish FM Hikmet Çetin sent a letter to his U.S., Russian, French and German counterparts each, voicing his objection to isolating Turkey from the efforts on sending troops to Bosnia-Herzegovina and attending the meetings aimed to deal vvith the issue, adding that Turkey reiterated to the United Nations her vvill to send troops to Bosnia.
MARCH
3 Parliament lifted the immunity of Kurdish Deputy Selim Sadak and pro-Islamic Deputy Hasan Mezarcı on separate charges of separatism and Müslim fundamentalism.
4 Kurdish separatist terrorists in southeast Turkey bombed a blockaded pipeline full of Iraqi crude oil in the fourth such attack in the past six vveeks.
7 Ending a majör trial that began more than four years ago, a German court in Dusseldorf convicted two Kurdish terrorists for executing tvvo of their enemies in Germany and sentenced both to life in prison. A third member of the PKK vvas convicted of kidnapping and a fourth of belonging to the terrorist organization.
10 The quadrilateral meeting chaired by Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary özdem Sanberk, U.S. Deputy Foreign Minister Stephen Oxman, the French Foreign Ministry's North Africa and Middle East Director Deniş Bauchard and the British Foreign Secretary's Deputy Undersecretary responsible for Middle East affairs, Michael Burton, was held in Ankara. During the meeting on Operation Provide Comfort, commonly known as Poised Hammer, Turkey stated that the uncertainty in Iraq appeared to last for some time. In a joint press statement released after the meeting, Turkey, the U.S., France and Britain called on the Iraqi government to lift the economic blockade and remove other restrictions on Northern Iraq, which was declared to be "an integral part of Iraq". The four countries, thus, reaffirmed their commitment to the preservation of territorial integrity and unity of Iraq.
11 President Süleyman Demirel accused deputies of the DEP of having ties vvith Kurdish terrorists.
14 FM Hikmet Çetin said in a statement that the use of the Straits for transporting oil represents potential tragedy. Saying that more than 50,000 vessels passed through the Straits every year and that the number vvould increase, Çetin indicated that Turkey has to take steps to deal vvith the problem.
22 U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali officially added Turkey to a üst of about 15 nations offering more troops to enforce the cease-fire around Sarajevo, the Muslim-Croat cease-cease-fire in central Bosnia and to augment the U.N. peacekeeping presence elsevvhere.
25 Turkey and Romania decided to cooperate for peace in the Balkans during .Turkish President Süleyman Demirel's visit to the Romanian capital, Bucharest. "When the situation is normalized in Bosnia-Herzegovina, there vvill be a search for nevv cooperation possibilities in the Balkans. Countries of the Balkans have to understand each other", Mr. Demirel pointed out. President Demirel and Romanian President Ion Illiescu underlined the importance of territorial integrity and inviolability of borders, vvhile their talks vvere centered on cooperation on security in Europe.
28 Ethnic Turkish teachers and student in Western Thrace started a vveek-long strike.
APRİL
6 In a joint press statement, Turkey and Albania declared that they vvelcomed the agreement signed betvveen the Bosnian Muslims and Croats in Washington, D.C.
7 Turkish President Süleyman Demirel, in his opening speech to an international conference on the Balkans, held in İstanbul, said that Turkey attached utmost importance to the maintenance and preservation of peace, security, tranquility and stability both in her region and in the vvorld, parallel to the principle "peace at home, peace in the vvorld". Mr. Demirel said:
'Turkey respects the principles of international law, the Charter of the United Nations, in particular." President Demirel, stressing that people of the Balkans, despite their linguistic, religious, ethnic differences, should learn to live together, said: "The only way for people to claim their country, their past and future is through... making use of human rights and democracy to the full. Thus, the contemporary condition for living together is human rights and democracy prevailing över racism and ethnic nationalism and enabling ali to be good citizens."
8 Turkish FM Hikmet Çetin reiterated Turkey's view that the ongoing fighting in Bosnia-Herzegovina could not be termed as a civil vvar but an act of aggression, before he met vvith Vice President of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Eyüp Ganic, and Bosnian FM irfan Ljublijankic.
9 The Open Skies Agreement; the cooperation agreement on education, science, culture and sports signed betvveen Turkey and Georgia; the Black Sea Convention relating to cooperation on culture, education, science and communication; Turco-Spanish cooperation agreement on economy and industry came into force.
12 Mehmet Emin Ağa, the Mufti of Iskeçe (Xanti) in Greek Western Thrace, vvas convicted to 23 months in prison by a local court "for insulting Greek justice" and for allegedly being a "false religious man."
14 Two U.S. helicopters serving under the Operation Provide Comfort vvere shot dovvn över Nothern Iraq, claiming the lives of 26 people including 3 Turkish offıcers.
25 Turkish Defence Minister Mehmet Gölhan declared the signing of a cooperation agreement on military technology and defence industry betvveen Turkey and the Russian Federation. The agreement "vvould enable the future joint production of various military cquipment including arms, parallel to the needs of the tvvo countries and third parties as vvell", said Mr. Gölhan.
29 The so-called Kurdistan National Liberation Front (ERNK), the political vving of the out-lavved PKK, opened an information bureau in Spain.
MAY
2 The Turkish National Oil Company (TPAO) signed a letter of intent to form a joint venture, most likely vvith a Türkmen state-ovvned oil company, in order to exploit oil deposits in vvestem Türkmenistan.
4 The German Foreign Ministry made an announcement that Germany vvas going to resume arms shipment to Turkey. Turkish FM Hikmet Çetin, in a vvritten statement, said that Turkey vvelcomed the decision of the German government to resume Turkish-German cooperation in the military field, qualifying the decision as a proof of failure in attemps to hamper bilateral friendship and cooperation.
7 Turkish President Süleyman Demirel and his Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mübarek declared, after official talks in Cairo, that the two countries were determined to further enhance ties in ali areas.
9 Turkish FM Hikmet Çetin and Turkish Defence Minister Mehmet Gölhan, vvho vvere both in Luxembourg for attending the meeting of the Western European Union (WEU) Council, vvelcomed the "further status" received by Turkey but reafFırmed Turkey's eventual goal to join the WEU as a full member. The "further status" created nevv opportunities for Turkey, such as Turkey's providing three military officers for liason in the Defence Planning Celi, establishing direct communications vvith the WEU. "Moreover, the WEU Assembly vvants to improve Turkey's representation level," Mr. Çetin said.
13 Turkey rejected the note sent by the Russian Federation vvhich claimed that the nevv regulations on the Straits, due to coming into effect on July 1, violated the Montreux Convention. In a note sent by Turkey, in turn, the Russian Federation's proposal on the revision of the recent regulations vvas not accepted, since the proposal vvas in contradiction vvith Turkey's vievv on the concept of "national sovereignty".
24 Delegates from 72 nations agreed on rules designed to improve the safety of ships passing through the Bosphonıs, the Sea of Marmara and the Dardanelles, the U.N.'s shipping vvatchdog discloses. The rules, dravvn up in response to Turkish pressure for tighter restrictions on marine traffîc in the area, vvill come into effect on Nov. 24, said a spokesman for the U.N.'s International Maritime Organization (IMO).
25 The IMO approved the package including regulations made by Turkey in order to improve the safety of ships passing through the Turkish Straits. This vvas the first time after the signing of the Montreux Convention in 1936 that a package of nevv rules and recommendations vvere accepted by the IMO.
27 Turkey told the United States that it may reject U.S. military aid after a U.S. congressional decision to vvithhold part of it pending a human rights report on Turkey.
28 Greece angrily rejected claims that it trained Kurdish separatists for sabotage missions in Turkey.
30 Turkey and Kazakhstan signed an accord covering crude oil exploration, produetion, transportation and marketing in the Kazakhstan oil fields.
31 Disregarding recent positive overtures from the Turkish Cypriot side, U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali sent a 46-page report to the Security Council in vvhich he blames the Turkish Cypriots, for the stalemate on the island. There vvere criticisms of the Ghali report on the Turkish side.
JUNE
1 Turkish President Süleyman Demirel stated that Turkish-Ukrainian relations acquired a new dimension with the signing of a protocol between Turkey and Ukraine on the Ceyhan-Black Sea oil pipeline project designed to transport Middle Eastern oil to Ukrainian refineries. Mr. Demirel said that the oil which would run through a 700 km-long pipeline vvould make a source of a considerable amount of income vvorth of $400 million a year for Turkey.
2 President Süleyman Demirel, vvhile addressing the representatives of the Gagauz ethnic minority on the second day of his visit to Moldova, stated that projects aiming at furthering bilateral relations vvere dealt vvith during his visit. Mr. Demirel, dravving attention to the fact that most of the obstacles vvhich had been once preventing people and states alike from coming closer to each other vvere overcome vvith the collapse of the U.S.S.R., said that the number of countries committed to democracy, human rights, the rule of lavv and market economy vvere on the increase.
6 Turkish Cypriot President Rauf Denktaş said that the U.N. Secretary-General's Cyprus report, vvhich laid the blame for lack of progress on the Turkish side, should be corrected or an addendum made clarifying the Turkish position before the Security Council takes any decision on Cyprus.
8 PM Tansu Çiller vvarned Greece against any designs on extending territorial boundaries in the Aegean, saying that such actions could bring vvar.
9 NATO foreign ministers meeting in istanbul offered Russia closer ties but laid out clear conditions and rejected some of Moscovv's demands for a special privileged status vvith the alliance.
16 The Constitutional Court ruled to close the pro-Kurdish Democracy Party (DEP).
• Six former DEP deputies left for Brussels reportedly to evade arrest. • Turkish Cypriot President Rauf Denktaş announced that he accepts "ali the proposals" of the United Nations concerning the confidence-building measures vvorked out by the U.N. Secretary-General.
17 The U.S. Senate's Appropriations Committee submitted a report, rejecting the cutting of military aid to Turkey in 1995 but adding that the aid be granted on condition of "understanding that it vvould not be used for domestic security concerns".
22 Uzbekistan President islam Kerimov arrived in Turkey vvith the aim of boosting cooperation and smoothing över tensions caused by the activities of an Uzbek opposition leader in Turkey.
24 Turkish troops vvhich vvill join the United Nations Proteetion Force in Bosnia (UNPROFOR) left Ankara for the Croatian city of Split.
27 Germany's federal prosecutor arrested a Kurdish woman identified as 33-year-old Güler Y. saying that she vvas a suspected leader in Germany of the separatist Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK).
• Upon returning from Baghdad, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary özdem Sanberk said Iraq had agreed to pay some of the proceeds from oil sales to Turkey into the U.N. Compensation Fund as part of a plan to restore the pipeline connecting the tvvo nations.
30 The U.S. Senate dropped the condition linking military aid to Turkey to the conclusion to be reached that she vvould not use the equipment for her domestic security concerns.
JULY
1 Turkey celebrated July 1 - the day marking Turkish sovereignty over its seas - by tightening safety rules for ships passing through the Straits. The event vvas also marked by a vvave of protests from Greece and Russia, vvhich Turkey shrugged off as "unfounded concerns."
• U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali issued the long avvaited "supplement" to his Cyprus report of May 30 and indicated that the recent talks vvith the Turkish side have resulted in "considerable progress tovvard agreement."
2 Turkish, Croat and Bosnian foreign ministers met in Ankara and said that they vvill put together concrete programs to develop and repair Bosnia's vvar-torn economy.
8 The first convoy of Turkish peacekeepers, consisting of 87 vehicles and 218 personnel, arrived in Zenica, and vvas greeted by Bosnian forces.
• Four PKK bombers vvere captured after entering the country illegally. They had allegedly undergone extensive explosives training at a PKK camp located in Greece.
11 Yaşar Kaya, former chairman of the banned DEP and publisher of the defunct daily Özgür Gündem, applied to the German International Ministry for political asylum.
14 Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ferhat Ataman called the European Court decision of June 5 to ban imports from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus as unjust and stated that Turkey vvould compensate for the losses.
17 PKK militants killed seven villagers vvith automatic guns in the Uğrak village near the district of Dicle in Diyarbakır.
20 Greece denied entrance to Turkish Religious Affairs Director Mehmet Nuri Yılmaz because his visit vvould "violate the public order."
• Turkey and Russia have signed a protocol on economic cooperation vvhich stipulates a nevv payment plan for Russia's $555 million debt, $480 million of vvhich vvere overdue.
22 A protocol on environmental cooperation vvas signed betvveen Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in Lefkoşa.
26 During his official visit to Iran, President Demirel held a meeting vvith his Iranian counterpart, Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, agreeing on improving commercial relations and cooperation on border security.
27 Turkey and Ukraine signed a framevvork agreement directed to enhance cooperation on education, technology and science in the military field.
28 Algeria started shipping liquefied natural gas to Turkey is designed to be the remedy for the halt in the flovv of Russian-supplied natural gas.
AUGUST
5 The U.S. House of Representatives ratified the foreign aid bild draft vvhich foresavv cuts by 10% in the aid to be extended to Turkey.
24 Turkish Cypriot President Rauf Denktaş announced that the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus vvould integrate vvith Turkey as soon as the European Union accepts Greek Cyprus as a full member.
• The representatives of Turkey, Iran, Türkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Russia signed in Tehran an agreement regarding the pipeline project on carrying Türkmen natural gas through Iran and Turkey.
26 U.S. President Bili Clinton signed the foreign aid credits bili, vvhich attaches a "condition" to the aid given to Turkey. Ten percent of the U.S. assistance vvill be linked to improvement in human rights and progress on Cyprus.
28 PM Tansu Çiller said Turkey vvill reject the 10% of the U.S. military aid linked to human rights conditions and progress on the divided island of Cyprus.
• President Demirel, accompanied by FM Mümtaz Soysal, paid a one-day official visit to Jordan, and the tvvo countries decided to make a joint effort to integrate Iraq back into the vvorld community.
• Militants of ERNK, the political/propaganda vving of the PKK, threatened to hit French interests in the Middle East in retaliation against an alleged French poliçe crackdovvn on its members.
SEPTEMBER
I President Demirel issued a stern vvarning to Greece against extending its territorial waters, which would overlap Turkish sovereignty.
• After a one-day visit to Northern Cyprus, Turkish FM Soysal stated that the Greek Cypriot administration -usurping the title of the Republic of Cyprus- has no right to represent the whole island.
4 Following tvvo-day technical talks, Turkey and Iran signed a protocol reaffirming cooperation between the two countries against terrorism.
7 Hungary and Turkey signed a friendship pact, renevving their contractual links that date back to 1923.
9 The delegations of Turkey and Greece meeting in Ankara decided to hold periodic consultations aiming at settling bilateral questions despite the fact that they maintained their positions on basic issues.
14 The European Parliament Foreign Affairs Commission decided to suspend its relations vvith Turkish Grand National Assembly.
19 Turkey protested to Greece regarding the Greek patrol boats' opening Fire at Turkish fıshermen in international vvaters of the Aegean, urging Greece to refrain from actions violating international lavv.
20 The deal concerning exploration, produetion and transportation of Azeri oil in the three offshore Caspian Sea oil fields vvas signed in Baku, Azerbaijan. Among the signatories vvas Turkish Petroleum (TPAO) vvhich vvould have a share vvorth $2.5 billion.
22 The PKK killed tvvo teachers it had kidnapped earlier. OCTOBER
3 The United States and Turkey signed an agreement for the transfer of a total of $1.5 billion in defense funds vvhich have accumulated in a special account at the Federal Reserve but have been vvithheld since after the Gulf War.
5 Turkey gave full support to the Azeri government and indicated its unvvavering support for President Haydar Aliyev against any plan to unseat him by undemocratic means.
6 Turkey and Israel signed a joint declaration on cooperation against drug trafficking, terrorism and organized crimes.
II The PKK terrorists kidnapped and executed four nevvly-posted elementary school teachers in Erzurum.
12 The Turkish Cabinet ratified International Labour Organization's Agreement No. 158, protecting vvorkers from unfair dismissal and establishing judicial guarantees in this respect.
13 FM Soysal urged France not to seli arms to Greece.
14 Leaders of the Turkic Republics met in İstanbul for the second Turkic summit.
17 Turkey and Kazakhstan signed a friendship and cooperation agreement as well as a protocol envisaging consultations betvveen the foreign ministers of the tvvo countries, follovving the talks held betvveen Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Turkish President Süleyman Demirel in Ankara.
18 The second Turkic summit, attented by the presidents of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Türkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, vvas held in istanbul. President Demirel, in his opening speech, said that the region vvhere the participating countries vvere located vvas not seen as a "sphere of influence", but "a sphere of cooperation" by Turkey. Emphasizing Turkey's commitment to the principles of the United Nations and Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, and to the principle of inviolability of borders in particular, Mr. Demirel stated that the summit vvould contribute to the maintenance and strengthening of stability, peace and security in Eurasia. The necessity for a renewed Silk Road vvas stressed in the 24-point "İstanbul Declaration" issued after the summit.
20 The Turkic States and Communities Friendship Brotherhood and Cooperation Assembly held its second annual meeting in izmir.
26 President Demirel vvho vvas in Türkmenistan for an official visit signed the Turkey-Türkmenistan natural gas pipeline accord.
29 Kurdish separatists from Turkey started a three-day meeting in Moscovv aiming to ünite and strengthen the Kurdish movement vvithin the Commonvvealth of independent States (CIS).
30 Turkey and Georgia signed bilateral agreements concerning medical care.
31 The Greek goverment announced that it vvas not going to extend its territoral vvaters to 12 miles on 16 November, 1994, the day the United Nations Treaty on International Lavv of the Sea vvas due to come into force.
• The Middle East-North Africa Economic Summit vvas held in Casablanca, Morocco. In a speech made at the summit, Turkish PM Çiller, expressing Turkey's support for the establishment of a regional development bank to finance infrastructural projects as vvell as for a regional insurance system to provide the flovv of information among businessmen of the region, proposed '"an intergovernmental body to deal vvith mega-projects."
NOVEMBER
11 U.S. President Bili Clinton sent a letter to President Demirel and PM Çiller saying he has received assurances from Athens that Greece vvill not extend its territorial vvaters in the Aegean to 12 miles neither today nor in the future.
• FM Soysal vvarned Europe against embracing terrorist organizations and indicated that "illnesses" such as racism and enmity tovvards foreigners have been casting a shadovv över the continent, in his speech at the Council of Europe Ministerial Committee.
16 Hundreds of Greek Cypriot students staged a violent protest against the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, on the occasion of the l l t h anniversary of its creation, and clashed vvith U.N. troops in Nicosia's Greek sector.
• The International Convention on the Lavv of the Sea came into force. Turkey vvas not among the signatories of the convention.
21 Turkish Cypriot President Rauf Denktaş reacted angrily to the electricity cuts introduced by the Greek Cypriots vvhich could last up to 12 hours a day.
28 Mümtaz Soysal resigned as foreign minister. DECEMBER
1 Turkey supported Russia's territorial integrity but urged peaceful solution to the Chechen problem.
5 The summit of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe started in Budapest, Hungary. Turkish PM Çiller, addressing the 53-nation summit said: "We cannot turn a blind eye to the plight of Bosnians and Azeris," since "peace cannot be divided." Çiller noted that the concept of "sphere of influence" should be replaced by the concept of cooperation.
6 Turkey and Bulgaria signed the 1995 execution plan of the 1993 Turco-Bulgarian cooperation accord on military training.
7 Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ferhat Ataman declared that ali high-level consultations betvveen Turkey and Belarus were put off due to Belarus' declaring tvvo Turkish diplomats persona non grata.
8 The Ankara State Security Court sentenced the former deputies of the novv-defunct Democracy Party to prison terms ranging from three to 15 years.
9 The European Union voiced concern at the sentencing of eight Turkish Kurdish parliamentarians.
10 The 12 European Union leaders issued a strong diplomatic protest against long prison terms given to eight Kurdish politicians and said that the sentences could further harm prospects for a Turkish-EU customs union.
12 Deputy Prime Minister Murat Karayalçın took över the foreign minister portfolio.
15 The European Parliament adopted a recommendation calling for cancelling of negotiations on customs union vvith Turkey.
18 Chechen leader Dzhokhar Dudayev, in a letter to President Demirel, requested Ankara's help in stopping the armed conflict in Chechnya.
19 Turkey-European Union Association Council met in Brussels and delayed Turkey's joining the customs union until March 7, 1995.
25 The outlavved PKK opened a nevv "Kurdish House" in Moscovv in an effort to bolster its presence in the Russian capital and played on the anti-Turkish sentiment vvhich exists in some Russian circles because of Turkey's interests in the troubled Caucasus region.
