Turkeys Image Damaged

Leading European dailies said that there was a dangerous quarrel between the Turkish government and the army, Turkey underwent its deepest crisis since the permit to send troops to Iraq, and the secularism principle of Turkey was damaged.

İstanbul

British Press: The biggest crisis since the pre-war period

Italian press: Government-soldier conflict, at dangerous levels

German press: They will be doctors, lawyers, instead of preachers.

According to British Financial Times, the YOK motion caused the biggest crisis for the AKP government since the pre-war period. The daily claimed that the secular state image of Turkey has been damaged. Financial Times said that; Turkey is undergoing one of its periodic tremors about the role of Islam.

According to the Italian press, the controversy over YOK has turned into a conflict between PM Erdogan and the army, and escalated into dangerous levels. Italian dailies stated that, if passed, the law will inevitably bring an Islamic administrative style to the state.

Il Giornale newspaper said that, in spite of the warning of the army, the AKP Government did not take a backwards step from its persistence to process its YOK motion and the European Commission's Representative Kretschmer had voiced support to Erdogan, against the army which protected the secular system in Turkey.

German Frankfurter Rundschau said that soldiers reacted at the YOK motion strongly and Prime Minister Erdogan wants to facilitate enrollment of religious school graduates to university, and generals want to prevent him. (YE)