US embassy cable - 04ANKARA573

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000573 
 
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 
THURSDAY, JANUARY 29, 2004 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER 
THREE THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
 
 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEALS 
Bush fully assures Erdogan on northern Iraq - Hurriyet 
Bush promises Erdogan a united Iraq - Milliyet 
Bush, Erdogan fully agree on Iraq, Cyprus - Turkiye 
Cheney: Turkey will be a model for the Middle East - Sabah 
Bush may visit Ankara in June - Sabah 
Erdogan praises Iran to Jewish representatives in US - 
Milliyet 
Erdogan's attitude encouraging - Annan - Turkiye 
Annan: Time running out for Cyprus solution - Milliyet 
Powell a `facilitator' for Cyprus - Hurriyet 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Turkey got what it wanted on Iraq, Cyprus - Radikal 
Bush asks Powell to accelerate Cyprus solution - Cumhuriyet 
Annan signals he may resume Cyprus talks - Radikal 
Annan wants Cyprus agreement in March, referenda in April - 
Zaman 
Papadopolous agrees to unconditional Cyprus talks - Radikal 
Bush to officially visit Ankara in June - Zaman 
US Muslim leaders say Turkey a model for Islamic world - 
Cumhuriyet 
Bremer: No room for PKK/KADEK in Iraq - Cumhuriyet 
John Kerry wins the second round - Zaman 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Erdogan in US:  Dailies give extensive front-page coverage 
to the Bush-Erdogan meeting at the White House on Wednesday. 
Turkey got from the Americans assurances regarding Cyprus 
peace talks, Iraq's territorial integrity, and the PKK 
threat in northern Iraq.  Bush urged Erdogan to seek 
compromise in Cyprus within the framework of the Annan Plan, 
not to object to a federation in Iraq, and to improve ties 
with Armenia.  Bush assured Erdogan that Kurdish demands for 
an ethnic federation in Iraq would not be accepted, and 
promised to eliminate the PKK threat from the region.  Bush 
declined to make clear, specific pledges for removal of the 
PKK terror threat in northern Iraq, according to 
"Cumhuriyet."  The Turks expect the Americans first to close 
the Mahmur refugee camp in the region.  The situation of the 
Turkmen was not raised at the meeting.  Bush tasked 
Secretary Powell to facilitate Cyprus talks through meetings 
 
SIPDIS 
with UN Secretary General Annan.  Bush and Erdogan reached 
agreement on resuming Cyprus negotiations between the 
Turkish and Greek Cypriots in Geneva on February 9, 
"Cumhuriyet" claims.  President Bush may officially visit 
Ankara after attending the NATO Summit in Istanbul in June. 
 
 
Cyprus:  At a joint press conference with EU Commission 
President Prodi, UN Secretary General Annan said that if a 
compromise is reached on Cyprus by late March, the Cypriot 
sides could hold simultaneous referenda in April, paving the 
path to EU membership for a reunited Cyprus.  Annan 
described his meeting with Erdogan in Davos as 
`encouraging,' and said he would decide whether to resume 
talks after meeting with all sides involved in the Cyprus 
issue. 
 
 
Deputy Chief of TGS visits Israel:  Deputy Chief of TGS 
General Ilker Basbug went to Israel on Tuesday, accompanied 
by a delegation of 45 officials from the TGS, the Defense 
Ministry, and the Defense Industry Undersecretariat.  Turks 
will discuss with the Israelis recent developments in Iraq, 
cooperation in the defense industry, and the exchange of 
intelligence in the wake of the fundamentalist terror 
attacks in Istanbul last November. 
 
 
Armenian reaction to Erdogan remarks in US:  Armenia's 
Foreign Minister Oskanjan rejected Prime Minister Erdogan's 
proposal for to remove references to genocide from the 
history books.  Armenia will continue to work to gain 
international recognition for its genocide claims, Oskanyan 
stressed.  Oskanyan, however, found Erdogan `sincere' in his 
effort to repair the strains with Armenia when the Turkish 
prime minister acknowledged that both sides had 
responsibility for past atrocities. 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION: US-TURKEY RELATIONS 
 
 
"Analyzing the Summit" 
Sedat Ergin commented on the results of the Oval office 
meeting in the mass appeal Hurriyet (1/29): "The meeting 
created an opportunity for Washington to give strong 
messages to international public opinion on both the Iraq 
and Cyprus issues.  However, the Bush administration avoided 
making a strongly-worded statement about Iraq.   No 
questions from the press were taken following the statements 
by Erdogan and Bush, and Bush did not provide any detail 
about a possible federation in Iraq.  On Cyprus, President 
Bush only voiced his satisfaction with the Cyprus briefing 
provided by Erdogan.  The Turkish side was hoping to see 
stronger words and stronger messages from Bush, but it 
didn't happen.  . The Kirkuk-Turkoman issue was absent from 
the Oval Office agenda.  It was believed that Erdogan would 
bring up this issue, but he did not.  This will disappoint 
the expectations of Turkish public opinion. .  President 
Bush reiterated the official American commitment to 
eliminate the PKK in northern Iraq.  The statement from Paul 
Bremer in this respect pleased the Turkish side.  Yet it 
remains unclear when the US is going to start taking 
concrete steps on this commitment." 
 
 
"Strategic Tuning with the US" 
Sami Kohen observed in the mass appeal Milliyet (1/29): 
"Turkey's interests and its strategic vision mostly match 
with that of the United States.  The differences may appear 
sometimes, as in northern Iraq, but maintaining the 
partnership seems to be the best way to overcome the 
differences.  This is what the current Turkish government is 
trying to achieve by working on strategic fine-tuning and 
expanding the bilateral cooperation with the United States. 
This policy is compatible with US interests and goals. 
Washington realizes that it needs Turkey and puts Turkey 
into an important category in its foreign relations.  There 
was speculation that Turkey's geo-strategic importance had 
been reduced after the Iraq war in the eyes of the US.  This 
has proven to be false.  The Bush administration treats 
Turkey as an important factor in its global and regional 
policy.  The need for change in the Islamic world, which is 
supported by the AKP government, is a very important policy 
for the Bush administration.  Some problems remain, of 
course, but it is a matter of time for them to be eliminated 
as well.  The strategic fine-tuning taking place in 
Washington this week, however, is a very important step 
which will keep the Turkish-American partnership on track." 
 
 
DEUTSCH