C O N T E N T S

• 88th Anniversary of Parliament and April 23 National Sovereignty and Children’s Day Celebrated
• President Abdullah Gül Attends NATO Summit
• Prime Minister Erdoğan Tours Sweden
• Prime Minister Erdoğan Visits Qatar
• Foreign Minister Babacan Hosts Pacific Islands Forum
• Foreign Minister Babacan Attends a Meeting of Iraq’s Neighboring States
• European Commission Head Jose Manuel Barroso in Turkey
• Perspectives
• Economic Briefs
• Şimşek Attends IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings
• Art, Culture and Science
• International Istanbul Film Festival
• Tourism Briefs
• Sports

 
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88TH ANNIVERSARY OF PARLIAMENT AND APRIL 23 NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY AND CHILDREN’S DAY CELEBRATED

President Abdullah Gül hosted a luncheon with political party leaders at the Çankaya Presidential Palace in honor of April 23, National Sovereignty and Children's Day. Attending the luncheon were Parliament Speaker Köksal Toptan, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli, Democratic Society Party (DTP) group leader Ahmet Türk, Democratic Left Party (DSP) leader Zeki Sezer, Freedom and Solidarity Party leader (ODP) Ufuk Uras and Great Union Party (BBP) leader Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu.

PRIME MINISTER ERDOĞAN TOURS SWEDEN
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, accompanied by State Minister Mustafa Said Yazıcıoğlu, Industry and Trade Minister Zafer Cağlayan, and Interior Minister Beşir Atalay, traveled to Sweden on April 1 for an official visit. Sweden's King Gustaf received Erdoğan in Stockholm with Yazıcıoğlu, Atalay and Çaglayan also in attendance. Erdoğan and his Swedish counterpart Fredrik Reinfeldt held a joint press conference in Stockholm. Stating that Turkey has no goal besides full EU membership, he added, "Alternatives proposed to membership, like 'privileged partnership,' upset our people.

FOREIGN MINISTER BABACAN ATTENDS A MEETING OF IRAQ’S NEIGHBORING STATES

A meeting of Iraq's neighboring states was held in Kuwait on April 22, with Turkey represented by Foreign Minister Ali Babacan, and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice also in attendance. Security, economic and political issues in Iraq dominated the meeting. Babacan underlined the importance of Iraqi territory not being used by terrorist groups. Speaking to reporters before leaving Turkey, Babacan referred to the previous meeting held in Istanbul and said Turkey had spearheaded this platform in 2003 with a core group. He said the initiative turned into an international platform when the G8 countries joined the platform.

INTERNATIONAL ISTANBUL FILM FESTIVAL

The 27th International Istanbul Film Festival, organized by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and the Arts, began with a ceremony at the Lütfi Kırdar International Congress and Exhibition Hall. The festival, which took place on April 5-20, started with "Caramel," a Lebanese-French co-production directed by Nadine Labaki. Throughout the two-week long festival, some 170,000 spectators watched around 200 films from 45 countries, including prominent movies from 2007 and 2008, unforgettable classics, and films by eminent directors. Seminars, workshops, exhibits, parties and concerts also took place during the festival.