US embassy cable - 04ANKARA3945

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 003945 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT. FOR NEA/I AND EUR/SE; BAGHDAD ALSO FOR MNF-I 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/14/2029 
TAGS: PREL, MARR, PINR, PTER, TU, IZ 
SUBJECT: IRAQ/KIRKUK:GOT GIVES DIFFERENT ASSESSMENTS TO 
DIFFERENT AUDIENCES 
 
REF: A. BAGHDAD 141 
 
     B. BAGHDAD 138 
     C. BAGHDAD 105 
     D. ANKARA 3584 
 
Classified By: CHARGE D'AFFAIRES A.I., ROBERT S. DEUTSCH, REASONS 1.4 B 
 AND D. 
 
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Summary 
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1. (S) An interagency Turkish fact-finding mission visited 
Kirkuk July 6-11 (see Ref B) at the invitation of Patriotic 
Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Jalal Talabani.  On July 14, 
the head of the mission, MFA Deputy Special Representative 
for Iraq Ethem Tokdemir, gave PolMilCouns the talking points 
he prepared to brief the diplomatic corps on the trip. His 
points (at para 2) express extreme concern and come on the 
heels of, and repeat the theme of, a press conference by TGS 
Deputy Chief General Basbug in which Basbug stressed the 
dangers to regional stability of changing the demographics of 
Kirkuk.  Despite Tokdemir's grave and grumpy talking points, 
PUK Ankara rep Bahros Galali told PolMilOff July 14 that he 
had spoken with Tokdemir upon his return, and that Tokdemir 
said the GOT was "very happy about the reality we saw in 
Kirkuk, and that the situation is as Talabani said it was 
during his visit to Ankara" (Ref D).  Galali said the PUK 
fully expected Turkey to take a tough public line despite the 
upbeat private readout.  We will be encouraging Turkey to 
reconcile its strenuous objection to any demographic change 
in Kirkuk with our and Iraq's effort to resettle those who 
were ethnically cleansed/are IDPs from Kirkuk via in the 
Iraqi Property Claims Commission.  End Summary. 
 
2. (C) On July 14, Ethem Tokdemir, the head of the July 6-11 
Turkish fact-finding mission to Kirkuk, and soon-to-be 
Turkish Charge in Baghdad, passed to PolMilCouns the 
following text that Tokdemir had prepared to brief the Ankara 
diplomatic corps on the trip. (The MFA spokesman made similar 
points to the press earlier July 14 - see septel.) 
 
Begin text: 
 
A delegation headed by Mr. Ethem Tokdemir, Assistant to the 
Special Representative of Turkey for Iraq, visited Kirkuk 
from 6 to 11 July 2004.  The delegation met with the local 
authorities, political parties and representatives of all 
ethnic and religious groups, as well as community leaders and 
the US and UK diplomats regarding the recent developments in 
the city and the province. 
 
The observations of the delegation can be summarized as 
follows: 
 
- Kurdish parties, namely the PUK and KDP, are continuing 
their systematic efforts to change the demographic structure 
of Kirkuk.  Thousands of Kurds are being encouraged to move 
to Kirkuk from northern provinces such as Sulaymaiyah and 
Irbil.  The construction works for this purpose are underway. 
 
- Appointments are being made by the Kurdistan Regional 
Government (KRG) to take over the administrative authority of 
the city.  This is without any legal basis as the status of 
Kirkuk has not yet been determined. 
 
- The Kurdish flags were removed from the streets just prior 
to the visit of the delegation. 
 
- Turkomans and Arabs are prevented from using their lands. 
Many properties and lands of the non-Kurdish population of 
the city have been occupied by the armed Kurdish immigrants. 
 
- Turkomans are being forced to sell their properties to the 
newly arriving Kurds. 
 
- Turkomans in Kirkuk feel that their very existence is under 
serious threat resulting from the policies and practices 
mentioned above. 
 
- Turkomans demand that their rights should also be 
guaranteed.  Under the current circumstances, they feel they 
are left to the mercy of the Kurds. 
 
- Frustration and anger are widely observed among the 
inhabitants of Kirkuk, and intercommunal violence is not 
ruled out. 
 
3. (C) Separately, Ankara PUK rep Bahros Galali told 
PolMilOff July 14 that he had spoken with Tokdemir upon the 
return of the delegation, and that Tokdemir had been up-beat 
about what they had seen in Kirkuk.  While there was clearly 
tension, Galali said Tokdemir told him that Turkey was very 
happy with the reality the team saw in Kirkuk, and that the 
situation was stable, as Talabani had told the Turks during 
his recent visit to Ankara.  Galali added that he and 
Talabani expected the Turks to take a hard line in public, 
and to tell the Turkish press that they had been very tough 
with the Kurds during their trip.  (NOTE: They did, in a July 
14 release that warns the IIG that the international 
community is concerned and that the TAL provisions regarding 
Kirkuk should be respected.) 
 
4. (C) COMMENT: Even if the points Tokdemir passed us are 
part of a "hard line" for the public and the diplomatic 
community, the discrepancy between them and what he allegedly 
told Galali is striking.  When asked about the discrepancy, 
Tokdemir simply emphasized that all observers his delegation 
met commented on the ethnic tension in the city. 
 
5. (S) COMMENT (cont.): While we defer to Embassy Baghdad on 
the ground truth of developments in Kirkuk, we note that the 
Turkish position on Kirkuk demographics would seem to object 
to resettling in Kirkuk those Kirkukis who were ethnically 
cleansed from the area by Saddam.  We will be reminding the 
Turks that we, too, support adherence to the TAL provisions 
on Kirkuk, but, as the work of the Iraqi Property Claims 
Commission moves forward, internal migration, including to 
Kirkuk, will occur.  End comment. 
 
6. (U) Baghdad minimize considered. 
DEUTSCH