Chapter 114

Government type: republican parliamentary democracy

National capital: Ankara

Administrative divisions: 79 provinces (iller, singular - il); Adana, Adiyaman, Afyon, Agri, Aksaray, Amasya, Ankara, Antalya, Ardahan, Artvin, Aydin, Balikesir, Bartin, Batman, Bayburt, Bilecik, Bingol, Bitlis, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa, Canakkale, Cankiri, Corum, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Edirne, Elazig, Erzincan, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gazi Antep, Giresun, Gumushane, Hakkari, Hatay, Icel, Iggdir, Isparta, Istanbul, Izmir, Kahraman Maras, Karabuk, Karaman, Kars, Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kilis, Kirikkale, Kirklareli, Kirsehir, Kocaeli, Konya, Kutahya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mugla, Mus, Nevsehir, Nigde, Ordu, Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanli Urfa, Siirt, Sinop, Sirnak, Sivas, Tekirdag, Tokat, Trabzon, Tunceli, Usak, Van, Yalova, Yozgat, Zonguldak note: Karabuk, Kilis, and Yalova are three new Turkish provinces mentioned in the 24 December 1995 election results; the Turkish press has mentioned another province called Osmaniye

Independence: 29 October 1923 (successor state to the Ottoman Empire)

National holiday: Anniversary of the Declaration of the Republic, 29 October (1923)

Constitution: 7 November 1982

Legal system: derived from various continental legal systems; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: President Suleyman DEMIREL (since 16 May 1993) head of government : Prime Minister Necmettin ERBAKAN (since 8 July 1996) and Deputy Prime Minister Tansu CILLER (since 8 July 1996) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the prime minister note: there is also a National Security Council that serves as an advisory body to the president and the cabinet elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a seven-year term; election last held 16 May 1993 (next to be held NA 2000); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president election results : Suleyman DEMIREL elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 54%

Legislative branch: unicameral Grand National Assembly of Turkey or Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi (550 seats; members are elected to serve five-year terms) elections : last held 24 December 1995 (next to be held by December 2000) election results: percent of vote by party - RP 21.38%, DYP 19.18%, ANAP 19.65%, DSP 14.64%, CHP 10.71%, independent 0.48%; seats by party - RP 158, DYP 135, ANAP 133, DSP 75, CHP 49; note - seats held by various parties are subject to change due to defections, creation of new parties, and ouster or death of sitting deputies; current seats by party are as follows: RP 160, DYP 120, ANAP 127, DSP 68, CHP 49, BBP 7, DTP 7, independents 10, vacant 2

Judicial branch: Constitutional Court, judges appointed by the president; Court of Appeals, judges are elected by the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors

Political parties and leaders: True Path Party or DYP [Tansu CILLER]; Motherland Party or ANAP [Mesut YILMAZ]; Welfare Party or RP [Necmettin ERBAKAN]; Democratic Left Party or DSP [Bulent ECEVIT]; Nationalist Action Party or MHP [Tugrul TURKES]; New Party or YP [Yusuf Bozkurt OZAL]; Republican People's Party or CHP [Deniz BAYKAL]; Workers' Party or IP [Dogu PERINCEK]; Nation Party or MP [Aykut EDIBALI]; Democrat Party or DP [Murat UZMAN]; Grand Unity Party or BBP [Muhsin YAZICIOGLU]; Rebirth Party or YDP [Hasan Celal GUZEL]; People's Democracy Party or HADEP [Murat BOZLAK]; Main Path Party or ANAYOL [Gurcan BASER]; Democratic Target Party or DHP [Abdulkadir Yasar TURK]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Besim TIBUK]; New Democracy Movement or YDH [Huseyin ERGUN]; Labor Party or EP [Abdullah Levent TUZER]; Democracy and Peace Party or DBP [Refik KARAKOC]; Freedom and Solidarity Party or ODP [Ufuk URAS]; Peace Party or BP [Mehmet ETI]; Democratic Mass Party or DKP [Serafettin ELCI]; Democrat Turkey Party or DTP [Husamettin CINDORUK]

Political pressure groups and leaders: Turkish Confederation of Labor or Turk-Is [Bayram MERAL]; Confederation of Revolutionary Workers Unions or DISK [Ridvan BUDAK]; Moral Rights Workers Union or Hak-Is [Salim USLU]; Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association or TUSIAD [Muharrem KAYHAN]; Turkish Union of Chambers of Commerce and Commodity Exchanges or TOBB [Fuat MIRAS]; Turkish Confederation of Employers' Unions or TISK [Refik BAYDUR]; Independent Industrialists and Businessmen's Association or MUSIAD [Erol YARAR]

International organization participation: AsDB, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CERN (observer), EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NACC, NATO, NEA, OECD, OIC, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNOMIG, UNPREDEP, UNRWA, UPU, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Nuzhet KANDEMIR chancery : 1714 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 659-8200 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, and New York

Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Marc GROSSMAN embassy : 110 Ataturk Boulevard, Ankara mailing address: PSC 93, Box 5000, APO AE 09823 telephone: [90] (312) 468-6110 FAX: [90] (312) 467-0019 consulate(s) general: Istanbul consulate(s): Adana

Flag description: red with a vertical white crescent (the closed portion is toward the hoist side) and white five-pointed star centered just outside the crescent opening

Economy

Economy - overview: Turkey's dynamic economy is a complex mix of modern industry and commerce along with traditional village agriculture and crafts. The economy has a strong and rapidly growing private sector, yet the state still plays a major role in basic industry, banking, transport, and communication. The current economic situation is marked by strong growth coupled with worsening imbalances. Real GDP expanded by about 7% in 1996 but inflation rose to 80%, the current account deficit reached about 3% of GDP, and the public sector fiscal deficit probably topped 10% of GDP, leading to speculation that the country could be headed toward a repeat of its 1994 financial crisis. To some extent, Ankara is caught in a vicious circle because half of all central government revenue in 1996 went to pay interest on the national debt. The government that took office in July 1996 - an unusual coalition of Prime Minister ERBAKAN's Islamic Welfare Party and Deputy Prime Minister CILLER's conservative True Path Party - is trying to solve the fiscal problem by greatly accelerating Turkey's privatization program. It has proposed a balanced budget for 1997, although this is widely regarded as over optimistic because it is based on earning more privatization revenue in one year than Turkey has earned over the last decade. Ankara is trying to increase trade with other countries in the region but most of Turkey's trade is still with OECD countries. Despite the implementation in January 1996 of a customs union with the EU, foreign direct investment in the country totaled only about half a billion dollars, perhaps because potential investors were concerned about the prospects for economic stability.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $379.1 billion (1996 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 7% (1996 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $6,100 (1996 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture : 15% industry: 33% services: 52% (1995)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 80% (1996)

Labor force: total: 21.3 million by occupation: agriculture 47%, services 33%, industry 20% (1995) note: about 1.5 million Turks work abroad (1994)

Unemployment rate: 6.3% (April 1996); another 6.3% officially considered underemployed

Budget: revenues: $32.9 billion expenditures: $50.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.8 billion (1996)

Industries: textiles, food processing, mining (coal, chromite, copper, boron), steel, petroleum, construction, lumber, paper

Industrial production growth rate: 6.5% (1996)

Electricity - capacity: 20.86 million kW (1994)

Electricity - production: 86.3 billion kWh (1995)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 1,206 kWh (1995 est.)

Agriculture - products: tobacco, cotton, grain, olives, sugar beets, pulses, citrus; livestock

Exports: total value : $22 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.) commodities: textiles and apparel 40%, steel products 9%, foodstuffs 20% (1995) partners: Germany 23%, Russia 6%, US 7%, Italy 7% (1995)

Imports: total value: $42 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.) commodities : machinery 23%, fuels 13%, raw materials 11%, foodstuffs 7% (1995) partners: Germany 16%, US 10%, Italy 9%, France 6%, UK 5% (1995)

Debt - external: $75.8 billion (1996)

Economic aid: recipient: ODA, $195 million (1993) note: aid for Gulf war efforts from coalition allies (1991), $4.1 billion; aid pledged for Turkish Defense Fund, $2.5 billion

Currency: Turkish lira (TL)

Exchange rates: Turkish liras (TL) per US$1 - 110,119 (January 1997), 81,405 (1996), 45,845.1 (1995), 29,608.7 (1994), 10,984.6 (1993), 6,872.4 (1992)

Fiscal year: calendar year

@Turkey:Communications

Telephones: 14.3 million (1995 est.)

Telephone system: fair domestic and international systems domestic: trunk microwave radio relay network; limited open-wire network international : 12 satellite earth stations - Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), Eutelsat, and Inmarsat (Indian and Atlantic Ocean regions); 3 submarine fiberoptic cables (1996)

Radio broadcast stations: national broadcast stations 36, regional broadcast stations 108, local broadcast stations 1,058 (1996)

Radios: 9.4 million (1992 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 15 national, 15 regional, 229 local

Televisions: 10.53 million (1993 est.)

@Turkey:Transportation

Railways: total: 10,386 km standard gauge : 10,386 km 1.435-m gauge (1,093 km electrified)

Highways: total: 381,300 km paved : 87,699 km (including 1,246 km of expressways) unpaved: 293,601 km (1995 est.)

Waterways: about 1,200 km

Pipelines: crude oil 1,738 km; petroleum products 2,321 km; natural gas 708 km

Ports and harbors: Gemlik, Hopa, Iskenderun, Istanbul, Izmir, Izmit, Mersin, Samsun, Trabzon

Merchant marine: total: 515 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,986,328 GRT/10,157,071 DWT ships by type: bulk 155, cargo 232, chemical tanker 24, combination bulk 7, combination ore/oil 11, container 6, liquefied gas tanker 4, livestock carrier 1, oil tanker 43, passenger-cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 20, short-sea passenger 7, specialized tanker 2 note: Turkey owns an additional 34 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 163,512 DWT operating under the registries of The Bahamas, Malta, and Panama (1996 est.)

Airports: 104 (1996 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 94 over 3,047 m : 16 2,438 to 3,047 m: 20 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 28 (1996 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways: total : 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 8 (1996 est.)

Heliports: 2 (1996 est.)

Military

Military branches: Land Forces, Navy (includes Naval Air and Naval Infantry), Air Force, Coast Guard, Gendarmerie

Military manpower - military age: 20 years of age

Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 17,352,876 (1997 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: males: 10,553,157 (1997 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 649,336 (1997 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $4.3 billion (1996); note - figures do not include about $7 billion for the government's counterinsurgency effort

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 3.5% (1996)

Transnational Issues

Disputes - international: complex maritime, air and territorial disputes with Greece in Aegean Sea; Cyprus question with Greece; Hatay question with Syria; dispute with downstream riparians (Syria and Iraq) over water development plans for the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers; traditional demands on former Armenian lands in Turkey have subsided

Illicit drugs: major transit route for Southwest Asian heroin and hashish to Western Europe and the US via air, land, and sea routes; major Turkish, Iranian, and other international trafficking organizations operate out of Istanbul; laboratories to convert imported morphine base into heroin are in remote regions of Turkey as well as near Istanbul; government maintains strict controls over areas of legal opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate ______________________________________________________________________

TURKMENISTAN

@Turkmenistan:Geography

Location: Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakstan

Geographic coordinates: 40 00 N, 60 00 E

Map references: Commonwealth of Independent States

Area: total : 488,100 sq km land: 488,100 sq km water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly larger than California

Land boundaries: total: 3,736 km border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km

Coastline: 0 km note: Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: subtropical desert

Terrain: flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Sarygamysh Koli -110 m highest point: Ayrybaba 3,139 m

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt

Land use: arable land: 3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 63% forests and woodland: 8% other: 26% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 13,000 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: NA

Environment - current issues: contamination of soil and groundwater with agricultural chemicals, pesticides; salinization, water-logging of soil due to poor irrigation methods; Caspian Sea pollution; diversion of a large share of the flow of the Amu Darya into irrigation contributes to that river's inability to replenish the Aral Sea; desertification

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note: landlocked

@Turkmenistan:People

Population: 4,229,249 (July 1997 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 39% (male 840,168; female 812,573) 15-64 years : 57% (male 1,182,706; female 1,217,484) 65 years and over: 4% (male 66,451; female 109,867) (July 1997 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.61% (1997 est.)

Birth rate: 26.61 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Death rate: 8.65 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Net migration rate: -1.82 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth : 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (1997 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 72.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 61.51 years male: 57.88 years female: 65.31 years (1997 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.31 children born/woman (1997 est.)

Nationality: noun : Turkmen(s) adjective: Turkmen

Ethnic groups: Turkmen 77%, Uzbek 9.2%, Russian 6.7%, Kazak 2%, other 5.1% (1995)

Religions: Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2%

Languages: Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.)

@Turkmenistan:Government

Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Turkmenistan local long form: none local short form: Turkmenistan former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic

Data code: TX

Government type: republic

National capital: Ashgabat

Administrative divisions: 5 welayatlar (singular - welayat): Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Nebitdag), Dashhowuz Welayaty (formerly Tashauz), Lebap Welayaty (Charjew), Mary Welayaty note : administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)

Independence: 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union)

National holiday: Independence Day, 27 October (1991)

Constitution: adopted 18 May 1992

Legal system: based on civil law system

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV (since 27 October 1990, when the first direct presidential election occurred); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; Deputy Chairmen of the Cabinet of Ministers Mukhamed ABALAKOV (since NA), Babamurad BAZAROV (since NA), Dadebaya ANNAGELDIYEV (since NA), Orazgeldy AYDOGDYYEV (since NA), Hudaayguly HALYKOV (since NA), Aleksandr DADONOV (since NA), Pirkuly ODEYEV (since NA), Rejep SAPAROV (since NA), Boris SHIKHMURADOV (since NA), Batyr SARJAYEV (since NA), Ilaman SHYKHYYEV (since NA) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president note: NIYAZOV has been asked by various local groups, most recently on 26 October 1995 at the annual elders meeting, to be "president for life," but he has declined, saying the status would require an amendment to the constitution elections : president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 June 1992 (next to be held NA 2002; note - extension of President NIYAZOV's term for an additional five years overwhelmingly approved - 99.9% of total vote in favor - by national referendum held 15 January 1994); deputy chairmen of the cabinet of ministers are appointed by the president election results: Saparmurad NIYAZOV elected president without opposition; percent of vote - Saparmurad NIYAZOV 99.5%

Legislative branch: under the 1992 constitution, there are two parliamentary bodies, a unicameral People's Council or Halk Maslahaty (more than 100 seats, some of which are popularly elected and some are appointed; meets infrequently) and a unicameral Assembly or Majlis (50 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections : People's Council - no elections; Assembly - last held 11 December 1994 (next to be held NA 1999) election results: Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Democratic Party 45, other 5; note - all 50 preapproved by President NIYAZOV

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party of Turkmenistan [Saparmurat NIYAZOV]; Party for Democratic Development [Durdymurat HOJA-MUHAMEDOV, chairman]; Agzybirlik [Nurberdy NURMAMEDOV, cochairman, Hubayberdi HALLIYEV, cochairman] note: formal opposition parties are outlawed; unofficial, small opposition movements exist underground or in foreign countries

International organization participation: CCC, CIS, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, IDB, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NACC, NAM, OIC, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Halil UGUR chancery: 2207 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-1500 FAX : [1] (202) 588-0697

Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Michael W. COTTER embassy : 9 Pushkin Street, Ashgabat mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [9] (9312) 35-00-45, 35-00-46, 35-00-42, Tie Line [8] 962-0000 FAX: [9] (9312) 51-13-05

Flag description: green field, including a vertical stripe on the hoist side, with a claret vertical stripe in between containing five white, black, and orange carpet guls (an asymmetrical design used in producing rugs) associated with five different tribes; a white crescent and five white stars in the upper left corner to the right of the carpet guls

Economy

Economy - overview: Turkmenistan is largely desert country with nomadic cattle raising, intensive agriculture in irrigated oases, and huge gas and oil resources. One-half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton, making it the world's tenth largest producer. It also possesses the world's fifth largest reserves of natural gas and substantial oil resources. Until the end of 1993, Turkmenistan had experienced less economic disruption than other former Soviet states because its economy received a boost from higher prices for oil and gas and a sharp increase in hard currency earnings. In 1994, Russia's refusal to export Turkmen gas to hard currency markets and mounting debts of its major customers in the former USSR for gas deliveries contributed to a sharp fall in industrial production and caused the budget to shift from a surplus to a slight deficit. The economy recovered slightly in 1996, but high inflation continued. Furthermore, with an authoritarian ex-communist regime in power and a tribally based social structure, Turkmenistan has taken a cautious approach to economic reform, hoping to use gas and cotton sales to sustain its inefficient economy. In 1996, the government set in place a stabilization program aimed at a unified and market-based exchange rate, allocation of government credits by auction, and strict limits on budget deficits. Privatization goals remain limited. Turkmenistan is working hard to open new gas export channels through Iran and Turkey to Europe, but these will take many years to realize.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $11.8 billion (1996 estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1994)

GDP - real growth rate: 0.1% (1996 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $2,840 (1996 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture : 16% industry: 48% services: 36% (1996 est.)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 600% (1996 est.)

Labor force: total : 1.68 million (1995) by occupation: agriculture and forestry 43%, industry and construction 20%, other 37% (1992)

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget: revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

Industries: natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing

Industrial production growth rate: 17.9% (1996 est.)

Electricity - capacity: 3.95 million kW (1994)

Electricity - production: 9.87 billion kWh (1994)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 1,855 kWh (1995 est.)

Agriculture - products: cotton, grain; livestock

Exports: total value: $1.8 billion to states outside the FSU (1996 est.) commodities: natural gas, cotton, petroleum products, electricity, textiles, carpets partners: FSU, Eastern Europe, Turkey, Argentina

Imports: total value : $1.3 billion from states outside the FSU (1996 est.) commodities: machinery and parts, grain and food, plastics and rubber, consumer durables, textiles partners: FSU, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Turkey

Debt - external: $400 million (of which $275 million to Russia) (1995 est.)

Economic aid: recipient: ODA, $10 million (1993) note: commitments, $1,830 million ($375 million drawn), 1992-95

Currency: 1 Tukmen manat (TMM) = 100 tenesi; Turkmenistan introduced its national currency on 1 November 1993

Exchange rates: manats per US$1 - 4,070 (January 1997), 2,400 (January 1996) note: government established a unified rate in mid-January 1996

Fiscal year: calendar year

@Turkmenistan:Communications

Telephones: NA

Telephone system: poorly developed domestic: NA international : linked by cable and microwave radio relay to other CIS republics and to other countries by leased connections to the Moscow international gateway switch; a new telephone link from Ashgabat to Iran has been established; a new exchange in Ashgabat switches international traffic through Turkey via Intelsat; satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 1 Intelsat