US embassy cable - 04ANKARA2779

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002779 
 
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, MAY 17, 2004 
 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER 
THREE THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
 
 
 
 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEAL 
US may OK Islamic theocracy in Iraq - Hurriyet 
Bush vows to prevent torture - Milliyet 5/16 
Blair: Annan Plan `best method' for a united Cyprus - 
Hurriyet 
Balir to announce British flights to `TRNC' - Sabah 5/16 
Powell: President determined to see a Palestinian state - 
Sabah 5/16 
Israel marks hundreds of Palestinian homes for destruction - 
Milliyet 
US criticizes Israel's destruction of Palestinian homes - 
Hurriyet 
150,000 Israelis urge withdrawal from Gaza - Sabah 
Israelis call on Sharon to leave - Turkiye 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Powell: Iraq may choose Islamic regime - Cumhuriyet 
New Yorker: Rumsfeld encouraged torture in Iraq - Radikal 
Rumsfeld ordered torture in Afghanistan, Iraq - Cumhuriyet 
US Administration restricts interrogation methods in Iraq - 
Radikal 5/16 
Powell officially apologizes to Iraqi captives - Yeni Safak 
Private England: We were having fun - Zaman 
Death toll of American soldiers in Iraq reaches 780 - 
Cumhuriyet 5/16 
Israel: military operations in Palestine will expand - Yeni 
Safak 
Israeli court says military right to destroy Palestinian 
homes - Radikal 
Britons want Blair to step down - Radikal 
US ups pressure on Cuba - Cumhuriyet 
One million Cubans rally against Bush - Cumhuriyet 5/16 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Tony Blair due in Ankara:  British Prime Minister Tony Blair 
will pay a working visit to Ankara on Monday to pledge his 
support for Turkey's bid to join the EU and to discuss the 
turmoil in Iraq.  Blair, the first British leader to visit 
Ankara since Margaret Thatcher 16 years ago, is expected to 
praise Turkey's EU reforms and stress Turkey's importance as 
a secular, democratic, Muslim country.  Prime Minister 
Erdogan is expected to pay a reciprocal visit to London in 
late May.  Turkish newspapers predict that Blair will also 
express support for direct air links between Britain and 
northern Cyprus. 
 
 
EU interim report on Turkey:  The European Union will tell 
Turkish officials at the EU-Turkey Accession Partnership 
Council meeting this week that Ankara must do more to bring 
torturers to justice and to safeguard the freedom of 
religious minorities.  Turkish and EU officials will discuss 
an interim report drafted by the EU.  The report praises 
Turkey for its reforms, but warns Ankara to ensure that they 
are fully put into practice.  The EU report points to 
ongoing problems in implementation.  Specifically, the 
report notes that there are still no Kurdish-language 
broadcasts on Turkish radio and television, and criticizes 
Turkish authorities for failure to prosecute police officers 
accused of using torture against detainees.  Despite the 
constitutional right to freedom of religion, minority groups 
such as Greek Orthodox Christians continue to experience 
difficulties due to long-running property disputes, the 
reports claims.  The European Commission will issue a more 
detailed report on Turkey's progress toward the Copenhagen 
Citeria this in fall.  The report will form the basis of the 
EU decision about Turkey to be taken in December. 
Lebanese paper: Turkey will freeze deals with Israel: 
Turkey will freeze bilateral agreements with Israel, 
including the modernization of tanks and jetfighters and the 
sale of Turkish water to Israel, according to the Lebanese 
newspaper "Al-Mustakbal."  The paper regards the alleged 
suspension of agreements as Ankara's reaction to Israel's 
killing of Hamas leaders in the occupied territories. 
Ankara will also cancel military agreement with the US 
within the framework of this shift in foreign policy, the 
Lebanese daily reported.  The Turkish Embassy in Israel said 
such press stories were false and were intended to spoil 
relations between Turkey and Israel.  Israeli diplomatic 
sources also denied the report, and pointed to Turkish FM 
Gul's eagerness to improve bilateral ties expressed at a 
meeting with his Israeli counterpart in Dublin two weeks 
ago. 
 
 
Turkish Cypriots may hold early elections:  `TRNC Prime 
Minister' Mehmet Ali Talat has called for new elections in 
northern Cyprus, which he said would register the 
preferences of Turkish Cypriots following the April 
referendum on the UN-backed peace plan for the reunification 
of Cyprus.  Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash said he 
would not contest next year's presidential election.  In 
explaining his decision, Denktash cited his age (82) and his 
view that it is time to hand the reins of power to a younger 
generation.  Meanwhile, the Organization of Islamic 
Conferences (OIC) is preparing to upgrade the position of 
the Turkish Cypriot enclave within the organization.  The 
OIC will decide at their June Istanbul meeting to address 
the Turkish Cypriots as the `State of Northern Cyprus' as 
envisaged in the Annan Plan.  The organization had 
previously referred to the `TRNC' as the `Turkish Muslim 
community of Northern Cyprus.' 
 
 
NATO turns south:  Monday's "Cumhuriyet" writes that the 
June NATO Summit in Istanbul will mark a significant 
transformation within the alliance.  NATO has turned to the 
South, the source of fundamentalist terror.  The Istanbul 
NATO Summit will discuss the expansion of the "Mediterranean 
Dialogue" to include the countries from north Africa and the 
Middle East, according to "Cumhuriyet."  The effort would be 
aimed at broadening the dialogue with countries in the 
region, encouraging greater democracy, and forging security 
partnerships to combat international terrorism. 
"Cumhuriyet" claims that the NATO summit may also strengthen 
the role of NATO's rapid reaction force, which was 
established at last year's summit in Prague. 
 
 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Iraq/GME Initiative 
 
 
"Humiliation and Democratization" 
Gunduz Aktan wrote in the liberal-intellectual Radikal 
(5/15): "Describing the way the U.S. media tackled the Abu 
Gharib scandal and the intense questioning of Pentagon 
officials by the US Congress as an example of the 
superiority of American democracy would only be half right. 
How can the legal mechanisms of a country in which the law 
is supreme wait such a long time before taking a stand on 
the mistreatment that ruined so many lives? How can members 
of a society that claims it has high moral values perpetrate 
such acts? The fact that the first report about the abuse 
was written in January shows, at the minimum, that US 
officials turned a blind eye to it.  The truth is that 
values such as democracy and respect for human rights are 
insufficient to eliminate bad aspects of human behavior. 
Under certain conditions, these aspects of human behavior 
come to dominate. No one country should should claim to 
embody these values.  The United States is especially 
unfortunate in this respect. A short time after committing 
itself to spreading its high values to the Islamic world, it 
was seen that many Americans view the Iraqis as subhuman. 
This behavior reminds us of the photos of lynched African 
Americans in the second half of the 19th century. 
Evidently, the Greater Middle East Initiative's objective to 
democratize is subconsciously linked to racism, in line with 
the `clash of civilizations.'  There are always some `small' 
problems like this when countries are democratized from the 
outside." 
 
 
"Torture and American Internal Politics" 
Yasemin Congar wrote from Washington in the mass appeal 
Milliyet (5/17): "The Abu Ghraib photos have provided a test 
for American democracy.  The case does not reflect 
individual or isolated incidents, but rather a systematic 
pattern of abuse.  It will be very important how this case 
is handled, because the outcome will have a serious effect 
on the administration and the political careers of key US 
players. . Considering the photos as evidence of America's 
dark intentions in Iraq is overreacting.  However, the 
photos are undeniably a part of the larger Iraq issue.  The 
American people have already reached this conclusion, and 
support for Bush has dropped to 42 percent, its lowest level 
to this point.  The fact of the matter is that Bush's rival, 
John Kerry, has not yet managed to have this work to his 
benefit. . Due to the Abu Ghraib scandal, President Bush 
seems in danger of losing the election.  The situation in 
Iraq will continue to play a major role in the choice made 
by American voters." 
 
 
"Liberty or Order" 
Ergun Babahan wrote in the mass appeal Sabah (5/17):  "An 
election atmosphere has already settled over Washington. 
The recent drop in President Bush's approval rating has 
increased election tensions, especially among the 
Republicans. There is an ongoing row between the State 
Department and the Pentagon.  An official from the Pentagon 
elaborated on the issue, saying that the fight is about the 
priority of `order' over `freedom' in Iraq.  The most hated 
name in town is Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld.  Anger at 
Rumsfeld runs deep, even among Republicans.  It is common 
knowledge that he has messed up the Iraq issue, and he is 
widely expected to resign.  Regardless of what happens to 
Rumsfeld, everyone agrees that Bush is heading into the 
election in a weak position. .The US enters the summer with 
election tension, fear of terrorism, and a heated debate 
over the future of Iraq." 
 
 
EDELMAN