US embassy cable - 04ANKARA5395

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 005395 
 
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 22, 2004 
 
THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
HEADLINES 
 
MASS APPEALS 
CHP calls for special parliamentary session on penal code - 
Vatan 
CHP urges AKP not to miss EU opportunity - Milliyet 
Barroso: Turkey not yet ready for EU - Aksam 
Kerry: I wouldn't have toppled Saddam - Vatan 
Kerry: US weaker after removal of Saddam - Hurriyet 
British envoy in Rome: Bush is al-Qaeda's best warrior - 
Aksam 
Another abducted American killed in Iraq - Vatan 
Israel to buy 5,000 `smart bombs' from US - Hurriyet 
Israel buys US bombs to strike Iran - Milliyet 
Iran determined to enrich uranium - Sabah 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
EU: Turkey must obey EU rules - Cumhuriyet 
Turkish markets turn to Brussels - Radikal 
Annan tough on US - Cumhuriyet 
Bush-Annan duel on Iraq at UNGA - Zaman 
Painful opening for UN - Radikal 
Bush mocks Kerry - Radikal 
Khatami: Iran will continue its nuclear program - Yeni Safak 
Damascus pulls troops from Lebanon - Zaman 
US removes sanctions on Libya - Radikal 
Saddam may ask Austria for asylum - Yeni Safak 
Putin to divide Georgia into three - Yeni Safak 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
EU/adultery debate:  Turkey's ruling AK Party said on 
Tuesday that parliament may reconvene to approve penal code 
reforms after PM Erdogan has held talks in Brussels with EU 
Enlargement Commissioner Guenter Verheugen and party leaders 
from the European Parliament.  Erdogan will leave for 
Brussels this eveing and hold talks there on Tjursday. 
Earlier yesterday, the main opposition Republican People's 
Party (CHP) had called for parliament to reconvene September 
28, but AKP rejected the request.  The Parliament's next 
regularly scheduled session will begin October 1.  The AK 
Party believes Erdogan can convince the EU on the adultery 
issue.  The incoming head of the European Commission, Jose 
Manuel Durao Barroso, said on Tuesday that `it is Turkey 
that has to adapt to the rules of the EU.  Europe does not 
have to adapt to Turkey's rules.'  The EU Comission is 
reportedly preparing to offer Turkey `conditional' accession 
talks unless AK Party takes a back step on the adultery 
issue.  Mainstream papers accuse PM Erdogan of giving 
ammunition to European opponents of Turkey's accession by 
mishandling the penal code debate.  EU diplomats reportedly 
say that Erdogan is increasingly regarded as a hard-line 
conservative whose position contradicts European values. 
 
US Refuses Permission for Iraq Evacuation:  "Radikal" 
reports that the United States has refused a Turkish 
proposal to evacuate a critically injured employee of the 
Turkish Red Crescent from Iraq, where he was wounded in an 
attack against a humanitarian convoy on Monday.  The report 
claims that the Turkish General Staff (TGS) wanted to fly a 
specially equipped helicopter to Mosul to complete the 
evacuation, which was necessary to carry out an emergency 
operation in Turkey.  US officials offered to fly the 
patient to Turkey in a US helicopter, but so far no 
evacuation has taken place.  The article notes that Turkey 
has given blanket permission for US planes carrying wounded 
US soldiers to land at Incirlik airbase. 
 
FM Gul in New York:  FM Abdullah Gul met with several 
counterparts in New York Tuesday, including Dutch EU term 
president Bot and Greek FM Moliviatis.  Gul attended a 
reception hosted by President Bush at the Waldorf Astoria 
Hotel last evening.  The Turkish FM is expected to address 
the UN General Assembly on Thursday. 
 
Turkish hostages in Iraq:  On Tuesday `Vinsan,' a Turkish 
company working on contracts in Iraq, said it would freeze 
its operations in Iraq in an effort to secure the release of 
10 of its workers who were abducted by militants allegedly 
linked to al-Zarkawi.  State Minister Kursad Tuzmen said 
yesterday that Turkey did not have the luxury of halting 
trade with Iraq.  Tuzmen said that the chaos in Iraq makes 
it difficult to trade and send humanitarian aid to the 
country.  200 Turkish companies are currently working in 
Iraq.  Reports say that about 2,000 Turkish trucks continue 
going through the Harbur border gate into Iraq every day. 
 
New Iraqi ambassador in Turkey:  The new Iraqi Ambassador to 
Ankara, Sabah Cemil Omran, will take office later today 
after presenting his credentials to President Sezer on 
Wednesday.  Mr Omran is a Sunni Arab who served as a junior 
diplomat in Ankara in the 1960s. 
EU cautious about `TRNC':  The EU is objecting to the `TRNC' 
joining meetings between the EU and the Organization of 
Islamic Conference (OIC) in Istanbul next month under the 
name `Cyprus Turkish State,' "Zaman" reports.  A Dutch EU 
official told `TRNC PM' Talat that the Turkish Cypriots 
should attend the talks as the `Cyprus Turkish Community' or 
under no official name at all.  The EU is afraid that the 
designation `Cyprus Turkish State' could imply recognition 
of the `TRNC,' "Zaman" speculates. 
 
US Eximbank loan for Turkish trains:  "Zaman" reports that 
US Eximbank will give Turkey's State Railroad Directorate 
(DDY) $91.5 million in loan guarantees for the modernization 
of Turkey's railroad system.  US Eximbank reportedly gave 
General Motors a $86.8 million loan for renewing Turkish 
rail cars and providing spare parts for the DDY. 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
 
"A Dirty Game in Iraq" 
Fuat Bol commented in the conservative-mass appeal "Turkiye" 
(9/22):  "A systematic operation implemented against Turks 
is taking place in Iraq.  The goal here is to keep Turkey 
and the Turks out of Iraq, so that Turkey's intervention in 
the upcoming Iraqi civil war will be prevented.  This is the 
game!  Why is the US playing this game?  The US does not 
plan to stay in Iraq forever.  It had two goals in Iraq -- 
to topple Saddam and his regime, and to gain control of 
Iraq's oil reserves.  The US really doesn't care about the 
other problems in Iraq.  The second goal is more important 
than the first, because the real purpose of  the Iraq 
invasion - as well as possible military operations in Iran 
and Syria -- is the oil reserves.  Turkey is making a big 
effort to open a second border gate with Iraq through 
Ovakoy.  This gate would connect Iraqi Turkmen territory to 
Turkey.  The Ovakoy-Tal Afar- Mosul - Kirkuk line is a very 
strategic route for everyone.  Acting according to US 
wishes, the Kurds' main target is to add these Turkmen areas 
to their own land.  The Kurds don't hesitate from playing 
any dirty game to reach this goal.  The administration of 
the Turkmen region has been given to Kurdish peshmerge based 
on `security concerns.'  All Turkmen government offices are 
under the control of the peshmerge, including the land 
registration office.  Knowing that it is not possible to 
establish a state without oil reserves, the Peshmerge now 
declare that Turkmen land falls within the Kurdish region. 
But the US is keeping its under control, and will never 
leave the oil reserves to the peshmerge.  The US plans are 
for tomorrow.  It is obvious that the US will carry out 
operations in Syria and Iran very soon.  Therefore, it has 
to maintain control of this strategic line, from Syria to 
Iran, through Northern Iraq.  With the opening of the Ovakoy 
border gate, this strategic region would be under the 
control of Turkey, and the US and the peshmerge would not be 
able to act as they wish.  Knowing this, the US and the 
peshmerge are playing this dirty game.  Their goal is to 
isolate Turkey from the region, both militarily and 
economically." 
 
"Crisis Deepens over Penal Code Reform" 
Ali Bayramoglu wrote in the Islamist-oriented "Yeni Safak" 
(9/22):  "The debate over the Turkish criminal code doesn't 
look like it will end anytime soon.  Despite what people 
emay be hoping, PM Erdogan has made it clearly understood 
that the Government has no intention of taking a step back 
on this issue and will not pay attention to EU demands.  He 
has laid out his action plan: he will explain to the EU that 
their demands with regard to the penal code are 
illegitimate.  Whether this approach is realistic will only 
be determined at the end of his trip to Brussels.  But there 
is no reason to hold out much hope on the question.  In 
fact, quite the opposite.Columnists, politicians, and 
experts are having a difficult time explaining this in the 
face of strong negative press coverage in Europe.  The 
problem is basically a sociological one.  Despite the fact 
that the AK Party, as a ruling national party, has taken 
revolutionary steps toward greater political rights and 
freedoms, it hasn't been able to push ahead with similar 
measures on moral, traditional issues.  The `deep rift' with 
regard to the EU stems from this.  We must also say that 
these recent events have been indexed directly to PM 
Erdogan.  He is the one who has been engaged and insistent 
on the adultery issue.  He is the one who blocked further 
debate on the criminal code, even over the objections of 
some ministers and despite the fact that the decision led to 
this difficult situation.  And if there is one person who 
represents AK Party and its soul, it is the Prime Minister. 
At this point, the AK party group has fallen in behind the 
Prime Minister, and the friction and debate within the party 
have been put in abeyance.  What will happen under these 
conditions, and where this will lead is difficult to say. 
Is there a way out of this?  Only time will tell." 
EDELMAN