An official at the Embassy of Turkey in Ottawa stated in a 29 January 1997 telephone interview that the naval base provides a certain number of jobs in Izmir. However, since the economic importance of the naval base has steadily declined as the city became more reliant on private initiative and external trade. The population of Izmir is approximately two million and the major economic activities in Izmir are the tourist industry, followed by portuary activities, the farm-produce industry and the textile industry.

The attached excerpts of Turkey: A Country Study provide information on the role of Izmir as the Southern Sea Area Command of the Turkish navy.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

Embassy of Turkey, Ottawa. 29 January 1997. Telephone interview with official.

Turkey: A Country Study. 1996. Edited by Helen Chapin Metz. Washington, DC: Secretary of the Army, pp. 341-45.