US embassy cable - 04ANKARA5078

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 005078 
 
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, 
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2004 
 
THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
HEADLINES 
 
MASS APPEALS 
Verheugen: Violence will solve nothing - Hurriyet 
Beslan a powder keg - Milliyet 
Putin won't meet with `child killers' - Huriyet 
Turkish truck driver killed near Samarra - Aksam 
Talabani offers Kurdish guards for Turkish truckers - 
Milliyet 
Bloody fighting in Baghdad: 41 dead - Milliyet 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Verheugen asks for more Kurdish cultural rights - Yeni Safak 
Verheugen: Turkish reforms impressive, but not sufficient - 
Radikal 
Putin will get tougher - Cumhuriyet 
New Russian-Israeli cooperation against terror - Cumhuriyet 
Thousands of Russians march against terror - Cumhuriyet 
Advised by Clinton, Kerry launches attack - Radikal 
Massacre by Israeli missiles: 14 Palestinians killed - Yeni 
Safak 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
EU enlargement chief in Turkey:  Turkey has made a start on 
improving cultural rights for its Kurdish minority under EU 
reforms, but the reform program must go further, European 
Union Enlargement Commissioner Guenter Verheugen said on 
Tuesday.  Verheugen highlighted Kurdish language education 
and broadcasting as key areas for further steps.  Verheugen 
is in Turkey on a final fact-finding trip ahead of an 
European Commission report on Turkey's EU entry bid.  `I'm 
pleased that broadcasting has started, but I have to say 
that what we have seen so far can only be a beginning,' he 
told reporters during a visit to Tuzla village near 
Diyarbakir, in southeast Turkey.  Verheugen said that Turkey 
should increase efforts to allow displaced Kurds to return 
to villages destroyed in the 20-year separatist conflict. 
Two policemen were killed in an attack on a police 
checkpoint in Diyarbakir while Verheugen was in the city. 
Verheugen told representatives of human rights organizations 
that the EU entry process would ensure the continuation and 
acceleration of domestic reforms.  Lawyers reportedly told 
Verheugen that there had been a decrease in human rights 
violations in the region, thanks to Turkey's efforts to get 
a date for entry talks.  On Wednesday, Verheugen will 
proceed to the Aegean city of Izmir for meetings with local 
officials and representatives of civic organizations. 
 
Iraqi Kurdish leaders visit Ankara:  Visiting northern Iraqi 
Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) official Necirvan Barzani 
said after meeting with FM Abdullah Gul that the current 
border crossing system should be strengthened before a 
second border gate is opened between the two countries. 
Responding to a question, Barzani said the northern Iraqi 
Kurds are part of the central government in Baghdad. 
Barzani said in his meeting with Gul that the Kurds 
considered the PKK/Kongra Gel to be a terrorist organization 
and an enemy of Iraqi Kurds.  Several papers reported, 
however, that Barzani urged the Turks to use Osman Ocalan, 
whom he characterized as a `moderate,' to Turkey's benefit 
in its struggle against the PKK.  Barzani also urged Gul to 
start direct flights between Turkey and the northern Iraqi 
city of Suleymaniye.  Turkey is a model for the Iraqi Kurds, 
Barzani noted.  On Tuesday evening Jalal Talabani, leader of 
the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), stopped over in 
Ankara en route to Europe.  Talabani told reporters that 
Turkish truck drivers could be escorted by Kurdish guards if 
Turks choose the Suleymaniye-Kirkuk route instead of the 
road through Mosul.  Commenting on recent military clashes 
in Tel Afer, Talabani said that some Turkmen in the city had 
been killed by terrorists, not by US forces.  Talabani will 
be meeting with MFA officials on Wednesday. 
 
Another Turkish Driver Killed in Iraq:  All papers report 
that another Turkish truck driver was killed in Iraq 
yesterday.  The driver, who was not immediately identified, 
came under attack on the road near the northern Iraqi city 
of Samarra.  Meanwhile, the captors of Tahsin Top, a Turkish 
driver who was taken hostage more than 40 days ago, have 
demanded ransom money in exchange for his release. 
 
Iraqi children die of clashes, disease:  About 3,000 Iraqi 
children die every month due to fighting, disease and 
malnutrition, the Iraqi Health Ministry reports in today's 
"Zaman."  Some weapons used by US forces in the region have 
caused new children's diseases unseen in Iraq before the 
war, the ministry said.  The shortage of medicine in Iraq is 
worse than the situation during Saddam's time, "Zaman" 
claims.  The Iraqi Health Ministry also pointed to problems 
in the distribution of medicine around the country.  Iraq's 
only drug production plant is in Samarra in northern Iraq, 
the site of frequent armed clashes. 
 
PKK Kidnaps three in Lice, Diyarbakir:  PKK militants have 
allegedly kidnapped three civilians in the southeastern town 
of Lice, near Diyarbakir.  Captors of the three have 
demanded ransom to secure their release. 
 
AKP Still Tops Polls:  A public opinion poll released by the 
ANAR polling firm shows that the AKP holds a large lead 
against all political rivals.  51.2 percent of respondents 
in the poll expressed a preference for AKP, while just 16.8 
percent favored the opposition CHP.  No other party received 
over 10 percent support.  A majority of respondents, about 
52 percent, identified unemployment as the biggest problem 
facing Turkey today. 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION: Global War on Terror 
 
"The side effects of terror" 
Sami Kohen noted in the mass appeal "Milliyet" (9/8): "The 
North Ossetia disaster is big enough to shake up both 
Russian domestic and international politics.  The Russians 
voiced their strong reaction against the terrorists, yet the 
Russian incompetence in dealing with the problem has also 
put the Putin administration on the spot.  People are upset 
at those Russian officials who either showed a very weak 
performance or lied to them.  Even Putin himself has been 
subjected to harsh criticism. . This is the most serious 
crisis Putin has faced as President.  He might try to be 
`tougher' from now to restore his weakening popularity, or 
he might try to silence his opponents.  Based on his most 
recent remarks, the latter course seems more likely.  . The 
incident will also have an effect on Russian foreign policy. 
Putin is trying to gain Western support on the Ossetia issue 
by making a linkage to international terrorism.  Some 
leaders, including President Bush, have already lined up 
next to Russia.  However, some political circles of Europe 
and some in the US press are treating this issue with 
greater caution.  The Dutch Foreign Minister, for instance, 
struck a suspicious tone, which drew an angry reaction from 
Putin, who blamed the Europeans for applying double 
standards. Putin seems bound to go through a very tough 
period, both internally and internationally." 
 
"Saving Islam" 
Cuneyt Ulsever warned in the mass appeal "Hurriyet" (9/8): 
"The fact is that vicious murderers are being produced from 
Muslim populations. They have shown a willingness to abuse 
the Koran without shame.  It is also a fact that 99.99 of 
the Muslims have nothing to do with any of this.  Yet a tiny 
few encourage or advocate terrorism based on a sense of 
`vengeance' for perceived injustices.  All of this leads to 
another bitter fact, which is the identification of Islam 
with these murderers as far as international public opinion 
is concerned. . Fortunately, a majority of Muslims in this 
country act with common sense.  But they now have an 
important task -- to restore the image of Islam.  Turkey's 
EU vision is a project that embraces two civilizations -- 
Islam and the Western world.  This project allows Turkey to 
be a bridge between civilizations. . Turkey must condemn 
terrorism in the strongest possible terms before the entire 
world." 
 
EDELMAN