Govt spokesperson Cicek: "These two court cases have Turkey in a vise"

Two major court cases are holding Turkey in a vise, said government spokesperson Cemil Cicek yesterday. "On one side there's the closure case against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), and on the other there's the Ergenekon probe," he told reporters after a Cabinet meeting. "Turkey is being held in a vise by these two cases. Foreigners ask us about the cases. Before Turkey was seen as a country with good prospects, but now it's seen as facing a cloud of uncertainty. We want the closure case concluded as soon as possible to lift this cloud." Asked about opposition parties' criticisms of the Ergenekon indictment, Cicek said, "The indictment hasn't been released, nothing's been said about its contents." He added, "In democratic countries, preliminary investigations are kept confidential. A number of matters unrelated to the principal cause of the indictment were left out of yesterday's official statement (about the indictment). I have no way of knowing what the opposition is harping about."