Business & Economy

International students with startups face visa difficulties

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By YUEHAN LIU
Capital News Service
LANSING—International students face daunting challenges starting a business. But as more and more international students enroll at Michigan universities, more and more keep trying to open businesses in the state. And the Small Business Association encourages their idea. For example, Grand Valley State University has 400, Western Michigan University has more than 1,800, and Michigan State University has more than 7,000 international students. Yue Dai, one of the founders of Mr. Pot, a Chinese hot pot restaurant in East Lansing, says a simple idea made him want to start the business: “When I open up ‘Student Info’ and I see the price of my tuition, I feel ashamed to be the person that only knows to ask for money from my family.”
“I want to use what I’ve learned, to earn my own living,” Dai said.

Capital News Service

EU membership will elude Turkey, Michigan Turks say

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By DUYGU KANVER
Capital News Service
LANSING — Turks in Michigan say they’re not hopeful about the success of an initiative by the new government of Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu to accelerate negotiations to win European Union membership for Turkey. In the second cabinet meeting after Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s election as president, “the focus and primary agenda was the European Union,” said Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc.
Arinc outlined a three-step plan to begin this year as “a new but scheduled course of action” to be carried out within five years. The strategy aims at preparing Turkey for EU membership by 2019. But the new government is “trying to cover up their failed Middle East policy” with the new EU initiative, said Timur Kocaoglu, an international relations professor and the associate director of the Center for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies at Michigan State University. Kocaoglu said he did not think anybody would take the three-stage plan seriously.