US embassy cable - 03ANKARA7019

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 007019 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL 
JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC, KMDR, TU, Press Summaries 
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT 
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2003 
 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER 
THREE THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
 
 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Gen. Ozkok: Iran, Syria also oppose a Kurdish state - 
Hurriyet 
US surrenders to peshmerge - Aksam 11/8 
Gul warns US not to favor Iraqi Kurds - Hurriyet 11/9 
Gul urges fair elections in Cyprus - Sabah 
Massacre in Riyadh - Aksam 11/9 
US F-16s bomb Fallujah - Aksam 
Georgia a powder keg - Milliyet 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Al-Qaida strikes in Riyadh - Cumhuriyet 
Ozkok: We'll react differently to another Suleymaniye 
incident - Zaman 
Gen. Ozkok: Situation in Iraq is discomforting - Radikal 
11/9 
Government abandons plans for troops to Iraq - Cumhuriyet 
11/8 
Al-Qaida might strike in US via cargo planes - Cumhuriyet 
11/9 
Ankara closes Iraq chapter - Radikal 11/8 
Government suspends Iraq troop deployment - Zaman 11/8 
US unhappy with the IGC - Yeni Safak 
Racist security wall must be scrapped in Palestine - Yeni 
Safak 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Army chief on US, Kurds, Greek Cypriots:  TGS Chief General 
Hilmi Ozkok said Turkey had acted with restraint during the 
July 4 Suleymaniye crisis, but would not tolerate another 
similar incident.  Turkey will not withdraw its 1,500 troops 
currently deployed in Northern Iraq, Ozkok added, unless the 
security situation improves.  Turkish troops in Cyprus are 
not occupiers, Ozkok claimed, but are stationed on the 
island in line with international agreements.  Ozkok warned 
that the Greek Cypriots should not fully trust the EU on 
this issue, because no European country will drive Turkish 
soldiers away from Cyprus.  An independent Kurdish state 
will pose a threat for Turkey's national interests and 
regional security, Ozkok warned.  Such a development would 
affect not only Iraq, but Iran, Syria and Turkey as well, he 
emphasized. 
 
 
Ankara abandons plans for sending troops to Iraq:  At the 
request of the US, Ankara has decided to abandon its plans 
for deploying troops to Iraq, Saturday papers report. 
Secretary Powell phoned Foreign Minister Gul Thursday 
 
SIPDIS 
evening to acknowledge that the US has not been able to 
break the Iraqis' resistance to Turkish peacekeepers.  Gul 
told Powell that Turkey would be happy if the US manages to 
resolve the security problems in Iraq on its own.  Secretary 
Powell addressed Turkish concerns over security in Northern 
Iraq, vowing to eliminate the threat posed by the PKK/KADEK. 
 
 
Talabani due in Ankara:  Iraqi Governing Council (IGC) 
temporary chairman Jalal Talabani said that the IGC's 
objection to Turkish peacekeepers in Iraq should not be 
regarded as Iraqi animosity toward Turkey.  Had Turkey sent 
troops to Iraq, Talabani said, Turks would have been dying 
instead of American soldiers.  Talabani stressed before his 
official visit to Ankara next week that the new Iraq will 
remain a friend of Turkey. 
Turkey stepping up humanitarian aid for Iraq:  With the 
possible troops deployment now off the table, Ankara will 
focus its efforts in Iraq on meeting the humanitarian needs 
of the Iraqi people, according to Saturday's "Cumhuriyet." 
At a recent meeting in Ankara, Turkey's envoys to Middle 
Eastern countries proposed launching a civilian campaign in 
Iraq aimed at improving the daily lives of ordinary Iraqis. 
The US and Britain are preoccupied with security problems, 
they argued, and cannot tackle other daily problems in Iraq. 
The Turks are currently building hospitals in Baghdad and 
Mosul, and intend to extend humanitarian aid in all fields. 
Ankara is not happy with the amount of business given to 
Turkey in Iraq's rebuilding.  FM Gul told Secretary Powell 
that Turkey's hopes to receive a considerable share of 
contracts issued in Iraq. 
 
 
Azerbaijani president to Turkey:  Azerbaijan's new president 
Ilham Aliyev is expected to visit Turkey after the Ramadan 
holiday on his first official foreign visit, papers report. 
Aliyev is expected to discuss with Ankara mainly the Baku- 
Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline project. 
 
 
Ankara uneasy over Israeli activities in N. Iraq: 
"Hurriyet" columnist Yalcin Dogan claimed that Prime 
Minister Erdogan met two weeks ago with an Israeli 
businessman willing to make a $1 billion investment in 
Turkey.  Dogan goes on to describe what he claims are 
Israeli efforts to meddle in Northern Iraq. 150,000 Kurdish 
Jews are currently settled in Israel, and Israel is buying 
land in Northern Iraq, the column claims.  Israel wants to 
establish a Kurdish investment bank in Northern Iraq, and 
offered to activate the Haifa pipeline to carry Iraqi oil to 
world markets.  The  columnist speculates that the US might 
have urged Ariel Sharon to visit Turkey, and claims that 
Ankara had been disturbed by Israeli aspirations in Northern 
Iraq since the end of the war. 
 
 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Iraq/Mideast 
 
 
"The Fragmented Pieces of Iraq" 
Ferai Tinc warned in mass appeal Hurriyet (11/10): "It is 
beyond comprehension to see the continuing mistakes made by 
the US.  As hard as it is to believe, the policy method 
being applied in Iraq is trial and error.  One wonders if 
this is a reality necessitated by conditions or a political 
choice?   The way the US has conducted US-Turkish relations 
since the beginning of the Iraq crisis is not very 
encouraging for the future.  The US did not do enough to 
eliminate the overall negative impression about a Turkish 
troop deployment in Iraq.  The intention of Turkish forces 
was mistakenly portrayed as an effort to control the Kurds. 
Now Turkey finds itself in a position of hearing that its 
`vicious intentions' have been prevented by the annulment of 
the troop deployment.  .. What is going to happen now?  It 
remains to be seen how the US will overcome the problems in 
Iraq, especially after giving up on its request for troops 
from Turkey and other Muslim nations.  There are reports 
about training local militia for providing security.  That 
means a group of forces consisting of members of the KDP and 
PUK as well as Shiite groups.  If that really happens, it 
would mean total chaos." 
"For Democracy in the Middle East" 
Yasemin Congar commented in mass appeal Milliyet (11/10): 
"President Bush's speech on November 6 was an important one. 
The US has always considered the Middle East as an exception 
to democratic principles and ignored its oppressive regimes. 
Yet in his speech, President Bush officially declared the 
end of long-standing US policy for the Middle East.  . 
Unlike his predecessors, Bush has clearly identified the 
countries in the Middle East -- not only Syria and Iran, but 
also US-friendly countries such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia - 
that need democratization.  . Now this is the time to look 
for deeds as well as words.  We shall see if Bush will take 
forceful measures against the Saudis and other regimes in 
the area. . Iraq stands as a litmus test for his remarks 
that democracy and Islam should live together and that all 
peoples deserve to live free.  We shall see if Iraq will be 
successful enough to establish a new democratic state order. 
We shall see if Washington will provide enough political 
liberty for achieving that goal." 
 
 
EDELMAN