US embassy cable - 04ANKARA2812

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002812 
 
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, 
TUESDAY, MAY 18, 2004 
 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER 
THREE THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
 
 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Blair: Turkey will get a date for EU accession talks - 
Milliyet 
Blair promises support on Cyprus, EU - Hurriyet 
Six-hour lightning visit by Blair - Sabah 
Bush, Blair planning urgent exit from Iraq - Milliyet 
IGC chairman dies in suicide attack - Milliyet 
Rice `ashamed' of abuse of Iraqis - Aksam 
4,000 US troops in South Korea to deploy to Iraq - Sabah 
Athens, Ankara to reduce defense spending - Hurriyet 
Powell supports Palestine at WEF - Turkiye 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Blair: We'll stay in Iraq until we're done - Cumhuriyet 
Britain will work for Turkey - Zaman 
US wants new bases from Turkey - Cumhuriyet 
Bush, Blair plan to leave Iraq soon - Yeni Safak 
Shiite cities under fire - Radikal 
Powell admits info on mobile Iraqi WMD facilities was false 
- Cumhuriyet 
Israel destroys homes; Palestinians on the road again - 
Zaman 
Israel preparing for massacre - Yeni Safak 
Basayev claims responsibility for Kadirov killing - 
Cumhuriyet 
WB's Vorkink: Turkey's economic balances in order - Radikal 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Tony Blair visits Ankara:  British PM Tony Blair paid a six- 
hour working visit to Ankara on Monday.  In a joint press 
conference with Turkish PM Erdogan, Blair said Turkey would 
most likely win a date in December to begin entry talks with 
the EU next year.  He also said a ban on flights to northern 
Cyprus could be scrapped to help ease the international 
isolation of Turkish Cypriots.  However, Blair refrained 
from making a concrete pledge with regard to Cyprus.  Blair 
and Erdogan agreed to work together on security and 
migration issues.  Blair also asked for Turkish support in 
Afghanistan and Iraq.  Blair ruled out any "quick exit" from 
Iraq, and said British troops would be kept there until 
stability is restored.  Erdogan noted to Blair that the 
Iraqi people turned down Turkey's offer to deploy troops in 
Iraq.  `This issue is no longer on the agenda in Ankara,' 
Erdogan said. 
 
 
US wants new bases from Turkey:  The US wants to use Turkey 
as a military center for controlling the Middle East, the 
Caucasus, and the Caspian Basin, "Cumhuriyet" claims on its 
front page today.  The Bush Administration wants to clarify 
all plans, including the Greater Middle East (GME) 
initiative, before the June NATO Summit in Istanbul.  In 
this light, the US may renew demands from Ankara it had made 
before the war with Iraq, the paper claims. Washington has 
asked Ankara to expand Incirlik Airbase and establish naval 
bases in Trabzon and Samsun.  The Americans want to deploy 
48 warplanes, 10 tanker planes, and 1,000 military personnel 
to Incirlik.  The US has also requested to use the Karapinar 
region in Konya province for military exercises.  The US is 
planning these moves within the framework of its bilateral 
relations with Turkey - that is, outside of the NATO 
platform.  An anonymous source at the Foreign Ministry said 
that the US `has not presented a comprehensive package of 
demands as it did before the Iraq war.' `The US is reviewing 
its forces and bases in the region, and is continuing 
routine work with Turkey within this context,' the MFA 
official added.  He also noted that US-Turkish relations 
remain strong.  President Bush will be visiting Ankara 
before going to Istanbul for the NATO Summit. "Cumhuriyet" 
claims that the US wants to receive a positive response from 
Turkey to its demands before the Bush visit. 
 
 
US Human Rights and Democracy report:  The US State 
Department's report on `Supporting Human Rights and 
Democracy 2003-2004' says that the US has asked the Turkish 
government to reopen Halki Seminary in Istanbul, 
"Cumhuriyet" reports.  The US Embassy has stressed the need 
for free expression of all religions, including 
Protestantism, Bahaism and Jehovah's Witnesses, the report 
emphasizes.  Turkey has made progress on human rights, but 
the influence of the military in politics and the use of 
torture against detainees continues, the report stressed. 
The US has granted $894,000 for treatment of torture 
victims, and will hold an international conference on 
torture in Ankara next year.  The report also notes that the 
US Embassy in Turkey has been working in close cooperation 
with Turkish NGOs to strengthen civic society. 
 
 
Turkey, Greece agree to cut defense spending:  Turkish and 
Greek defense ministers have agreed to make reciprocal cuts 
in defense spending over the next five years.  Turkish 
Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul conveyed to his Greek 
counterpart Spilios Spiliotopoulos in Brussels on Monday the 
decision by Ankara to reduce defense spending. 
Spiliotopoulos welcomed the move.  Athens will review its 
Cyprus doctrine, and Ankara will cooperate with Athens in 
the fight against terrorism, papers report. 
 
 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Iraq/Syria 
 
 
"The Pentagon's Internal War" 
Haluk Ulman commented in the economic-political Dunya 
(5/18): "As the Iraq war turns even more messy, an internal 
war has started within the Pentagon.  There is a pro- 
Rumsfeld group and a pro-Powell group.  It is no secret that 
the State Department and the Pentagon had serious 
differences about the Iraq operation.  But the recent 
torture photos brought these disagreements to the forefront 
among high-ranking officials in the administration. . The 
history of this internal disagreement goes back to the early 
days of Iraq war.  Before the war, Powell advocated a larger 
number of troops, while Rumsfeld argued that a smaller-scale 
troop deployment could be successful with the help of 
advanced US military technology.  In the end, Rumsfeld and 
his staff have been proven wrong.  Even General Myers has 
admitted this failure.  What we have been seeing is the 
military beginning to take revenge because Rumsfeld did not 
consider their advice seriously and now wants to blame them 
for Abu Ghraib." 
 
 
"Syria is next" 
Yalcin Dogan wrote in the mass appeal Hurriyet (5/18): "The 
resolution against Syria, which was sent to Congress by 
President Bush on May 11, very much resembles the one 
against Iraq 1.5 years ago.  Syria is to face an embargo in 
many fields and a trade ban on all products except food and 
medicine.  Air routes between Syria and the US are to be 
blocked.  All of this indicates that Syria is next on the 
list after Iraq.  President Bush is apparently not satisfied 
by bringing so much trouble to the world, so he is now 
obsessed with Syria.  At the same time, initial signs 
indicate that the EU does not share Bush's view and opposes 
the US sanctions policy against Syria.  A visiting EU 
delegation in Damascus noted that the US embargo is wrong 
and pledged support for trade with Syria.  The EU says that 
Syrian goods, including oil and gas destined for European 
countries, can be transported via Turkey.  This means that 
Turkey will find itself in difficulty with the US if it 
becomes a route for Syrian products." 
"The Way Out" 
Fikret Bila argued in the mass appeal Milliyet (5/18):  "The 
US and UK are searching for a way out in Iraq by trying to 
establish an Iraqi government that will have the Iraqis' 
trust and support but will also defend US and UK interests. 
Is it possible to have such an administration in Iraq? 
Would Iraqis support such a government?  Moreover, could an 
Iraqi administration defend US and UK interests after 
getting such support from its own people?  This is not 
possible.  Only a `puppet government' could allow a 
continued US and British military presence in Iraq and take 
care of their economic and political interests.  But this 
kind of government would never get the support of the Iraqi 
people.  If the choice is left to the people, they will 
definitely elect an anti-American and anti-British 
administration, which will most likely be a Shiite 
government.  Secretary Powell already says the US will 
respect a religious administration in Iraq if that comes out 
of the election process.  The US is no longer interested in 
the type of government that will be established in Iraq, but 
only in whether that government will preserve a US and 
British military presence, prevent violence against US and 
UK forces, and protect the economic and political interests 
of the US in Iraq.  I would like to think that the US will 
not allow the Iraqi people to carry Iraq toward a civil war 
through more ethnic and religious conflict while they are 
looking for their escape hatch." 
 
 
EDELMAN