GOOD MORNING--TURKEY PRESS SCAN ON JUNE 23

HURRIYET

-- MANUFACTURING STARTS     Â
       Â
The dump truck factory established in the northwestern province of Sakarya by Turkey's Dogus Automotive and German Meiller has started manufacturing. Meiller's CEO Frank Hiller said they aimed at opening up to new markets via Turkey. The factory, which was established with a cost of 10 million euro, has the capacity of manufacturing 3,000 dump trucks annually.
       Â
-- POLITICAL TENSION AND SMOKING BAN HIT SHOPPING MALLS
       Â
Ankara Chamber of Commerce conducted a survey which said political tension in the country and the smoking ban made a negative impact on shopping malls in Ankara. Turnover of shopping malls in the capital dropped by 23.7 percent in May compared to the first month of 2008.
       Â
       Â
MILLIYET

--PROROSAL FOR LOCAL ELECTIONS   Â
       Â
In an interview with the Milliyet daily, Ufuk Uras, chairman of the Freedom and Democracy Party (ODP), has proposed the country’s leftist political parties name a single candidate for the upcoming local elections. "We can hold pre-elections and have people who have not made their decision get organized," he said. According to latest surveys, undecided voters account for 30 percent of the electorate.
       Â
-- YILMAZ'S RESPONSE TO CRITICISMS
       Â
Mesut Yilmaz, a former prime minister of Turkey, has reacted strongly to criticisms about his speech at a special session at the European Parliament. "Some media organs distorted my speech. They claimed that I advocated a military coup. Those are totally baseless allegations," he said.
       Â
       Â
SABAH
       Â
-- WAIT UNTIL FINAL WHISTLE
       Â
President Abdullah Gul said regarding the Turkish national soccer team who qualified for semi-finals in Euro 2008, "Our team achieved the impossible and gave us confidence and morale. Our opponents fear us. They say 'if you are playing against Turks, do not believe in victory until you hear the final whistle of the referee'."
       Â
-- BORING TESTS
       Â
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke with students, who entered the Knowledge Level Test (SBS), in the southeastern province of Siirt. Erdogan told National Education Minister Huseyin Celik regarding SBS, "There are such tests almost everyday. They have become meaningless. We should talk about it. Is not a single test enough?"

VATAN

-- TURKEY MAY FACE BLACKOUT AS HIGH TEMPERATURES START TO KICK IN
       Â
Turkey may face 2-3 hours of daily power cuts with rising temperatures and increased demand for air conditioners unless the Ministry of Energy takes immediate measures. The electricity demand peaked last Thursday, reaching as high as 587.2 million kilowatts per hour. Turkey's daily electricity output is 588.5 million kilowatts per hour.
       Â
-- KENT TO TAKE OVER LEAD IN COCA-COLA

Muhtar Kent is set to become Coca-Cola Company's CEO. Kent will succeed Neville Isdell as chief executive of the $111 billion Coca Cola Company as of July 1, 2008. Kent became president and chief operating officer of the company's North Asia, Eurasia and Middle East Group in May 2005 and became president of Coca-Cola International in February 2006. He began serving as chief operating officer of the company in December 2006. With his latest appointment as Coca Cola's CEO, Kent became the first Turk to be assigned to such a high-level post in a global company.
       Â
       Â
CUMHURIYET
 Â
-- TURKEY’S EYES ON FINAL GAME
       Â
Turkey have set their eyes on the final in Euro 2008 though they have Germany to topple in a semi-final match scheduled for Wednesday. Turkish players say that their greatest wish is to claim the cup. On the game with Germany, goalkeeper Rustu Recber said, "Although Germans are seen as the favorite one should not forget that we are tough fighters."
       Â
-- BAGHDAD GOVT. GREENLIGHTS TURKISH COMPANY FOR OIL EXPLORATION
       Â
The central government in Baghdad has said it would allow 41 foreign companies including a Turkish state-run company, to extract oil in Iraq. A spokesman for the Iraqi oil ministry said the agreements, which were expected to be short-term deals, would be signed on June 30. Iraq sits on world's third largest oil reserve.
       Â
       Â
RADIKAL

-- A HELMET COSTS 3 YTL, A BELT COSTS 45 YTL WHILE HUMAN LIFE IS PRICELESS
       Â
Ninety-eight workers have died at shipyards in the Tuzla district of Istanbul since 1998. Their lives were priceless. And the cost between life and death is only 88 Turkish liras (nearly $70). If they had been given security belts and helmets which cost only 88 YTL, they would still be alive today.
       Â
-- EVERYONE TALKS ABOUT TERIM

The Turkish national team will play against Germany in the Euro 2008 semi-finals. Interest from the foreign press has concentrated on Fatih Terim, coach of the national team. Hungarians likened him to Don Corleone.

YENI SAFAK
       Â
-- BARDAKOGLU: "THERE IS NO CONFLICT BETWEEN SECULARISM AND RELIGION"
       Â
Prof. Dr. Ali Bardakoglu, head of the Directorate of Religious Affairs, said, "Secularism has already settled in Turkey. Everyone tries to explain his/her views through secularism. There is no conflict between secularism and religion."
       Â
-- ATTACK TO BEGIN
       Â
Turkey's Tusas Aerospace Industries (TAI) and Italy's Agusta Westland will start co-production of 50 and an optional 40 attack helicopters. In March 2007, Augusta Westland won Turkey's attack helicopter tender in which South Africa's Denel was the other bidder. TAI will be the local prime contractor, Turkey's Aselsan and Italian company Agusta will be the subcontractors of the project to produce a total of 90 attack and tactical reconnaissance helicopters that would be produced by means of national software and hardware systems.