Turkey: Abdullah Gül appointed as new prime minister, November 2002

Abdullah Gül, the deputy leader of the Islamist-based Justice and Development Party (AK), was asked to become the new prime minister of Turkey on 16 November 2002 by the country's President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. The appointment follows a fortnight of speculation about who would take on the role after the AK party secured victory in the parliamentary elections on 3 November 2002 but the party's leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan was prevented from becoming prime minister because of a 1998 conviction for inciting hatred on religious grounds.

The two key objectives of the new prime minister are to transform Turkey into an advanced democracy and a rich country. Gül - who researched his economics doctorate in Britain and worked at the Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank before entering Parliament in 1991 - was the popular choice with the financial sector. Although analysts have suggested that his appointment will only be temporary until the AK party succeed in changing the constitution allowing Erdogan to take on the role, others have suggested that Gül's key role in developing the AK's foreign and economic policy and his pro Western stance could secure his position in the long term. In an interview to the Turkish Daily News ahead of his appointment, Gül said:

'Our aim is to show the world that a country which has a Muslim population can also be democratic, transparent and modern, and co-operate with the world'.

Gül will be the first Turkish leader in more than fifteen years to form a single party government after the AK Party secured 363 of 550 seats in parliament. He has indicated that he will submit a list of cabinet members to the President for approval within days of taking office and that the size of the cabinet would be reduced from 35 ministers to 24 in order to make the government more efficient.

Resolving the conflict in Cyprus and taking Turkey into the European Union will be two of the key goals of the new government as it seeks to achieve the broader objectives of making Turkey both richer and more democratic, according to the new action programme announced by Erdogan. The 'immediate' introduction of tough new penalties for torture, a series of measures to boost economic growth include facilitating foreign direct investment, tax reforms and faster privatisation and a restructuring of the High Education Board are also on the task list.

From the international perspective, Gül's appointment comes at a crucial time. The two sides in the Cyprus conflict meet on 18 November to discuss the UN plan aimed at providing a 'basis for agreement' and NATO chiefs gather in Prague on 21-22 November to discuss co-operation between a NATO Rapid response force and the EU Rapid Reaction Force, which has been blocked due to Greek-Turkish disputes over access to NATO assets. Both meetings come ahead of a crucial European Council meeting in December 2002 when EU leaders will have to agree whether to admit Cyprus as a total entity or just the Greek-Cypriot part and when Turkey hopes a start date for accession talks will be agreed.

Whilst Gül sets about forming a new government, Erdogan is embarking on a European tour aimed at drumming up support for Turkey's membership of the European Union. Following his suggestion that Turkey and Cyprus should join the EU simultaneously, his first task will be to dispel the fears of his European counterparts about the Turkish policy on Cyprus. After meetings in Athens, Madrid, Berlin, London, Dublin, and Brussels, the AK leader will travel to the European Parliament in Strasbourg at the end of the week by which time he will hope to have convinced EU members to give Turkey a date for accession talks at Copenhagen in December.

Links:
BBC News Online:
	16.11.02:	New Turkish PM spells out plans
	16.11.02:	Islamic moderate named Turkey PM
	16.11.02:	Turkey begins euro charm offensive
	15.11.02:	Q&A: New Leaders
European Sources Online: Financial Times:
	18.11.02:	Gül to take reins as Turkish premier
	18.11.02:	Erdogan in Athens as Cyprus pressure grows
Office of the Turkish Prime Minister:
	Homepage
European Commission:
	DG Enlargement: Relations with Turkey
European Sources Online: In Focus:
	Turkey: A Future EU member?
	Turkey: Islamic-based Justice and Development party wins general election, November 2002
	Turkey: Greece calls for EU to set a date to begin accession talks with Turkey, October 2002
European Sources Online: Topic Guide:
	Information on European countries: Turkey

Helen Bower
Compiled: Monday, 18 November 2002

On 16 November 2002 Abdullah Gül, the deputy leader of the Islamist-based Justice and Development Party (AK), was asked to become the new prime minister of Turkey.